From gut-punching emotional storytelling to light-hearted fun, zombie games are one of the most popular genres in the video game industry. Zombies have always been popular though, from literature to film. Whether they be products of evolving technology or simply mindless creatures, the living dead continue to haunt consoles and PCs even after their boom in popularity in the 2010s. Here are some of the best zombie games of the past decade.
Call of Duty Black Ops Cold War: Zombies
Call of Duty is no stranger to making zombie modes in their video games and the franchise has continued its zombie mode trend in Call of Duty: Cold War Black Ops Zombies. Play with your friends or alone to battle endless waves of Cold War-era undead as you work to complete objectives or survive. While mindlessly entertaining, it is also nifty that you can create your own loadout to battle off brain-eaters. Whichever way you choose to play, there is no denying this is one of the funnest zombie games to play.
Plants vs Zombies
What began as a simple tower defense game quickly evolved into an entire franchise. Plants vs Zombies attracted PC and mobile gamers alike with its straightforward mechanics and adorable plant defenses to ward off waves of zombies. Perhaps it was the idea of nature fending off the undead or the growing zombie craze of the 2010s that made the game so popular. In any case, Plants vs Zombies will always be known as one of the greatest zombie games.
Resident Evil: Village
Capcom continued its popular Resident Evil franchise with the eighth installment, Resident Evil: Village in 2021. Though zombies are not the main enemy of the game, having been replaced by flesh-eating Lycan, the game still functions as a classic Capcom zombie survival game. Players fight as Ethan Winters, the suspiciously resilient protagonist from previous installments, to rescue his kidnapped daughter from the village priest and village lords. With excellent action sequences, storytelling and combat mechanics, Resident Evil: Village has rightfully earned its popularity in the Resident Evil franchise.
The Walking Dead: Season 1 and 2
The popular series The Walking Dead branched into the video game realm in 2010 with a Telltale Games series The Walking Dead: Season 1. The game follows main characters Lee Everett and Clementine as they venture through apocalyptic Georgia in search of Clementine’s parents. Following the events of the first installment, The Walking Dead: Season 2 focuses solely on Clementine as she searches for a larger survivor shelter. Telltale does what any horror story does best: develops characters and then kills them off. Both games opt to focus on character development, which creates a phenomenal story in the end. It’s sad and it’s amazing, but most of all it’s fun to play.
The Last of Us: Part II
The sequel to Sony’s groundbreaking The Last of Us, The Last of Us: Part II follows Ellie on her journey to seek revenge against Joel’s killer, and also follows Joel’s killer, Abby. The game is an emotional story of revenge, forgiveness, and loss, and also includes exciting combat as the player must fight both humans and zombie-like creatures, The Infected. Though technically not undead zombies, these creatures still function as typical zombies do. It’s great to see a video game create such a fantastic story while also maintaining the classic elements of a horror game, which makes The Last of Us: Part II a fantastic sequel and game.
Sydni is a senior at the University of North Texas studying digital and print journalism. When she isn’t working hard or studying for an exam, she loves to spend time in the library with her friends, or play an excessive amount of Apex Legends. In the future, Sydni hopes to attend graduate school and earn her master’s degree in digital communication analytics.
