Game Review #215: OMG Zombies! (Nintendo Switch)

Reviewer: Jordan M.

Developer: Laughing Jackal LTD

Publisher: Ghostlight

Category: Action/Arcade/Strategy

Release Date: 03.26.2019

Price (at time of review): $4.99

Buy OMG Zombies! on the Nintendo Switch here.

Outbreaking Up Is So Hard To Do

A team of doctors studying a plant brought back from New Guinea have found it possesses a very special ability: by spraying its pollen onto other creatures, it acts as a poison, which eventually kills the creature. Once it’s dead, the plant can use the animal's body as a host. It's a good thing that humans aren't affected... right?

Welcome to Redfield City six months into the zombie apocalypse. You, being a lone cop with only so many bullets to spare, are the only one who can clear all the remaining zombies and help try to restore order. I had never heard of this game, so when I heard I'd be reviewing it I was pretty intrigued.

Time To Spill the Zombeans

Your character, the cop, will be located somewhere elevated within the map. Use your directional pad to move your cross-hairs and aim your rifle. The game starts you off with three bullets per level. The object of the game is to clear as many zombies as possible per level, which you shoot by pressing A.

By finishing each level at a high enough percentage cleared, your character will not only be rewarded some much needed cash, but also earn either a bronze, silver, gold, or platinum award. The higher you rank, the more money you can receive. At the end of each level, if you didn't defeat enough to pass, or feel you could have done better, it automatically gives you the option to redo the stage. You can also restart the level at any time by pressing the - button. By pressing L on the level selection screen, you can bring up your upgrades menu. The money that you acquire can be used on upgrades for your rifle and many other things here.

An Undead Menagerie

There are eight different types of zombies throughout the game. Each level will give you a mixture of each, leaving it up to you to decide how best to use them against each other as you strategize your way across the level.

Civilian Zombies - Cause other nearby zombies to explode when struck.
Bloated Zombies - The same as Civilian Zombies, but with a more powerful explosive range.
Cop Zombies - Fire a bullet when killed which can destroy other zombies.
Soldier Zombies - Similar to Cop Zombies, but can fire up to five bullets, and their bullets have the ability to ricochet.
Bilious Zombies - Turn into pools of bubbling acid.
Runner Zombies - Run across the map a ways and then explode.
Zapper Zombies - Fire electricity and electrocute other nearby zombies.
Mortar Zombies - Their heads explode, which can burst on other zombies elsewhere on the map.

Each one of these zombies can be upgraded in your upgrades menu to increase range and other effects. I found myself upgrading certain ones in order to go back and get higher scores on previous levels and earn even more cash. Cha-Ching.

Zombody That I Used To Know

The soundtrack got a little repetitive to me after a while, especially the song on the main screen and level select menus. Other than that, I found the rest of the soundtrack was really just creepy little background music and zombies growling. I am definitely a fan of the art style of the game and like how the story line plays out as if it were a comic book. The game itself keeps that sort of comic book art style throughout, which really, in my opinion, works for it. The levels aren't anything awe-inspiring as far as detail, but that isn't really what the game is so much about.

Very Few Bones to Pick

There are a lot of things I like about this game and only a few I dislike. A little more labeling/attention to detail would have gone a long way in this game. For example, some of the menus, such as the extras option menu, just kind of leave it up to you to figure out what they are based on the red icons. It isn't a huge deal, as you figure it out pretty quickly, it just would make for a little better polish and save a few minutes of confusion.

The soundtrack quickly gets repetitive. This game does, however, offer a heaping helping of levels, and not every level is so easy to defeat. I found myself going back several times to upgrade my rifle or different types of zombies in order to get the highest score possible. If you're the type of person who is a completionist, you can easily sink hours into this game trying to get a perfect score on every level. All this being said, OMG Zombies! is an excellent puzzler game to pick up and play a few quick levels on the go.