Splatter - Zombiecalypse | NS Review

The world has seen some sh*t these days. From the threat of nuclear war to viral outbreaks one might not be too far off to expect a zombie apocalypse on 2022's bingo card. Hell, we all act like zombies with our eyes glued to the idiot box and smartphones as we consume mindless entertainment like a junkie looking for his next fix. High on dopamine, but short of critical thinking. Zombies, more or less. Even games have become a hot bed for these carnivorous cannibal corpses. 

This game, Splatter - Zombiecalypse, is no exception to that rule. As commonplace as it might be the zombie genre is always in season, regardless. Be it for Halloween or any other day of the year. Fitting in nicely, Splatter takes a top down twin stick shooter approach with story driven content, and arcade style additions meant to expand upon the game's core mechanics. At heart it is survival horror, but with a shooter angle set within a apocalyptic film noir scenario featuring a nameless protagonist who happens to be in the wrong place at the wrong time.

Carnage, and cannibalism abound we find a dude with a noir attitude. Stepping on the scene via narration, and pseudo photographic representation he sets the story up by detailing his encounter on one bloody Sunday that led to what appears to his eventual dying. A story told from the end, but retrospectively. Our nameless hero encounters a plague of zombies running amok chased by the last of law enforcement. Armed with a found pistol this man of mellow demeanor makes a run for it, as told, into the heart of the apocalypse. Shooting zombies as they give chase.

As this lone survivor you have at your disposal a pistol with infinite ammo. Reality shot right out the window. As you progress blasting your way through mobs of various sizes, and types you will come across new limited ammo weapons, and upgrade stations that require the currency accumulated from looting the buildings along the way. Shooting, and killing zombies, rogue military units, and odd bosses of monstrous proportions will net you some score via a score multiplier that adds up as you kill without taking damage. Health, of course, is a huge concern as well and is a limited commodity that must be minded lest you die, and have to pick back up at the latest auto-save point. 

The game, in general, is a massive open world of post apocalyptic zombie infestation with dynamic weather changes, and destructible environments/environmental set pieces. Depending upon difficulty setting the mob sizes, and aggression will vary, but will always be a formidable threat regardless of setting. Your ammo outside of the pistol is limited, and upgrades come few and far between at highlighted stations. Costing currency that is collected through looting means. While most of the combat is mob focused as it would be in any zombie apocalypse there are bosses that will require stronger weapons to defeat. Everything from massive mutated creatures to armed military vehicles. As you progress, and deal with the threats the main character will chime in with a narrative remarks in context with what is and has transpired. Fleshing out his story from his perspective in a film noir fashion.

Outside of the story mode lies Arcade & Multiplayer. Arcade offers up a score based survival mode wherein survival is king. You will need to use the allotted weapon power-ups and survive waves of zombies to get the top score. Survival is not exclusive to Arcade though, and you will find a co-op variant in the Multiplayer section as well. Multiplayer is a local affair with up to four players depending upon selected mode. In survival it's a two player mode, and in multiplayer it's a free-for-all for up to four players wherein kills among players will be tallied up for a final scoring. It's the competitive side of the game, and a sort of spin-off to the main mode of gameplay.

Visually, Splatter carries with it a film noir detective look with a narrator that fits the bill. Donning a black and white cameo with red accents for blood. The game is very dark, and gritty, but higher quality than one might expect for a Nintendo Switch top down twin stick shooter. Even the rain, and special effects like explosions, and blood/gore are a step above the usual indie grade. Audibly, Splatter is a very atmospheric game with environmental ambiance, and real world sound effects accented by the occasional voice over from the main character's voice actor. It's all very complimentary, and makes for a nice to look at, and listen to experience, especially in docked mode on a 4k television.

The Verdict ...

There's something about Splatter that hits different from the usual zombie themed shooter. It's mixture of noir aesthetics, and twin stick mechanics makes for an oddly enjoyable experience. It's not like it is unique or hasn't been done before though, but this is definitely a better version of similar games I've seen in the past. The boss fights are epic, and survival in the survival horror sense is as challenging as it should be. The added modes of play outside of the story campaign extend the game's replay value, and makes for some score based competitive content that's not as shallow as it could have been. Having played it on my 4K HDTV in docked mode I got a closer look at the gameplay, and it holds up well in docked mode. Now for the verdict. Would I recommend this to Nintendo Switch owners? I think it's worth it being the budget priced indie that it is. The production quality is notable, and the story playthrough worth the fee for entry. It's a proper game for the Halloween season!