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About Dead Maze

Dead Maze is a multiplayer open world role playing game with a post-apocalyptic theme. It was developed by Atelier 801 and was released on February 13, 2018. It received mostly positive reviews from both critics and players.

Dead Maze is a 2D MMO game set in a destroyed contemporary world, filled with zombies. Explore the world, scavenge and craft as many items as possible, to survive the hostile environment and upgrade your gear and camp as you go.

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Games Like Dead Maze

Looking for games like Dead Maze? Here are top open world role playing recommendations with a post-apocalyptic focus, selected from player-similarity data — start with Once Human, Villagers and Heroes or Neverwinter.

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Reviews

68%Audience ScoreBased on 1,371 reviews
story80 positive mentions
grinding129 negative mentions

  • Unique and charming 2D isometric zombie survival MMO with cooperative emphasis and engaging crafting and looting systems.
  • Strong community focus with friendly players and helpful cooperation in quests and combat encounters.
  • Runs well on lower-end PCs, free to play without pay-to-win mechanics, and has an intriguing storyline with atmospheric world design.
  • Development has been abandoned for several years leading to lack of updates, unfinished story, many bugs, and technical issues including lag and occasional crashes.
  • Gameplay becomes repetitive and grind-heavy after completing the main storyline with limited inventory space and fast weapon durability depletion.
  • Lack of features like an in-game map, slow walking speed, unintuitive controls, and occasional unresponsive quest NPCs frustrate new and solo players.
  • story

    371 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    22% positive mentions, 72% neutral mentions, 6% negative mentions

    The game's story is generally praised for its engaging, well-written narrative and interesting characters, providing a solid foundation that captivates players early on. However, many reviews highlight that the story is relatively short, ends on a cliffhanger, and remains unfinished due to a lack of further development and updates from the developers. Additionally, numerous quest bugs, particularly involving the dog missions, and repetitive fetch quests detract from the overall storytelling experience, leaving players with limited content once the main storyline concludes.

    • “It had great storyline, great characters, great gameplay and the most fun community... I really enjoyed spending a few years of my life playing this game.”
    • “You learned systems naturally, optimized routes, upgraded your shelter slowly, and built your own story inside the world.”
    • “The story is engaging, the gameplay is awesome and killing zombies is just satisfying!!”
    • “The story is unfinished and ends on a cliffhanger.”
    • “The dog quest, in particular, is so buggy that it's nearly impossible to complete, and it appears that the game's story isn't even finished.”
    • “The story line is very short and ends on the cliffhanger, and the following portion (the dog update) doesn't carry the same writing style and it takes literally a month of repeating side quests to finish.”
  • grinding

    131 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    0% positive mentions, 2% neutral mentions, 98% negative mentions

    Grinding is a core and often criticized aspect of the game, described as extensive, repetitive, and sometimes tedious, especially in the late game or after completing main objectives. While some players enjoy the farming and looting loop, cooperative play, and crafting progression, many find inventory limitations, slow weapon durability, and lack of rewarding payoff contribute to a grind-heavy experience that may wear on player patience. Overall, the grinding is viewed as both a time-consuming necessity and a barrier to sustained engagement unless you are particularly fond of resource collection and incremental progression.

    • “The game is too grindy for not enough rewards; everything breaks as soon as you make them and good luck getting materials to make more. Play something else.”
    • “~ Endless grinding: to set up your crafting stations and upgrade them, you need to collect material for days and weeks.”
    • “The fact that you have to spend tedious-to-get currency rather than collecting fabric for outfits anymore sucks but whatever.”
  • gameplay

    120 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    27% positive mentions, 60% neutral mentions, 13% negative mentions

    Dead Maze offers a cooperative survival gameplay loop centered on scavenging, crafting, combat, and resource management in a 2D zombie apocalypse setting, with an emphasis on teamwork and base building. While its mechanics are accessible and satisfying, especially in multiplayer, the gameplay is often criticized for being slow, repetitive, and lacking depth in combat, with some frustrating death penalties and limited content updates. Overall, it provides a fun and engaging experience for fans of survival MMOs but may feel repetitive or underdeveloped for those seeking more complex or action-oriented gameplay.

    • “Dead Maze is a free-to-play survival MMO that blends zombie apocalypse themes with crafting, exploration, and cooperative multiplayer gameplay inside a colorful 2D world.”
    • “The blend of survival mechanics, cooperative play and light RPG progression gives the game a satisfying loop: scavenge for supplies, fortify your base, craft gear, and team up with others to face hordes of undead and unpredictable threats.”
    • “The survival mechanics are not excessively punishing, but they create enough pressure to make preparation and careful resource usage feel important throughout the experience.”
    • “The gameplay loop can eventually become repetitive during extended sessions because many objectives revolve around familiar scavenging and crafting patterns.”
    • “Combat mechanics also lack the depth and impact found in more action-oriented survival games, which may disappoint players looking for highly dynamic or skill-based encounters.”
    • “It's terrible... we have dozens of weapons but all of them use the same animation, we have a couple of skills but they are not enough and most importantly base gameplay mechanics suck... even walking animation/mechanics literally feels like the game is freezing or something wrong is happening.”
  • graphics

