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66 of 67 found the following review helpful:
 Because one exclaimation point wasn't enough.Feb 10, 2007
By Joshua R. Look
Zombies!!! is a game that puts style over substance. Luckily, the style is true to the genre of films it's based on. And what substance is there is quite good.
It's a very simple game. In fact, by your second or third turn (which should be about 5 minutes in), you'll have the rules down. You and the other players are stuck in a zombie infested town, searching for whatever supplies you can find until you can make it to the heliport and bid this unholy mess adieu. Players take turns laying down map tiles. This gives each game a unique quality, since the playing board will never be the same twice. There's various building for the players to explore, where they can find extra life and bullets. But, as the name so subtly suggests, there's zombies. A TON of zombies. At times, there will be so many that it seems overwhelming; just like the movies. Killing them is easy. Roll and 4, 5, or 6, and they're dead. Roll 1, 2, or 3, and you lose a life token (you start with 3 and can carry a maximum of 5). Or, if you roll low, you can spend bullet tokens. One token adds one to your die roll. Play continues until the heliport is placed and a player makes it to the center the heliport square.
This is also a mean, mean game. There's plenty of cards that you can play to annoy your opponents, all borrowing common elements from the horror genre (Your shoe's untied! You can't move this turn!). The rest of the cards will help you, although there seems to be too many that rely on being at the right place at the right time. For example, some cards will give you bonuses if you're in a certain building. If this building has already been raided, it's pointless to go back. Luckily, you're allowed to discard unwanted cards at the end of your turn. Still, it seems a waste.
I should talk somewhat about the components themselves. The cards are quite nice and feature some truly grotesque artwork (this game is not for people with a strong disliking for gory violence). The zombies are kinda cool and come in to poses (a male and a female zombie). The player pieces (called "shotgun guys" by the rules) aren't so good. Something tells me Zombies!!! didn't have too much of a budget, so it's forgivable. The map tiles are fine, and looks like the art might be computer generated.
Simply put, if you like zombie movies, and you like unwired games, you'll get plenty of enjoyment from Zombies!!! There's a huge amount of extra material out there (Dawn of the Dead fans will want to pick up Zombies 3: Mall Walkers). But you need to start here. RECOMMENDED.
20 of 21 found the following review helpful:
 Love Zombies, love this game!!!Nov 30, 2007
By Sean Stark
Great game! Finally they something for a board game/horror freak like me. A bit of a learning curve, but a little patience and you'll have it down by the first couple of plays. Even got my fiancee to play and she had fun! It's kind of like a survival horror video game in a board game format.
Play consists of:
1. Placing a map tile down to expand the playing field and putting the number of zombies, bullets and lives indicated on that map tile.
2. Rolling for your turn (combatting any zombies on the way. 4, 5 or 6 you kill the zombie; 1,2 or 3 you have to sacrifice a life or use how ever many bullets it takes to make a high enough score to kill the zombie. If you die, you start over at the town square and lose half your killed zombies)
3. Rolling for how many zombies you can move (they are slow so they only move one space each. Rolling a 6 would allow you to move 6 zombies one space)
4. Playing an event card (events cards allow you to do evil things to your opponent or get ahead a little. Think if George Romero did the Community Chest and Chance cards in Monopoly).
The goal is to reach the helipad tile once it has been placed with your life intact OR having 25 defeated zombies in your collection. Pretty simple...AND FUN!
Caveat emptor: If you are playing with more than 2 people, invest in an additional bag of Zombies they fill up the board pretty quick.
14 of 14 found the following review helpful:
The one that starts it all!!!Jun 01, 2009
By Glen Hubbard
I have been curiously addicted to this simple game since I bought the first edition used at a game auction a few years ago. I have since gone back to buy this Second edition new, and al lthe expansions plus multiple Zombies packs glowing and plain. This "Wide Screen" set is the first of the games that gets the ball rolling. I upgraded to it because it contains a larger, deeper box that can hold the tiles and cards from most of the expansions (not 4). Don't expect it to hold more than 200 Zombies with all those cards and tiles though!
With very simple and easy to learn rules, the only complaint I have heard from people that have played the game is that it can get a little long to play, and indeed it can. Minimum game length is from 60 to 90 minutes, unless you cheat the helicopter into the middle of the tiles. I have seen game sessions go 2-3 hours, and heard of even longer ones at my local game store.
