Review: Sniper Elite: Nazi Zombie Army

By now, most of us are probably seasoned zombie killers. The past few years have seen an influx of zombie games and some might say the genre has become over-saturated. Regardless, Rebellion have decided to get involved and release a modified version of their game, Sniper Elite V2, entitled Nazi Zombie Army.

As the title suggests, yes, it most definitely has a lot of zombies in it.

Publisher: Rebellion
Developer: Rebellion
Release Date: Out Now
Format: PC
Version Tested: PC
Price: £10

As a last resort against the allied forces, Hitler has decided to unleash his army of hellish zombies. Karl Fairburne, the main protagonist, makes a return in the single player, and in cooperative he is joined by a Russian and two Germans. The campaign is spread across four missions and three different difficulty settings are available. Each mission length ranges between 45 minutes and 90 minutes and there are collectibles peppered throughout each level.

Germany is now a very bleak and eerie place and proves an excellent home for its new inhabitants. Unfortunately, things start out pretty badly. The first level is lack-luster in its design, incessantly sticking with a greyscale palette, and apart from the occasional satanic swastika drawn on the wall with blood, there isn’t much that catches the eye. Later levels, however, have a much darker and fearful setting. Simply exploring what is left of Berlin, it is possible to come across some rather gory and gruesome things. The game is dark, bloody and evil and the setting does a fantastic job of matching it and helps set the tone for the game. Nazi Zombie Army is definitely not for the faint-hearted.

As one might expect, it plays exactly the same as Sniper Elite V2. Those who are looking to find some new mechanics in the zombiefied version will be disappointed. That’s not a bad thing, however, and much like its predecessor, what it does, it does very well. Amongst other things, the infamous x-ray killcam makes a return, allowing players to watch their vital hits penetrate in slow-motion.

Upon the start of a mission, loadouts can be selected. Players will have the choice of different sniper rifles, submachine guns and side arms, all provided as well as the amount of explosive players can carry. Throughout certain parts of the game, players will have to survive a siege of zombies. There are various tools of destruction that can be used, such as land mines and dynamite to slow down the horde heading towards players. When these set pieces begin, players can seize an opportunity to get some expert headshots in from the ledge of a window. This can and will slowly turn into the player standing at the top of a stairwell, picking off the zombies one by one.

There are 5 different kinds of undead; standard zombies, who are only ever a threat if the player is struggling with poor shooting, skeletons, who can only be destroyed by being shot in the heart, undead snipers, who leap across the map, sniping from different locations, self-destructing zombies, and a big ol’ zombie carrying an MG42 who only takes damage from being shot in the face.

Due to the nature of the game and wanting to encourage the player to use their sniper rifle, the standard zombies almost act as target practice. If they were more deadly, such as being able to run, then the sniping aspect would almost be eliminated and would restrict players to their side-arms. However, there is something strangely enjoyable about picking off zombies as they walk towards the player down a corridor.

Unfortunately, the game doesn’t provide the constant heart-pumping, adrenaline fuelled moments that other zombie games might. Throughout Nazi Zombie Army, there are moments that elicit the odd scare and put terror into the player, but only initially on the first encounter. After that, whether it was my first encounter with the MG42 wielding zombie, or a zombie jumping out unannounced, I was prepared every time and just breezed through the game.

The storyline is non-existent, apart from the opening cinematic and the odd cut-scene of characters driving off in a truck. There isn’t any dialogue from the characters, nor a hint of a backstory. Instructions from outside are played through radios in safe rooms or at certain objective points. All the while, the characters refuse to talk. It might as well have been about four generic American GIs in the cooperative because those that are playable have no personality whatsoever.

Still, Nazi Zombie Army is a pretty cool diversion for the money. It’s good switch-off entertainment, and remains fairly solid throughout, although the final boss fight is more than a little bit irritating and will take a Google search or You Tube Video to work out how to deal with it.

Nazi Zombie Army is an enjoyable game. The fear inducing setting and the solid gameplay are, by far, its stand out qualities. For those with an interest in WW2 and the zombie genre, this will provide more than a satisfying and fun experience. Unfortunately, though, it doesn’t quite reach the high standard some of its competitors have set.

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