Three Dead Zed
Review
Weapons of Brain Destruction
by Quinn Levandoski
reviewed on PC
Shape Shifting (cntd)
The only problem is that the sprinter just didn’t control very tightly for me. I had an extremely difficult time in a lot of places landing precise jumps with him not because of difficulty crafted platforming, but because the distance of his movement from any given keystroke seemed inconsistent. Sometimes he would shuffle a few inches, sometimes he would take a big step, all from a quick staccato button press. I’m not sure if it was a glitch or how it was designed, but overshooting platforms or accidentally walking into a buzz saw because of inconsistency was pretty consistent through my play time. It might have affected the other characters too, but it’s harder to tell with their slower, more methodical movement.
Pretty Presentation
Presentation is definitely a strong point in this game. I’ll admit it, I’m a sucker for hand-made visuals. Whether it is the vibrant hand-drawn worlds of the recent Rayman titles or the photographed set pieces that make up The Swapper, I just find them incredibly inviting and pleasing to the eye when done well. Three Dead Zed takes the former route, sporting hand drawn visuals that, while not quite as fluidly-animated as they maybe could have been, are really quite pretty. Each splat and chomp carries weight and impact and seamlessly mashes adorable and disgusting. Even the humans, who are, admittedly, not exactly “expertly drawn,” have the whole so-ugly-they’re-cute pug thing down. The vibrant cartoony visuals are nicely complemented by writing that’s pretty genuinely funny.
The voice over the PA system is easily my favorite, calmly keeping employees up-to date on the state of the test-subject breakout. The rotten apple, so to speak, is the “mysterious stranger” that leads you through your escape. It’s not his lines that are poor – they are pretty darned funny too – it is just that the voice actor needs some work. The delivery seems forced, and it definitely sounds like someone reading off of a sheet of paper instead of speaking naturally. As a last minor complaint about the dialogue, the voice over often became detached from the on-screen text frequently falling a whole page or two behind. Again, I’m not sure if this is a glitch or a design choice, but it wasn’t pleasant as someone who likes to read along as I listen.
Good, But Not Great
So, should you buy it? Well, whether or not I think you should pick up Three Dead Zed really depends on what you are looking for in the game. If you want to satisfy your itch for a tight, frantic platformer I’d say “maybe.” While the puzzles general level design are solid, I had some problematic issues with one of the three zombie forms, and, being that the sprinter form is probably the one I spent the most time in, that’s a bit of a problem. I still enjoyed the gameplay, but not quite as much as I probably should have. If you are looking more for a game to enjoy the aesthetic and have a few laughs, I’d say “absolutely.” Trying to make a game funny can be a big gamble, and a lot of games come off like they are trying too hard, but Three Dead Zed has genuinely good writing and a visual style pleasing to the eye. So, this is where I give the cliché answer and tell you to make your own decision, but for me it lands somewhere in between the two.
7.5
fun score
Pros
Good level design, unique zombie forms, great visuals, and funny writing.
Cons
Some questionable voice acting, and inconsistent control with the sprinter form.
