Game review: ZombiU

The console horror genre moved away from the hallmarks of what made classic titles such as Resident Evil and Silent Hill 2 so memorable a long time ago.

ZombiU

£44.99, Wii U

It’s all about guns and big action now, but developer Ubisoft has thrown all of that out in its Wii U launch title ZombiU, and gone back to the roots of zombie horror.

The action takes place in London 15 days after a zombie outbreak, and you must explore the barren city streets in search of a cure. It’s a deliberately slow-paced game which makes your survivor feel weak, and that only serves to ratchet up the tension.

Armed with a cricket bat and a small selection of guns, you need to be careful when exploring the darkness. Using your light too often will alert the horde, and the same goes for loud gunshots. In fact, everything you do can be potentially fatal, so you need to be very smart in how you move around.

It’s brutally challenging, and comparable to last year’s cult smash Dark Souls in that it requires a lot of trial and error to overcome the odds. You may get killed by a zombie lurking in the shadows, but you won’t make that mistake again. It’s a learning process.

You can use your Wii U GamePad as a gun scope, a scanner that reveals hidden enemies and loot, and as an inventory screen to help manage your backpack’s contents. It’s a superb showcase of Nintendo’s new controller, even if its difficulty and slow nature will likely polarise players.