World War Z is a third-person shooter video game developed and published by Saber Interactive. It was released for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One on 16 April 2019, and a Nintendo Switch version was released on 2 November 2021. It was also released for Google Stadia on 5 April 2022. Ports for PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X/S released on 24 January 2023. Loosely based on the 2006 novel of the same name and set in the same universe as the 2013 film adaptation, the game follows groups of four survivors of a zombie apocalypse in the cities of New York, Jerusalem, Moscow, Tokyo, Marseille, Rome and Kamchatka.
Gameplay
The game is a co-operative third-person shooter in which four players fight against massive hordes of zombies in seven locations, including New York, Jerusalem, Moscow, Tokyo, Marseille, Rome and Kamchatka.
Players can choose from seven classes: the Gunslinger (specializes in range), the Hellraiser (specializes in explosives), the Fixer (engineer), the Medic (healer), the Slasher (specializes in melee), the Exterminator (specializes in crowd control), and the Dronemaster (specializes in offensive/defensive support drones). New perks can be unlocked for each class as players continue progressing in the game.
The game can support up to 1,000 enemies appearing on-screen simultaneously, and they can climb onto each other to reach players on a higher level. Players can collect different items in the battlefield, but their locations are procedurally generated. In addition to fighting zombies, players also need to complete different objectives, such as escorting survivors, in each location.
Each location, or episode as it is known in-game, is divided into 3-5 individual levels. After completing a level, players receive "supplies" based on a resulting defeat or victory. Supplies can be used to upgrade weapons and unlock new attachments. Aforementioned perks can also be bought for specific classes using supplies.
The game features five competitive multiplayer modes. The Player vs Player vs Zombie mode pits two teams of players against each other while the zombie hordes attack both teams. Other modes include Swarm Deathmatch, Swarm Domination, and King of the Hill.
Plot
New York
A group of survivors fail to reach an evacuation point set up by the U.S. Army and are forced to fight their way back down to the streets. They are soon contacted by another group of survivors, who have procured a subway train that will take them to another evacuation site. The group manages to reach the train and help prepare it for departure while fighting off swarms of zombies trying to overrun them. Although they manage to get the train started, they are stopped by a sealed door that was previously guarded by other survivors who were supposed to open it upon their arrival. After opening the sealed door, the group fights their way to the last Army evacuation site but finds all the ships have left and the remaining soldiers and survivors have been killed. Finding a boat attached to a winch, the group desperately tries to bring it ashore as their last chance of escape while fighting off a massive zombie horde. After boarding the boat, the survivors leave New York. Somewhere along the way, however, the boat runs out of fuel and the survivors are once again left stranded in a zombie-infested town. They eventually come across another evacuation site still occupied by the Army and full of wounded civilians. With the help of a gunship, the group desperately tries to defend the site under siege from multiple hordes as the soldiers evacuate the civilians. Things take a turn for the better when the Air Force arrives and destroys the remaining hordes, allowing everyone else to escape via helicopters.
Jerusalem
A group of IDF soldiers and a photojournalist are tasked with rescuing a scientist whom high command regards as crucial in putting an end to the zombie epidemic. The group manages to rescue the scientist, who reveals that he was part of a team developing an experimental orbital particle cannon that can be used to wipe out large swarms of zombies in a single shot. They escort the scientist to the facility where the weapon can be fired and manage to protect him long enough to activate the weapon and escape. While flying away from the facility, the group witnesses the devastating firepower of the cannon, which wipes out a large zombie swarm which overruns the facility.