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Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape

Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape Game Cover
59%Game Brain Score
gameplay, graphics
stability, optimization
59% User Score Based on 2,474 reviews

Platforms

PCWindows
Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape Game Cover

About

Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape is a multiplayer shooter game. It was developed by tinyBuild and was released on September 27, 2019. It received neutral reviews from players.

In "Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape," players either cooperate as survivors, running and gathering resources to board a train to safety, or stalk as zombies, aiming to infect survivors before they escape. The game features dynamic levels and permadeath for both survivor and zombie teams, adding intensity and replayability. Teamwork, strategic planning, and quick reflexes are essential to survive the horde and complete objectives.

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59%
Audience ScoreBased on 2,474 reviews
gameplay97 positive mentions
stability84 negative mentions

  • The game features a unique and fun movement system that allows for creative gameplay, including gun jumping and sliding mechanics.
  • The art style and atmosphere of the game are appealing, providing a whimsical yet intense experience.
  • Playing with friends enhances the enjoyment of the game, making it a fun multiplayer experience.
  • The game suffers from a lack of players, making it difficult to find matches and often resulting in long wait times.
  • There are significant balance issues, with zombies often feeling overpowered and humans having a frustratingly easy time winning.
  • The game is plagued by bugs and performance issues, including crashes and unresponsive controls, detracting from the overall experience.
  • gameplay
    266 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The gameplay of "Pandemic Express" is characterized by its unique mechanics and chaotic, fast-paced action, blending elements of zombie survival with asymmetrical multiplayer. While many players appreciate the innovative movement and art style, there are significant concerns regarding balance, repetitiveness, and technical issues that detract from the overall experience. Despite its potential and fun moments, the game suffers from bugs and a dwindling player base, leading to mixed reviews on its long-term viability.

    • “The core gameplay of 'Pandemic Express' revolves around asymmetric multiplayer, where human players must rely on teamwork, agility, and weapon pickups scattered across the map to survive the horde.”
    • “In summary, 'Pandemic Express – Zombie Escape' offers an exhilarating and unique twist on multiplayer survival horror that thrives on its intense pacing, chaotic chases, and unpredictable gameplay.”
    • “The gameplay is fast-paced, incredibly intense at times, and very fun.”
    • “The gameplay is extremely buggy; the mechanic of the game (being on a train) sounds fun in theory but ends up being extremely boring, and we agreed we wanted a refund.”
    • “Gameplay gets boring very fast.”
    • “The main mechanics of the game just didn't work for me, despite how fun the concept sounded.”
  • graphics
    133 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with many players appreciating the unique and beautiful art style that enhances the overall atmosphere. However, several users criticize the performance issues, including lag and graphical glitches, which detract from the experience. While some find the visuals appealing, others describe them as mediocre or in need of improvement, indicating a disparity in player satisfaction regarding the game's graphical quality.

    • “The art style is absolutely awesome.”
    • “The game offers some nice graphics and a good aesthetic that really brightens and makes the game stand out and unique.”
    • “The graphics and colors are amazing!”
    • “The graphics are meh, the game feels clunky, it's incredibly laggy, and overall it's your basic tiny build game.”
    • “Very bad optimization, getting like 5-10 fps, video graphic settings keep resetting for some reason, can't change them. Really bad game, I'm not recommending to download this game at this stage.”
    • “Premise akin to that of a Roblox mini-game, graphical quality to that of a Roblox mini-game, and performance of a toaster running a Roblox mini-game.”
  • stability
    88 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's stability is widely criticized, with numerous users reporting significant bugs, glitches, and crashes that detract from the overall experience. Many players describe it as a "buggy mess," highlighting issues such as unresponsive controls, freezing, and game-breaking glitches, which have persisted even after nearly a year since launch. While some find enjoyment in the gameplay despite these problems, the consensus is that the game requires substantial improvements to achieve a stable and polished experience.

