There are a lot of survivors-likes around these days, and it can be easy for interesting games to slip through the proverbial cracks and go unnoticed. FatalZone, which just left Early Access, is one such game. I’m glad it didn’t slip through my cracks though… wait, what?!
Let’s try that again.
I bloody love zombie games, and so an auto-shooter in the vein of Vampire Survivors but with hordes of the undead is a welcoming premise for a video game, if you ask me. The idea of huge swarms of zombie shufflers marching towards you relentlessly while you duck and weave is a perfect fit for this burgeoning genre, and I’m surprised there aren’t more game like FatalZone out there.
FatalZone the survivors-like
It feels like a harsh comparison to make, but Vampire Survivors is the standard for a reason. It has big maps, tons of variety, loads of powers that synergise in interesting ways, and there’s lore tucked away just waiting to be discovered. FatalZone, to both its credit and I think to its detriment, tries to do a lot of these things but in its own unique way.
First, let’s talk about the maps. There are five that can be unlocked over time, but they’re not particularly dynamic. The main points of interest are temporary objectives that pop up frequently, giving you a direction to head in and a sense of purpose. I feel like the devs have missed an opportunity here – instead of interesting urban spaces brought to life with environmental storytelling, we’ve got plain, endless maps with nothing interesting to say, and as there’s no blood splatter and zombie remains, they feel empty throughout each run.
The ultimate goal in FatalZone is to gather resources out in the field, which you can then spend on upgrading your base. This is one of the more interesting aspects of the game and it creates a definite sense of progression. There are several resources to collect, and there’s a shop where you can trade any excess you’ve gathered. There’s a main HQ which needs to be upgraded, and the level of this one building acts as a cap for the progress you make elsewhere.
Building for the future
The meta-progression is all tied up in the development of your base of operations. There are buildings to improve via the resources you’ve gathered but, alas, you don’t see that improvement visually – it’s all in the menus. Still, there’s a lot to engage with and it creates an interesting dynamic around the progression that you don’t usually get in this genre.
While you’re at base you can hire new mercs, upgrade your weapons, gear, and base player stats, as well as heal your soldiers, increase the evac rate, and so on. All of your efforts here eventually feed into the gameplay, which for the most part is quite engaging.
FatalZone’s gameplay is perhaps the most straightforward thing to explain. It delivers the standard survivors-like dance where you’re using the abilities you have equipped to do as much damage as possible while dodging incoming attacks, also as much as possible.
There’s a fair selection of enemy types, with giant mini-bosses that appear periodically, explosive soldiers, and even motorbike riding minions that cut across the map and leave a flaming trail in their wake. As you go through the different maps, the enemies that you encounter get tougher, so to stay competitive you’ve got to make sure that your mercenaries are up to scratch.
A game with character
Another element I want to highlight is the character development, which I think is quite well implemented. FatalZone allows you to recruit mercenaries for cash, and then you must level up your soldiers by taking them out on raids. I lost several characters during my time with the game and those losses hit harder than is normally the case in games like this – the permadeath here feel a bit more like it does in XCOM, and I mean that as a compliment.
While the soldiers don’t have much personality, they do have their own style thanks to their starting weapon, although this weapon limits your options during a run. In fact, I’d say your progress is very definitely funneled down a certain direction and the build variety isn’t as broad or unpredictable as it is in other games. This means that your choice of character will directly affect the tone and feel of the coming raid, for better and for worse.
I feel quite ambivalent about the limitations surrounding character development as it does give each raid a specific focus, but that focus has a cost in terms of run variety. I did, however, start getting attached to my little soldiers and I also like the evac mechanic, where a chopper comes in at certain points to whisk you away so your character can fight another day. This creates a push-your-luck effect where you want to keep going for a bit longer once you’ve got a good build, but if you go too far you might die and then lose that character.
A parting shot to the head
The whole thing looks pretty good in action, when the horde descends and you’re running for your life. That said, I’ve mentioned the uninspiring environments and the lack of meaningful transmogrification of your home base as you improve it, so it’s not all sunshine and rainbows.
I think it’s also worth noting that some players have experienced technical issues, including crashes and lost progress. I want to stress that I didn’t encounter anything like that during my time with the game, so fingers crossed you won’t either.
All told, I think FatalZone is an interesting addition to the genre, but I don’t think it quite warrants a place at the top table alongside the likes of Vampire Survivors, Picayune Dreams, and Brotato. There are definitely a lot of things to like here, but I also feel like there have been some missed opportunities. FatalZone is a solid game with a lot to offer and I’m glad to have played it, but it didn’t blow me away either.
