Saber Interactive’s World War Z has been around since 2019 and was a solid co-op shooter. We reviewed it when it came out, giving it a respectable 7/10, and a couple of us played through it all a couple of years ago and, yeah, it was decent. It never had the same intensity and madness of things like Left 4 Dead but, in many ways, we appreciated that. Instead, World War Z was a bit more thoughtful, although it did still have moments where the zombie hordes showed up and gave you and your PS5’s CPU a bit of a kicking.
The original game was a little lacking in content though. Much like games such as Aliens: Fireteam Elite, FBC: Firebreak and The Outlast Trials, games like this release in a bit of a bareboned state and eventually get built up into something a bit more complete. The Aftermath DLC added more levels, weapons, perks and characters in 2021 and the updates continue with this, a tie-in with the TV show The Walking Dead.
This DLC adds three new chapters, representing an hour or two of content on their initial playthrough, set in locations that will be known to fans of the show. You get the prison, which became a fortified settlement for Rick Grimes in the series and now functions as an enclosed area, full of corridors to funnel the zombies down and cells for them to jump out of. It feels very much in keeping with the original game and functions as such, with a few tasks to complete and standoffs to survive.
Next up is Grady Memorial Hospital, which is as drab and imposing as the prison but, again, works much the same way with a similar mission structure.
Most interesting though, is the Alexandria Safe Zone. A sort of The Last of Us suburban settlement with streets and houses. However, the area has been overrun, and each house is either full of zombies or on fire. Probably both. So you’ll need to rescue survivors, avoid getting eaten and put out fires. It’s the most interesting of the new chapters and the most challenging.
This DLC also changes the default zombie type in the main game, replacing the runners with the more traditional walkers. These shambling creatures move around in larger numbers but at a slower pace, presenting a different kind of threat. You also get the elites from the main game, though, the big charger guys, the explodey ones and so on. This DLC also introduces spiked zombies, which inflict bleeding damage on you. Just another way to ruin your day.
The main selling point for Walking Dead fans will be the inclusion of four major playable characters. You get Rick Grimes and Daryl Dixon, voiced by the original actors, as well as Negan and Michonne, who get stand-ins. They’re essentially just new skins, though, as you’ll still need to assign one of the game’s default classes to them each time you start a chapter, or ‘episode’ as the game likes to call them.
Aside from that and a couple of iconic weapons (Negan’s bat and Michonne’s katana), this does just feel like a bit of extra content for the main game. A slightly different pace, but certainly familiar if you’ve already finished the game before. But that’s fine, and for £7.99, it feels like a fair price for the content even if you’re not a fan of the source material.
World War Z x The Walking Dead
Summary
A fair amount of content for a fair price. That's all you can ask for with a DLC and it's nice to see World War Z still getting content six years after its release.