    • “Looks great, runs great, good fun. Otherwise, a very pleasant experience.”
    • “Let's read the words... no seriously now, the game is polished, runs great.”
    • “Game has been out almost a year and it's still as buggy as day one.”
    • “Just not worth the storage used for it and the amount of bugs and glitches was overwhelming and the waiting time for each game was long to a point where it was forced started overall if they fixed some things it will be playable but in its current state its too unstable.”
    • “This game is basically dead in North America, buggy as all hell, unoptimized, super unstable leading to crashes/game breaking glitches, and basically abandoned by the devs.”
  • optimization
    71 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's optimization is widely criticized, with many players reporting severe performance issues, including low frame rates, crashes, and bugs that significantly hinder gameplay. Despite some potential for fun, the overall consensus is that the game is poorly optimized, making it nearly unplayable for many users, especially on lower-end systems. While there are hopes for future improvements, the current state leaves much to be desired.

    • “Now they just need to do some optimization and it will be a lovely game!”
    • “It seems like they have gameplay and mechanics thought out forefront and that gives me hope that they will fix the optimization/fps and crusty issues in months to come.”
    • “Game's really fun, not super well optimized, but I played the alpha so that's to be expected, and it still ran really well on my low to mid-range PC at medium to high settings.”
    • “This game barely had players when it released and it was unplayable due to optimization.”
    • “Game's dead like a kebab-flavored bottle of beer and the optimization is god awful.”
    • “The game is very unoptimized and has random optimization issues.”
  • music
    48 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The music in the game has received mixed reviews, with many players appreciating the classical soundtrack and its unique fit for the game's aesthetic. However, some users find the music repetitive and frustrating, particularly when it comes to managing the in-game jukebox and radio. Overall, while the soundtrack is often described as enjoyable and a highlight of the game, its implementation and the surrounding gameplay experience have drawn criticism.

    • “I’ll never forget the madness of 20 players crammed into a lobby, tossing radios like hot potatoes while the soundtrack stuttered into glorious static.”
    • “The only good thing with the audio design for Pandemic Express is the classical soundtrack the developers have assembled for it.”
    • “Pandemic Express is a delightfully weird game from the moment you load into the main menu, when, instead of the typical spooky horror music you might expect to be the theme song of a zombie game, you're met with... In the Hall of the Mountain King.”
    • “Optimization sucks and the game is near death but I've never laughed so hard watching 9 people fist fight over who gets to restart the sad music jukebox.”
    • “Loaded into the game to hear the same song played over and over again, the tutorial sucks, the controls are horrendous, you're going to have to bind them to normal controls, there is literally nobody playing, really bad matchmaking and a very stupid game.”
    • “Frustrating and bland mechanics, obnoxious music and annoying lobbies; you can't even kill time with jumping puzzles as you just get punched off.”
  • humor
    43 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The humor in the game is widely appreciated, particularly when played with friends, as it leads to hilarious moments and interactions, especially in chaotic scenarios involving zombies. Players enjoy the quirky mechanics and funny voice chat experiences, which contribute to a lighthearted atmosphere despite some gameplay issues. Overall, the game is described as a fun and goofy experience that thrives on multiplayer camaraderie and unexpected comedic situations.

    • “The community has been nice too; in-game voice chat is a funny experience.”
    • “It's a goofy zombie escape game that consists of 30 players max with one or two starting zombies, you can boost jump with guns if you want to and launch the zombies back the same way, fabulous game for hilarious fun with friends :)”
    • “We had a lot of fun, reading the text 'can't connect' about 5 times like this game is buggy to the point where we cannot stop laughing.”
  • atmosphere
    16 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The atmosphere of the game is frequently praised for its unique art style, immersive design, and engaging mechanics, creating a memorable experience for players. While some reviews note a decline in player activity, the overall ambiance is described as beautiful, tense, and filled with intriguing narratives, contributing significantly to the game's appeal. However, a few critiques mention that the atmosphere can sometimes feel overwhelming or unbalanced, impacting the overall enjoyment.

    • “Though it struggles with balance and depth in some areas, its innovative mechanics and atmospheric design make it a standout title within the genre.”
    • “Amazing game, you get to meet a lot of cool guys and the atmosphere when playing as a human is incredibly tense and awesome!”
    • “The design and art style of the world is another appealing aspect which really contributes to the atmosphere of the game.”
    • “Unbalanced and boring game, and the atmosphere with the music makes me want to dig my eyes out.”
  • story
    8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The game's story is largely criticized for its lack of depth and coherence, with players noting that it feels more like a series of disjointed mechanics rather than a cohesive narrative. The absence of a structured storyline leaves players feeling disconnected, as they navigate through repetitive tasks and clunky movement without a compelling context. Overall, the storytelling aspect is seen as a significant weakness, detracting from the overall experience.

