''Survival Crisis Z'' is a

video game Video games, also known as computer games, are electronic games that involves interaction with a user interface or input device such as a joystick, controller, keyboard, or motion sensing device to generate visual feedback. This fee ...

within both the

role playing Role-playing or roleplaying is the changing of one's behaviour to assume a role, either unconsciously to fill a social role, or consciously to act out an adopted role. While the ''Oxford English Dictionary'' offers a definition of role-playing a ...

and survival horror genres for

Microsoft Windows Windows is a group of several proprietary graphical operating system families developed and marketed by Microsoft. Each family caters to a certain sector of the computing industry. For example, Windows NT for consumers, Windows Server for serv ...

. The game was published in

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...

by developer

Ska Studios Ska Studios is an independent game development studio founded by James Silva in 2007 after winning a contract to publish '' The Dishwasher: Dead Samurai'' to Xbox Live Arcade. Ska Studios has released four Metacritic-aggregated console games si ...

. The game takes place in a city during the wake of a zombie apocalypse. Players assume the role of a survivor, and are given free rein in how they deal with the hostile world. The game is distributed as a

freeware Freeware is software, most often proprietary, that is distributed at no monetary cost to the end user. There is no agreed-upon set of rights, license, or EULA that defines ''freeware'' unambiguously; every publisher defines its own rules for the f ...

digital download.

Gameplay

Two game modes can be played, the first is Arcade Mode and entails surviving for as long as possible against an onslaught of zombies, this mode has been compared to ''

Robotron: 2084 ''Robotron: 2084'' (also referred to as ''Robotron'') is a multidirectional shooter developed by Eugene Jarvis and Larry DeMar of Vid Kidz and released in arcades by Williams Electronics in 1982. The game is set in the year 2084 in a fictional wo ...

''. In the Story Mode, the player must scavenge for supplies, eat due to hunger and sleep to prevent fatigue, as well as improve skills to increase the chances of continued survival. In addition to the zombie horde, two factions are present on the city streets; the Rebels and SWAT. The player can join either faction or remain neutral. The zombies function as the antagonists of the game, and while they are dangerous at night they can be used to attack faction members if they are lured to the zombies' locations. Three episodes are available in Story Mode with different missions and more enemies. The player advances the plot by taking missions or work from faction leaders. In work missions, the player can take over houses, look for secret dungeons, eliminate rival houses with C4 or simply roam the map looking for items and weapons to trade; as long as they watch out for threats from the post-apocalyptic world—living or dead. In missions the player performs special tasks like saving a scientist who is researching a cure. There are a number of strategies to employ, weapons to use, and skills to help the player. The player character and party can be configured to accommodate different play styles, all the while dealing with the swelling ranks of living dead.

References

{{reflist

External links

Ska Studios official Website/Blog
Role-playing video games Freeware games Indie games Windows games Windows-only games Video games about zombies Video games with isometric graphics Action role-playing video games 2004 video games Video games developed in the United States Ska Studios games Single-player video games