Zombies, Run! combines your exercise routine with a zombie themed game that encourages you to keep fit by delivering a gripping story as you run in the real world (while running for your life in the virtual world). Additionally players can help their town survive the zombie apocalypse by collecting various items while out in the wild to give you some extra purpose to your exercise routine.
Funded through a Kickstarter campaign Zombies, Run is available for iOS and Android platforms, launching in late 2012 with continued updates into 2020 and hopefully beyond thanks to the community that has developed behind the game. Set deep within the zombie apocalypse players will take on the role of a runner as they accept missions to do errands out in the zombie infected environment to help their town survive by acquiring items and advancing the story missions through real world exercise.
Originally a paid title Zombies, Run has now transitioned into your typical mobile hybrid monetisation model, offering a reasonable amount of free content although additional story seasons, season passes and pro memberships will set you back several dollars for those that want additional content or features. Seasons have been added periodically over the years and offer several dozen missions each and offer the bulk of content updates.
This story is told through a series of missions and primarily through audio which allows players to listen while out walking or running instead of their normal music playlist. One key feature is random zombie attacks where players will be alerted to start running faster to protect their items, although these are optional and can be disabled without ruining the experience for those that want a walking only experience.
On top of this story driven element players will randomly collect supplies as they clock up steps which are then taken back to the safe camp of Abel Township. As these resources are successfully brought back the township will grow, unlocking more missions, providing small bonuses and ultimately changing appearance to a more fortified location that can house a higher population. This also serves as your end goal and provides that sense of progression to your efforts as you see the little town develop from humble beginnings to something else.
Zombies, Run! makes great use of the growing smartphone use in exercising by not only allowing players to track their exercise statistics but also gamify the entire experience with a well crafted story and was one of the first in the space that continues to deliver a high quality adventure years after the initial concept release.
Summary:
- Combines zombies, exercise and gaming into a single iOS/Android adventure game.
- Work your way through an intense zombie storyline as you protect and grow the local town.
- Gather supplies to bolster your township and watch it grow with every successful exercise session.
- Unlock more seasons for additional game content and storylines with consistent content updates.
- Customise the features you want to use to create an ideal walk or run exercise routine.
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Review Platform: iOS
