Years of Early Access have given Yet Another Zombie Survivors plenty of time to grow, evolve and throw ever more ridiculous amounts of undead at its players. Now, Awesome Games Studio’s bullet heaven has reached its full 1.0 launch on Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation and PC, giving zombie slayers the chance to build their perfect squad and see just how long they can survive.
At A Glance
- Game: Yet Another Zombie Survivors
- Developer/Publisher: Awesome Games Studio
- Platforms: Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, PlayStation, PC
- Price: £12.49
Build Your Own Zombie-Slaying Squad
The biggest difference between Yet Another Zombie Survivors and many games in the increasingly busy survival genre is right there in the name – this is yet another zombie game, but you don’t have to face the apocalypse alone.
Each run begins with a single Survivor, with SOS calls allowing you to recruit up to two more. That gives you plenty of scope to create a three-person team built around different weapons, abilities and strengths. You might focus on one powerhouse character, create a balanced group of specialists or stumble across a combination whose abilities work together far better than expected.
The Survivors handle their own shooting, leaving you to concentrate on movement, positioning and the decisions that shape your build. As the run progresses, weapons can be upgraded, abilities evolved and items stacked to create increasingly ridiculous combinations.
And yes, things can get very loud, and very messy, indeed.
When The Build Finally Clicks
The appeal of Yet Another Zombie Survivors comes from watching a reasonable build gradually become something completely unreasonable. Cooldowns disappear, projectiles multiply and effects begin covering the screen as your choices start working together.
There are nine skill trees to develop alongside individual Survivor progression, while weapons, evolutions, items and badges provide further ways to customise your squad. With different damage types, ranges and character strengths to consider, experimentation is very much encouraged.
The auto-aim system keeps the controls straightforward, although manual aiming can be switched on when you want greater control over a particular target. Either way, the real challenge comes from surviving the increasingly enormous hordes rather than wrestling with complicated controls.
More Than One Way To Face The Horde
Yet Another Zombie Survivors has also grown considerably during its three years in Early Access, with eight major content updates helping shape the game alongside community feedback.
Version 1.0 adds further reasons to keep coming back, including new story content, quests and a Survivors’ Base that provides somewhere to regroup between runs. There are also multiple ways to put your carefully constructed builds to the test, from standard runs and Extermination through to Endurance, Infinite, One Hit and Boss Rush.
Different arenas bring their own layouts, enemies and hazards too, meaning you’re not simply fighting the same horde in a succession of slightly different backdrops. Trains, toxic zones and increasingly dangerous bosses all have a part to play.
For those who really want to push things, difficulty modifiers, challenges and progression systems provide plenty of opportunities to make life considerably harder.
The Apocalypse Has Been A Long Time Coming
After three years of Early Access, Yet Another Zombie Survivors has finally reached the point where its full arsenal of systems, modes and progression can be enjoyed as one complete package. It may have started as another zombie survival game, but the three-Survivor approach gives it a useful twist on the formula.
Now available for £12.49 (from the Xbox Store) on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S, as well as PlayStation and PC via Steam, the 1.0 release is the perfect excuse to assemble a squad, pick some questionable upgrades and see how long you can keep the undead at bay.
After all, there’s always time for one more run.
