I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MBIES 1NIT!!!1

Since Micro$oft adopted the concept community games, I'd to say it's been a rough start. The market is filled with screen tests, drum machines, vibration massages and controllers used as vibrators themselves. For every game like Weapon of Choice, there's ten more like A Perfect Massage or Aquarium HD. Now, I realize that shovelware is an inevitability, but at the rate those games were being produced, any game worth any merit would get buried fast.

Fortunately enough, M$ implemented a new rating system to go along with the new price ranges for their indie games, giving us the option of playing the best of the best rather than dig and hope you find oil. While waiting for Shadow Complex to become available for download, I was recommended one such indie game entitled "I MAED A GAM3 W1TH Z0MBIES 1NIT!!!1". I didn't have any idea what it was about and the name itself irked me in a way that only 1337 spelling can. After I got over that quirk, I decided to give it a whirl as it's on sale for the low low price of only a dollar.

The game itself was made by the Gentleman that made ZP2K9 and Dishwasher:Dead Samurai, a Mr. James Silva of Ska Studios. Z0MBIES is an arena shooter/swarm game somewhat similar to Geometry Wars with the addition of several weapon types ranging from shotguns to lasers and everything you can in between. As you might imagine, the primary goal of the game is to shoot zombies and other assorted enemies like asteroids and snakes without becoming a member of the living dead yourself. This is easier said than done though, when I say this is a swarm game, I really mean it. While the combat in Geometry wars is about avoiding enemies, Z0MBIES takes it in another direction where you're forced to try and fight your way out of the endless hordes with death coming closer and closer. You truly feel claustrophobic and uneasy as the waves get more and more immense.

Now, while all this is good and fun, where Z0MBIES thrives is really in the presentation department. While playing the game, rather than have a traditional soundtrack, the player's ears will be graced with a 15 minute indie/prog rock parody about the game itself and how it does indeed only cost a dollar. To go along with the music, the stage itself will evolve from being a simple room to being a light extravaganza that wouldn't look out of place at a rock concert. The transitions from motifs flow along with the song; the spacey parts involve a murky looking background with a hail of meteors homing to the player to the drum & bass part consisting of an electric light parade with evil slimes and digitalized demon faces. The game ends with the music rather than looping, but really, the song itself is what makes this game stand out, so why would you want to keep playing when it's done?

It's a fun game that you really can't wrong with. For only a dollar, you could do worse. Oh yeah, did I mention local 4 player co-op?