A competitive FPS game featuring zombies.
Before playing this game, I made an unfair assumption. I didn't really see the value in it because all I saw was head to head matches using zombies to our advantage and that's it. Even if it was an assumption, it turned out to be a pretty safe one... unfortunately.
Dead Alliance puts you smack dab into FPS action crawling with zombies, and you're able to hit your enemies with zombie-attracting goo... to send the zombies their way in your fight for victory. That's not horrible... but... (facepalm) that's pretty much it and it's not done in dramatic fashion... they're just there. If Dead Alliance were a mode in a full-fledged game... then that might be a different story.
Picture this: At the end of the main game they found out how to use the extracted goo they found to control the zombies. Then that would link and justify a Dead Alliance mode. (SDGT Concepts at your service, we can help you round out your games for maximum appreciation. Anyway... back to the review.)
You have different modes of the usual... for this zombified multiplayer FPS:
King of the Hill, Capture and Hold, Team Death Match, Free for All, Capture the Flag and Attrition with 6 maps (Port of Los Angeles, Presidio, Pier 70, Waste Water Plant, Seascape, and Attrition).
They're okay maps, but I am still underwhelmed by the overall package. It's nothing that feels exactly... fresh (and movement feels a bit stiff compared to other shooters) which could've at least lent to the value of this title. You can't even lay on the ground if desired. The biggest problem with this game is the price and the DLC.
This multiplayer experience is $24.99 without the DLC (the same DLC I'm about to go out of orbit on in a few seconds). There are games with more depth than this for $19.99. Unless someone is just crazy about the development team and want to support (because they know something I don't know), or they buy anything zombie related, or a team of kittens made this... or someone made it using only their brain connected to some sort of robot... it's not really going to wow the crowd. To be fair... every single game won't wow, some are even sleeper hits even... but I think the team went wrong in thinking it's all about the multiplayer with zombies. It can be fun, and I didn't mind running around for a few matches in this game... but it just doesn't have enough there for me to rack up some serious playtime.
It totally could have been done in a way to deliver the goods, especially to capture that Zombie-MOBA feel they advertise... but the tools need to be there for players to utilize in an assortment of different ways on the battlefield. Upgraded maps wouldn't have been a bad thing either, but lets just into this DLC.
The so-called Full Game Upgrade makes me think of the full version of the game, and since the multiplayer is what we experience in the base game (which is more like a mode... at this time) I thought it was a single player experience. You'd also be wrong if you simply purchased this DLC by reading the title... because you're not facing in-game single-player missions that allow you to experience some sort of story with a team/military unit... in this world of zombies. For the absurd price of $19.99, you're getting an offline mode of the online multiplayer. An... OFFLINE MODE (say that slow 3 times, then rinse and repeat)! WTF?!
HELL to the NO, no, no... and (yep you guessed it) no! Enough of this, seriously. I don't like doing reviews where I really have to lay into developers, but I have to in this case because it's insulting. Modes (just like we warned about other games) should not be presented as full games, especially with a bad price tag. That doesn't work and... it wastes the resources put into the development.
Step back and think about what a full game is, then update this DLC. It's better than leaving it in a position of facing less sells and scrutiny regarding future releases. At least a cooperative experience to enjoy a survival horror story would increase the justification of the purchase.
What could help, is to simply add the DLC to the main game instead of trying to get an extra $19.99 for an offline experience and just charge $20 for the entire package. Any DLC in the future should be worth the purchase and could/should be story content for the most part.
Currently getting the game and the DLC will cost you $39.99... which isn't that far off from games priced a little higher and... most likely containing more content.
A plus I will give the game (yes... I'm giving it a plus):
Regarding the score, one thing I give this game an extra "Fun factor" and "Replay value" point for is the fact that it has LAN capabilities. The ability to get together with friends via laptops... that may be in a location without internet to play online, is something I give the team props for. It may not seem like a big deal, but you have to put yourself in the shoes of someone without internet connection... or really crappy internet connection. I want every gamer to have access to some sort of gaming experience.
Overall, it's not the worse gaming experience in the world, but its nothing I'd recommend.
Fun factor: 3
Visually: 4
Replay value: 3
Price: 1
“2.75 / 5 Cool Points”
DLC