    97 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    39% positive mentions, 52% neutral mentions, 9% negative mentions

    The game's graphics are characterized by simple, stylized 2D visuals with a bright, cartoon-inspired art style that contrasts with its grim survival theme, giving it a distinctive personality. While many appreciate the charming art design, atmospheric lighting, and detailed cutscenes, others criticize the dated, low-resolution quality, occasional graphical glitches, and lack of modern 3D elements. Overall, the graphics are serviceable and appealing to fans of retro or indie aesthetics but may feel outdated or basic to those expecting more advanced visuals.

    • “Behind the simple 2D graphics was one of the most atmospheric and soul-heavy survival experiences I ever played.”
    • “The contrast between the colorful art style and the grim survival setting actually works in the game’s favor by giving it a more distinctive personality compared to darker and more visually aggressive zombie titles.”
    • “The isometric perspective and retro-inspired art style give it personality without sacrificing clarity, and dynamic weather and day-night cycles add both atmosphere and consequence to your expeditions.”
    • “Crappy 2D web browser-tier graphics combined with toxic monetization in the era of glorious 3D PC MMORPGs sentenced this to death before it could really go anywhere. There's only a handful of people clinging on to their Stockholm syndrome and sunk cost fallacy playing this.”
    • “The game features really lackluster 2D visuals (does the developer not know 3D graphics became mainstream in the mid-1990s?).”
    • “The GUI is impossible to read due to its highly compact nature, the graphics are ridiculously poor; why they even thought to enable you to zoom in on the atrocities they call characters is beyond me.”
  • stability

    30 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    3% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 97% negative mentions

    The game suffers from frequent bugs, glitches, and graphical issues—especially on higher resolutions—and many players report instability, including freezes and slow loading. Although some updates addressed minor graphical glitches, major problems like broken quests, fast weapon degradation, and game-breaking bugs remain, leading to frustration and claims of abandonment by developers. Despite these issues, a few users still find the game playable and enjoyable, but overall stability is a significant concern.

    • “Dead Maze is great fun in co-op, has good graphics, and runs great.”
    • “That was before the developers abandoned the game for another project called 'Transformice Adventures,' which never came out. They stopped updating this game forever, and people stopped playing it because it was still buggy and abandoned.”
    • “Your weapons break way too fast with no way to fix them. There are bugs and glitches that haven't been fixed in years. The game became more unstable when I joined a tribe, and hunger/thirst/rest drop exceedingly fast, forcing constant farming. The list of issues goes on and on.”
    • “Except that the game constantly hangs or freezes when entering areas, fails to load most of the time, and the game window glitches out occasionally.”
  • optimization

    19 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    16% positive mentions, 47% neutral mentions, 37% negative mentions

    The game's optimization is widely criticized, with frequent reports of lag, stuttering, and poor performance even on high-end PCs. While the Steam version shows some improvement, overall the game struggles with inefficient resource use and outdated Flash technology, leading to a frustrating experience compared to better-optimized titles. However, some hope remains as the game is still in early access and may see improvements over time.

    • “You learned systems naturally, optimized routes, upgraded your shelter slowly, and built your own story inside the world.”
    • “The Steam version is much better because it focuses on the game and itself alone, and it's much better optimized.”
    • “But oh well, it's still in early access so it's probably going to be optimized in future updates.”
    • “It's an ok game, don't get me wrong, but it's very poorly optimized as the game tends to 'rubber band' a bit with lag.”
    • “I cannot really complain about anything so far on that end besides the lag and stuttery performance even on high end PCs I tested the game on.”
    • “Really need to improve the performance, I have a NASA PC and the FPS are like if I have a toaster.”
  • monetization

    17 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    18% positive mentions, 23% neutral mentions, 59% negative mentions

    Monetization in the game is heavily criticized for aggressive microtransactions and cash grab tactics, with some pay-to-win elements and limited free progression leading to frustrating grinding. While in-app purchases exist, they are often poorly implemented and the game suffers from infrequent updates, buggy performance, and intrusive ads, negatively impacting the overall experience. However, some players note the devs don’t forcibly push purchases, making it more tolerable for casual play.

