PSN Review: "Dead Nation"

Publisher: Sony Computer Entertainment

Developer: House Marque

Release Date: November 30, 2010 (USA)

Premise:

Dead Nation is an Isometric-style Twin-Stick Shooter. The player takes control of one of two main characters (or both if playing Co-Op) and fights hordes of zombies through various cities as they aim to escape the zombie apocalypse.

Gameplay: 

Being an Isometric-style Twin-Stick Shooter means you always see your character from the top down, though it's only Three-Quarters so you can see the immediate area around you. The objective in the game has you running from checkpoint to checkpoint, similar to Left4Dead, as you run around different areas killing zombies and earning money. You can then spend the money you earned at the beginning of each checkpoint at the store, which is an armored van.

Inside the van you can purchase and upgrade new weapons as well accessories such as grenades, flares, landmines and more. As you play the game, you will need to explore the areas to find crates that can contain anything from more ammunition to pieces of armor. When you find new armor you can equip the armor at the store, choosing a balance between very armored clothes that weigh a lot and slow you down and light armor that provides less protection but lets you run faster.

Graphics:

The graphics for this Playstation Network Game are very nice. The animations of the zombies are done really well and the textures of the environments really give you the feeling that the end of times have arrived. The buildings and vehicles you come across are richly detailed and look as though all hell broke loose not too long before you arrived, meshing perfectly with the game.

Sound:

There isn't a whole lot of different sounds in the game, there's some music that plays during the game to get you in the mood of shooting zombies and even some emotional music during the few cut-scenes there are and it's good. The sounds that the zombies make as they run after you are just about what you'd expect a zombie to sound like. The weapon noise seems appropriate as well, nothing too much or too little.

Length:

Dead Nation is not an Open-World type game, though you can explore the areas you visit. It is a linear title that sees you running through streets, parks and other areas trying to get to the next checkpoint. While there isn't a huge area to explore, there is a necessity in scavenging as much as you can to collect all of the money, ammo and armor pieces you need to survive. A typical playthrough will take you between 4-6 hours depending on how much exploring you do.

Value:

Dead Nation is a very fun game to play, especially if you play it with a friend on the same screen so you can team up for some zombie-killing fun. I purchased this game at full price on the Playstation Network and haven't regretted it yet, so I would definitely recommend you picking this title up if you just can't get enough zombies.