Zombicide at a Glance
Game Type Thematic, Zombies, Horror, Action Points, Cooperative Game, Dice Rolling, Grid Movement , Player Elimination, Variable Player Powers | Play Time 60 - 120 mins | Skill/Complexity (3 - 5) Medium |
Age 14+ | Publisher(s) CMON Limited and others | Published 2012 |
Categories Thematic / Zombies Strategy | Players 1 - 6 | Cost $89.99 approx |
Our Rating 8.7/10 |
“SCIENCE! In the pursuit of ever greater levels of productivity, Man has twisted plants and animals to his own ends. In so doing, we inadvertently changed ourselves. Now, shambling killing machines roam the ruins of our world. The time has come for… ZOMBICIDE! ” (Official description from zombicide.com)
This quote describes very well what a game like Zombicide has to offer, thematically speaking. After many plays and experiences, it’s time to share with all of you a review of Zombicide.
About – Description
Zombicide is a cooperative game, where to survive you will have to eliminate zombies, sacrifice companions and be very cautious with noise that you make.
The game quickly took its spot in the board game world. The large number of available expansions is confirmation of the loyal audience it has.
Does it deserve the fame it has? From our point of view, and to each his own, it deserves it. It’s a tremendous amount of fun where cooperation has to be taken to the extreme to achieve victory. That is, either all players win… or all lose jointly.
The game is published by the CoolMiniOrNot guys. And, let me tell you, the quality is pretty nice. It is worth noting, above all, the miniatures. Having a high degree of detail and without any defect, the miniatures are high quality.
It’s also worth noting how well the content of the game is packaged.
Who’s it best suited for?
Zombicide is not recommended for beginners, due to its peculiar dynamics and various mechanics. It’s better to play either between 3 or 6 players, and with 3 players each will have 2 survivors, while in a 6 player game it would be one survivor for each.
It is in fact a very broad game and every decision is vital. So, as for younger players, this is a great experience to learn how to work as a team and develop a broad perspective on action taking dynamics.
Skill – Complexity
This game is based on problem-solving ability. For instance, while facing a horde, there’s the possibility of becoming a zombie after receiving a bite. Yes, zombies can bite you, and then you can go and attack them back while being one yourself.
The difficulty rating for Zombicide leans of the medium weight side.
Set-Up
The pre-set of Zombicide depends on the scenario you choose. Don’t worry, it’s not a complicated process at all. Basically, you just need to place the board tiles, doors, targets, and cars (if any), then distribute the survivors and the initial equipment.
So, in just a few minutes, you’ve got the game ready.
Gameplay – How it Plays & Stuff!
Zombies are controlled by the game’s AI, and their appearance is governed by a deck of cards. Simply steal a card and place the zombies listed, basing them on the survivor with the most advanced experience level. Zombies can either move or attack, they’re able to do one of those two actions (The runner types, as the exception, can perform both actions at the same time).
Zombies will try to attack, if that isn’t possible, then they will move towards survivors within sight. So, if no one is within sight, then “noise” comes into play. Zombies will follow any noise, ready to devour whatever they find.
Meanwhile, survivors can perform three actions on their turn. This is not something fixed, they will be able to perform more actions as they level up. Among available actions, we have: “move”, “attack”, “search”, “make noise”, and even “drive a car”. Yes, you read it well, we can ride a car and drive it through the streets running over all those gruesome creatures.
As you can see there is a heck of a lot going on in Zombicide!
Beating Zombicide is not that easy and only achieved through clever cooperation (we insist – it is achievable). Every decision is vital, and you must think of a good strategy, even if it is having to sacrifice a survivor’s life for the wellness of the group.
Zombicide will bring out both the good and the bad sides of anyone stuck in a world full of zombies.
Rulebook
Scenarios specify difficulty and approximate duration. In our experience, the estimates of time and difficulty are spot on. We’ve lost in the tough ones and won on the easy ones that are shown in the manual. To be truthful, it wasn’t easy to achieve at all, we had no option but to sacrifice a couple of survivors.
Note that when you read the instructions you get the feeling that it can be a little complicated, but when you get to play, everything makes sense. We recommend playing the tutorial to start understanding Zombicide’s basic dynamics. You’ll get that sense of control over the game, then you’ll barely have to look at the manual after your first game.
It’s extremely well thought out. Once you start playing it, you’ll get an almost natural and spontaneous idea of what to do at every step. In addition, it provides a turn summary, which is very useful for those who want to integrate it into the game.
The manual is hilarious! This touch of humor is something that reaches and infects the game itself. A clear example is when you discover that your survivor’s initial equipment is just frying pans. At first, you find it funny, but in the long run, you really get to despise these kitchen utensils. Being armed with a frying pan in a city crowded with zombies is not exactly the best thing that can happen to you.
Zombie Horde
Another feature of the game which really pushes players is the growing feeling of overwhelming situations. As we have already mentioned, the number and level of zombies entering the game area rise depending on how the survivors gain experience.
At first, the situation is quite calm (Unless you get “The Abomination”). As the game progresses, and the survivors gain experience, not only more and more zombies appear, but they’re also harder to kill. The board will gradually start to feel small and the places to flee will become scarce, a continuous burden that will not stop. Here the game lives up to its name, you’ll be slaughtering zombies, overwhelmed as if you were in the middle of a zombie apocalypse movie.
Likes & Dislikes
- Great theme.
- Good use of multiple mechanics including cooperative.
- Nicely paced and fun.
- Interactive.
- Excellent miniatures and components.
- Replay Value is not great on the base game alone.
- Downtime may be frustrating for some players.
Final Thoughts
Our verdict is that this is a game that’s easy enough to learn and play – however – so difficult to win. It manages to transmit the feelings of how overwhelming a zombie apocalypse actually is. Being a game that pushes you to put the group above everything, Zombicide is a super fun cooperative game.
No matter how long a game goes on for (an hour or two), the time will fly by as you try to survive the zombie hordes.