    • “There are in-game purchases but not pricey.”
    • “The dev team has a great spirit and doesn't force you into in-app purchases even if it's a free-to-play game!”
    • “The monetization isn't extreme, and there are some items that are indeed fairly pay-to-win, though they are far from impossible to grind to get.”
    • “As mentioned, this isn't really free as the game is infested with mobile app store-like microtransactions.”
    • “You will grind and grind and make no difference. I'm level 330 and I saw people with level 4000+; spending so much time in this will give me brain rot. Speaking of spending, the game is a cash grab. The older version of this was more okay, but the dev changed it and now it is a buggy mess and most of the players just cheat because it's so broken!”
    • “Also, microtransactions. The devs removed ways of buying stuff with in-game currency and made it only purchasable with real money. That was the last update they did—a quick cash grab update and then left the game to die!”
  • music

    13 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    23% positive mentions, 54% neutral mentions, 23% negative mentions

    The game's music is generally understated and ambient, featuring environmental sounds and subtle cues that enhance the post-apocalyptic atmosphere and maintain tension during encounters. While some players find the soundtrack soothing and immersive, others note a lack of standout music or feel it contributes to a sense of isolation rather than excitement. Overall, the music supports the mood effectively, though its quality and presence vary in impact for different players.

    • “Ambient environmental sounds, distant zombie noises, and subtle music all help reinforce the feeling of surviving inside a dangerous and deteriorating world.”
    • “The soundtrack generally remains understated during exploration but becomes more intense during dangerous encounters, helping maintain tension naturally without becoming overwhelming.”
    • “Despite having dead developer production, this game has a soothing soundtrack with environmental cues and with few players left online, the isolation and soundtrack are quite calming.”
    • “Kinda creepy movie sounds, not much music.”
    • “In the time I sacrificed playing I felt nothing but boredom and annoyance, there was no discernable music, no sounds to keep you immersed except an occasional grunt, and the framerate was so god awful it physically hurt my head to look at movement, even with the 'smooth camera' enabled.”
    • “Despite having dead developer production, this game has a soothing soundtrack with environmental cues and with little players left online, the isolation and soundtrack are quite calming.”
  • atmosphere

    11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    27% positive mentions, 73% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its immersive and soulful survival experience, enhanced by environmental details, dynamic weather, lighting effects, and sound design. Despite simple 2D graphics and a retro art style, it effectively conveys a compelling, cooperative zombie adventure with a friendly and engaging world. The atmosphere stands out as a key strength, creating memorable, tension-filled scavenging runs without excessive frustration.

    • “I have more than 1400 hours in this game, and even after all these years I still remember its atmosphere, locations, scavenging runs, and survival feeling better than many modern AAA titles.”
    • “Behind the simple 2D graphics was one of the most atmospheric and soul-heavy survival experiences I ever played.”
    • “Environmental details, lighting effects, and weather conditions add atmosphere to the world despite the relatively simple graphical style.”
  • humor

    10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    The humor in the game is generally appreciated, with many players finding it funny and amusing, often highlighting entertaining moments that arise during gameplay. While some find the humor light and simple, others enjoy the blend of humor with darker themes, and a few mention the game being humorously bad in a playful way.

    • “Amazingly funny game.”
    • “The story isn't overly complicated and easy to follow, it's basically your generic zombie apocalypse with some twists... but the best part is how it's an MMO and the funny moments you will get as you play with people and events... but don't get me wrong there are some pretty dark moments too...”
    • “Well, to think you can kill zombies with everything you got, it's funny.”
  • emotional

    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    75% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 25% negative mentions

    The emotional aspect of the game evokes a range of reactions, from deep nostalgia and immersive connection to the story, to frustration due to difficult gameplay and a perceived lackluster storyline. While some players felt genuinely moved and engaged, others found it hard to maneuver and boring.

    • “It made me feel like a child again.”
    • “At first glance into the game, the storyline actually made me feel like I was my character in the game, and that things were really hitting the fan.”
    • “No maze, I cried.”
  • character development

    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    50% positive mentions, 50% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Character development features cute and appealing designs, though some users find the character art somewhat childish. Overall, the visual presentation is positively received, complementing the environment's graphics.

  • replayability

    1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
    100% positive mentions, 0% neutral mentions, 0% negative mentions

    Dead Maze offers a highly replayable experience, especially for players who enjoy cooperative survival gameplay, strategic resource management, and exploring a charming yet hazardous world. Its engaging mechanics keep players coming back for more.

    • “For players who enjoy survival games with coop emphasis, strategic resource management, and a charming yet dangerous world to explore, Dead Maze delivers a rewarding and endlessly replayable experience.”
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Critic Reviews

80%Critics’ scoreBased on 1 critic reviews
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Play Times

103h Median play time
94h Average play time
20-200h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 7 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Dead Maze is a open world role playing game with post-apocalyptic theme. Common tags for Dead Maze include free to play, trading, 2d, crafting, loot and others.

Dead Maze is available on PC, Mac OS, Windows and Linux.

On average players spend around 94 hours playing Dead Maze.

Dead Maze was released on February 13, 2018.

Dead Maze was developed by Atelier 801.

Dead Maze has received mostly positive reviews from both players and critics. Most players liked Dead Maze for its story but disliked it for its grinding.

Dead Maze is a multiplayer game with local co-op support.

Similar games include Once Human, Villagers and Heroes, Neverwinter, Wild Terra 2: New Lands, Stash and others.