Zombocalypse Now Review

The end of the world is nigh and it's all down to a stuffed bunny with a penchant for bad dates to save it. Yes, don't expect Zombocalypse Now to be an overly serious tale on how to survive a zombie apocalypse because this really isn't it. Instead, it's a very tongue-in-cheek Choose Your Own Adventure style game, courtesy of Tin Man Games and author Matt Youngmark.

It's a pretty fun tale, too. While it might lack the interactive components of a Fighting Fantasy adventure gamebook with no need for dice or stat tracking in any way, it's still quite endearing. Players start out in a restaurant on the date from hell and things deteriorate from there. It's down to this lone stuffed bunny to figure out how to survive, and who to help or escape from. Along the way, one comes across many crazy characters, plenty of zombies, and even aggressive zombie ponies.

Death is incredibly common here. With over 100 endings, most of these involve the gruesome demise of the main character. At first, this might seem a little frustrating to those who prefer to reach the 'good' endings but I found myself enjoying the wacky ways in which one could die. The only thing that would have made it better is some way of tracking the different methods, such as via a mapping feature or simply a list. Achievements are there but it's not quite the same. Issues also arise with the buttons that must be pressed to choose an option. They're sometimes quite fiddly to tap on, even with small fingers.

Much like the book it's based on, Zombocalypse Now is most ideal for young adults but it'll appeal to any zombie loving adult, really. A fair change of pace from the more D&D-esque nature of Fighting Fantasy, Zombocalypse Now offers humor in plentiful doses as well as a hefty supply of longevity, even despite its issues. Just don't expect to have a happy ending very often.