Well it's time to put an end to all of these zombie survival game tropes once and for all! Behold, Dead Block!
So… While we're here… Dead Block is a 2011 arcade-style safehouse defense game by Candygun Games - released on the Xbox Live Arcade, Playstation Network and Microsoft Windows.
You assume the role of one of three playable characters, Jack Foster, a construction worker sporting a handlebar moustache, Mike Bacon, a resourceful boy scout and Foxy Jones, a police officer with an impressive afro and mini skirt. Some levels require you alternate control between two or all of the characters whilst allowing the CPU to control the inactive characters. There is also a split-screen co-op mode that supports up to 4 local players, but unfortunately doesn't include any online modes.
The game is broken up into different levels based around classic Americana - such as garages, diners, high schools and motels - you are then faced with the task of barricading yourself in safely by blocking up the doors and windows and setting traps to immobilise or kill any zombies who manage to creep through. You gather the main resources, wood and nuts by smashing up objects such as shelves, beds and tables and rummaging through toolboxes, cupboards and piggy banks. Wood is used to construct barricades and nuts are used to set traps.
Jack, Foxy and Mike can all build barricades but all come equipped with their own unique traps, weapons and skills. For example, Jack can smash items the fastest and build the strongest barricades. Mike can search objects the fastest and build the deadliest and most innovative traps. Foxy is the best at hand-to-hand combat and can later utilise weapons from her police arsenal like tasers and shotguns.You can also electrocute zombies by placing a piece of meat to lure them over to a heating unit. Fixing broken TVs will distract zombies and gather them in a single area as they are dazzled by the flashing lights. Any coins you find can be used in the vending machines to refill your health with Fatty Cola or used in the jukebox for a special attack that causes all on-screen zombies to rock out and dance until they die, literally.
The primary objective of each area is to find a guitar, amplifier and effects deck that will set the stage for you to blast out an electric solo that kills all of the zombies infesting the area. Other levels will also require you to rescue your friends who are held captive somewhere within the level or kill a set number of zombies. There are also optional medals to be earned - which involve smashing a set amount of objects, killing enough zombies and ensuring you and your partners don't get eaten. Your high scores and clear times can also be uploaded to the respective format’s leaderboards for bragging rights.Both the single player and co-op modes feature their own unique bunch of levels and there is even a DLC level pack - More Dead To Block that comes with more. You can play on either easy, medium or hard - and you're encouraged to work your way up to hard, as that's the only way to earn the elusive gold medals!
As you progress through the game you will also be able to find stronger weapons for your characters, more complicated trap schematics and upgrades to their special ability. For example, Mike Bacon can throw out a tasty cheeseburger to distract zombies. This can later be upgraded to a brain burger with cheese that attracts more zombies and eventually into a brain burger stuffed with dynamite - which makes short work of the greedy horde.
The main problem with Dead Block is that it's very repetitive. Whether you're in a diner, a high school or a Turkish bath house - you'll always be running around smashing the same objects, building the same traps and jamming out the same guitar solos. Personally I don't mind repetitive gameplay as long as it's fun - some players may only be able to play a level or two before getting bored. Few people are dedicated enough, like me, to play the game for 6 hours solid and then wonder what happened to your evening.The lack of online multiplayer modes was also quite disappointing - as I liked playing it locally with a friend but naturally was annoyed after a while by only being to play on half of my screen. He went home and promptly downloaded the game - only for us to be frantically searching for the online mode and being unable to find one.
However I do feel that the art style is colourful and unique, some of the wacky traps were genuinely entertaining - especially mounting the blocked toilets above the corridor doors and dousing the horde with sewage - and the characters were all different and likeable, compared to the usual slew of military men and elite law enforcement personnel. The concept of rock n roll music raising the dead and simultaneously being used as a weapon against them may be unrealistic, but it's more entertaining than throwing a grenade or mowing down a horde in a monster truck.So I recommend Dead Block to anybody who is a fan of arcade-style level based gameplay, can think strategically and is bored of the usual zombie game tropes and is looking for something *ever so slightly* different…
