Everything wrong (and right!) with 'The War Z'

Disclaimer: The War Z is still in Alpha and, as such, has a lot of improvement ahead. However, seeing that the developers have been gracious enough to reveal footage, it's only fitting that the gaming community focuses on the game's PERCEIVED strengths and weaknesses. The War Z is slated for a Q3 2012 release, and I can't wait to get my hands on it as much as the next guy.

On September 21, a six-minute video appeared on Gamespot featuring gameplay of The War Z-- a zombie survival game riding the coattails of it's wildly popular predecessor DayZ. The video features a survivor (and apparent miner) of the zombie apocalypse, as he scurries around a small town looting items and performing target practice on the hapless living dead. But the demo footage sparked mixed feelings in the gaming community, as gamers pick apart the early build and compare it with The War Z's slightly older sibling. Will The War Z "stand on the shoulder of giants," as the saying goes, or clumsily stumble into oblivion?

"An entire village and only seven zombies. Tsk tsk."

What The War Z Does Wrong

The Graphics: When battling contenders like Battlefield, or Borderlands 2, whose atmospheres are gritty, cinematic, and just downright beautiful, The War Z seems to fall short in texture and detail. The character models shown so far have some degree of personality, but this is overshadowed by stiff animation and awkward physics (particularly the erratic movement of the flares at 3:20 of Gamespot's footage-- why do they slide across the floor or, even worse, bumble around mid-air trying to find a place to properly rest?)

That isn't to mention the slow load time of the environment, such as when the character peers from behind the fence at 1:03, the jiggling zombie corpse at 4:46, or the disappearing body at 5:00.

The Sound: One of the hot topics in the buzz surrounding The War Z is sound. It's abysmal, and probably the worst aspect of the game so far. Take when the player enters the shop window at 0:45, for instance. A table, linoleum floors, the window pane as he leaps out again: why does it all sound like the same metallic catwalk? Arguably there were only three or four distinct movement sounds throughout the demo.

With or without a silencer, the gun sounds like a peashooter. Hammerpoint Interactive might have been better off showcasing some of the other weapons as well, such as the uzi displayed at 3:24 of an earlier video. Some kind of residual echoing might make the game seem more lifelike, though if The War Z is pursuing realism in this zombie apocalypse, it may have a lot to learn from DayZ, where the sound is one of the most crucial facets to survival.

The Survival: This is just the overall "feel" of the game so far. Hello? Is this the zombie apocalypse? The town is apparently empty of the walking dead, except for a few stragglers, and the zombies that are there seem to be deaf, dumb, and blind. When one thinks of the zombie apocalypse, there's a lot of aggro and a lot of danger. The War Z doesn't give you blood-hounding zombies but, rather, gives you a few minor obstacles that are easily disposed of, perhaps more even more easily than the zombies in DayZ.

"Why am I holding a water bottle?!"

What The War Z Does Right

The Graphics (Again): Despite the aforementioned graphical glitches and shortcomings, the graphics are clearly a step above many of its opponents (DayZ isn't exactly the prettiest zombie shooter to crawl from the grave) and appear more of the current-generation. In urban environments, the city appears incredibly realistic (though we have yet to see how many of those buildings are open for entry), and the forests look lush and thick. The cities, with their skyscrapers and billboards, really warrant being called a metropolis. The trees and buildings actually look nice enough to draw the player in and create...

A Distinct Feel: The War Z is its own game. While there's no doubt DayZ had an influence on the game, regardless of when development began, Hammerpoint is forging a world separate from their inspiration. The game will lead survivors in a new direction, and the way zombies (and hopefully other survivors) interact with the player will be an entirely unique experience. Although the game still needs a lot of work, I think Bohemia and Hammerpoint will have much to learn from one another.

Player Features: With what limits DayZ being a mod places on Rocket and Bohemia, The War Z can make up to player through their requests. For example, structure creation, an often-discussed dream on DayZ forums. Despite the obvious video editing at 2:39, the player clearly demonstrates the construction of barricades, which could vastly change coop and pvp gameplay in The War Z. This isn't to mention that players can also leave each other notes, as shown in this video.

To sum it all up, Hammerpoint Interactive has their work cut out for them. Hopefully by the time The War Z is released, these issues and strengths will be improved upon and fine-tuned, respectively.

-C.T.

Those environments just ooze adventure.