Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel Without a Pulse Review

Features and Replay Value

There are twelve levels in all that range from city streets and a mall to a farm. Occasionally, you’ll get to drive a vehicle and they control just like the Warthog from Halo (since this game was built using the Halo engine, don’t ya know). There is also a fun “Simon Says” dance game thrown in for good measure. The only real negative I can come up with about Stubbs the Zombie is that it is disappointingly short. You can beat it in only about five hours. It is extremely varied and you get to do lots of different stuff during those five hours, but that is still really short. For zombie fans, the replay value is pretty much endless since this is probably the best pure zombie game ever, so depending on how much you like rotting flesh the length will either big a big problem or nothing to worry about. There are multiple difficulty settings and higher levels add more enemies to the levels (which in turn means even more recruits for your zombie army), so it all works out in the end.

Co-Op Play

One of the best things about Stubbs the Zombie is that you and a friend can play through the game together. I am all about co-op modes in videogames and really do think that playing with a friend makes everything better. Combine that with a love of zombie movies and it is impossible not to have a good time. Playing co-op does make the game quite a bit easier, but it lets you really take advantage of all of the powers you have at your disposal. For example, one player can take control of a cop and throw down some cover fire while the other player rounds up the zombies for a full on assault. Overall this is a fun game that just gets better with more people around to enjoy it.

Graphics and Sound

Graphically, Stubbs the Zombie is a really great looking game. The levels are all nicely detailed and look great and the characters are nice as well. There are a lot of little touches like being able to rip an arm off of an enemy and use it as a weapon that will really tickle zombie fans. You will also see zombies with their legs blown off still crawling around on their hands trying to find some fresh meat. The animation is very good and Stubbs’ slow shambling is horror movie perfect.

The sound is also extremely well done. The moans and groans of zombies are perfect (and I love the way the chant of “brains” continually gets louder and louder on loading screens) and all of the spoken dialogue is really good as well. Sound effects for brain eating or when zombies are being shot and blown apart are good also. The soundtrack also stands out because it features current bands doing covers of 50’s songs such as “Lollipop”, “Mr. Sandman’, and “Earth Angel”. The music is great and I highly recommend picking up the soundtrack.

Bottom Line

Stubbs the Zombie is a pretty easy game to recommend. If you love zombie movies, you will absolutely love this game and you should buy it. It is a little on the short side, but true zombie fans will likely want to play through it multiple times. If you aren’t a huge fan of zombies, Stubbs is a rental at best because you’ll likely only want to play through it once and most of the more clever references and humor will likely go over your head. It is worth a play through, though, so rent it and be happy. Stubbs the Zombie is a great fun game that I highly recommend for zombie fans and is worth having in your collection.