I am an old school gamer and this length of game does not really bother me. After all, the point of playing a game is to spend time with your freinds...(and help zombies kill them if possible.) Still I often use the Helicopter tile in the midlde "cheat" for shorter games myself.
But fair warning if you are expecting a collectible card game style sit down for a game and get up 5 minutes later, it ain't gonna happen! This is NOT a Magic the Gathering! This is a tabletop game in the style of the old "Illuminati" card game only much simpler to play.
If you get bored of this starter game there are 8 expansios available for variety, all of which I own, and most of which I love. There is even a Humans!!! game where you get to play the zombies! Twilight Creations does a great job with these games, and I am a huge fan. Later this June (2009) they will be coming out with a Martians!!! 1950's sci-fi game and frankly I cannot wait.
Give this game a try.
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
 Decent Adventure Board Game - Not for everyoneApr 25, 2011
By to0pink
This game has lots of potential, but as many people suggest, you might need to add your own rules to make it fun. The basic gameplay is just ok. It feels very one dimensional on its own.
Basically, you place tiles, you place zombies, you try to survive and kill zombies, and you try to screw over your opponents.
PROS:
-Fun zombie theme
-satisfying to clear out a building of zombies by yourself
-game has tons of creative potential
CONS:
-It will feel dry unless you have the right group of people
-lacks depth for strategizing and interacting with other players
-sometimes you do not have enough zombie pieces if you have too many people playing!
Overall, I would recommend this to people who:
-love zombies
-like adventure board games
-are creative to invent new variants
Here is a variant I suggest (feel free to tweak it!):
COOP variant:
Most of the rules are the same except
-you must always move zombies that are closest to you
-all cards that have negative status effects happen immediately to you (toss out cards that would be neutral in this case, like "mind control" where you control your opponents' movements)
-when the helicopter pad tile is placed, all players must get to the center tile and cannot win until all players are there
-the whole team loses if any player dies twice
Feel free to add drinking into the mix for the 21+ crowd (e.g., a shot every time you die, a half shot everytime you lose an HP, double shots for entire team if you guys lose, etc.)
3 of 3 found the following review helpful:
A great game for the right personJul 23, 2010
By William F. Leffert
"Founder of Liar's Snake"
I got back into playing board games when a friend brought a Risk board to the local coffee shop (and, subsequently, Risk Godstorm, which is also a blast). I enjoy games that take a while to play, and we were looking for something new. Long story short, I purchased this, and most certainly don't regret it.
First, the bad: The rules are poorly written, and the stock event cards and overall gameplay tend to make winning more a game of luck than skill when playing with smart players. With all the cards designed to hinder your opponents, it's amazing anybody ever wins. Reaching weapons is almost a futile endeavor, and no one has ever been able to win via the "kill 25 zombies" rule in the games I've played. Also, lose the dice that comes with it and get some real dice. Beyond that, inevitably, one person in the game always gets bored and either quits or does whatever they can to end the game quickly.
Now, the good, and how to counteract the bad.
The tile based system is fantastic, and the art is beautiful. I love the noir style. The game itself plays out fairly tense and exciting if you're paranoid enough and watch your opponents. If you like zombie materials, you'll love this game. There were so many aspects I thought would be counter-intuitive (people place tokens and zombies where they want? Trust me, it works out PERFECTLY) that ended up making gameplay a lot more amusing. The weapons, when you do attain them, are balanced and useful. Plus, the game allows you to be creative; you can focus on getting weapons and killing zombies (supposedly, but it's hard to do with all the anti-opponent event cards), or you can make a mad dash for the helipad when it pops up, trying to keep your opponents stuck back in the beginning. Just note that they'll be doing the same to you.
As far as handling the bad, AT LEAST pick up the 3.5 expansion for this, and build a new event deck with less anti-opponent cards. This will allow the gameplay to be much less frustrating, and can even speed up the game if that's your goal. Also, only put one of the seriously powerful cards ("We're screwed" and "Alternative Food Source" come to mind here) in the deck, rather than having both in. If you can, pick up the 2nd expansion, as well; it offers a second exit, more tiles, and more event cards allowing for an even better deck.
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