    • “Let me explain to you the painful story of my people.”
    • “Zombie rule the world and now you have to destroy the king with only you and your friend. Take the bus or take the train, you decide.”
    • “The developer gambled that other players would be an acceptable substitute for adding storytelling, level design, etc. to the game.”
    • “Since there's no story, we are jumping straight into graphics.”
    • “In the tutorial, you have to 'exit the game’s tutorial' instead of the tutorial ending itself, since the ending of the tutorial is just a train going around the map and the mission stated 'train is going,' which is looped.”
  • monetization
    8 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    The monetization strategy of the game, which relies on microtransactions typical of free-to-play models, has drawn criticism for being intrusive and poorly implemented, with players expressing frustration over clunky controls and a lack of meaningful gameplay improvements. Additionally, the presence of ads feels unnecessary and ineffective, contributing to a negative overall experience that has deterred new players and harmed the game's community. Many users believe that significant changes in advertising and monetization tactics are essential for revitalizing interest in the game.

    • “Since the game is free-to-play, there are of course going to be microtransactions.”
    • “Getting welcomed by in-game purchase options, game crashes, and still very clunky controls, I wish I never backed this game that I thought could be something cool when I first saw it.”
    • “Gameplay doesn't really feel that good to me and the lack of options regarding controls (e.g. ads can't be toggled) is bothersome.”
  • emotional
    5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players express a mix of emotions regarding the game, highlighting feelings of loneliness and heartbreak, particularly in relation to the game's community and soundtrack. While the freedom of movement is appreciated, it contrasts with the emotional weight of the experience, leading to a sense of humor tinged with sadness. Overall, the emotional landscape is complex, blending joy with a poignant sense of isolation.

    • “Not going to lie, I'm being honest when I say that getting a soundtrack for a game no one plays was pretty heartbreaking and felt like it was an attempt at damage control.”
    • “I’d be rolling on the floor with laughter if it wasn’t so heartbreaking.”
  • replayability
    5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Players highlight the game's strong replayability due to its random infection mechanics and unpredictable encounters, which create a unique challenge each time. Despite currently being in a barebones state with only one large map, the game offers significant replay value that keeps players engaged and returning for more. Overall, it evokes nostalgia for the high replay value found in classic FPS mods.

    • “And while the game is more or less barebones right now, one map (but a very large map with multiple spawns and routes) it already has a ton to offer and hours of replay value.”
    • “The randomness of who becomes infected first and the unpredictability of encounters add replayability and a unique challenge to each game.”
    • “The replayability felt endless and maybe even timeless.”
    • “While the game is more or less barebones right now, with only one large map that has multiple spawns and routes, it already has a ton to offer and hours of replay value.”
  • grinding
    4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Reviews indicate that grinding in the game can be tedious and frustrating, with some players resorting to exploitative tactics like killfarming to progress. The mechanics, such as the lover set's health leeching ability, can lead to imbalances, while activities like parkour are hindered by floaty controls, making the grinding experience less enjoyable.

    • “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
    • “Doing parkour is extremely tedious due to floaty controls.”
    • “The lover set allows players to use the RPG to instantly leech health back to full 3 hearts in an instant due to its AOE damage (always used with kill farming).”
  • character development
    2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative

    Reviewers appreciate the art style and character design, highlighting them as standout features of the game. However, there is no specific mention of character development in terms of narrative or growth, suggesting that while the visuals are appealing, the depth of character progression may be lacking.

    • “I absolutely love the art style and the character design.”
    • “The gun and character design is cool.”
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5h Median play time
13h Average play time
1-12h Spent by most gamers
*Based on 9 analyzed playthroughs
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Frequently Asked Questions

Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape is a shooter game.

Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape is available on PC and Windows.

On average players spend around 13 hours playing Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape.

Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape was released on September 27, 2019.

Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape was developed by tinyBuild.

Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape has received neutral reviews from players. Most players liked this game for its gameplay but disliked it for its stability.

Pandemic Express: Zombie Escape is a multiplayer game.

Similar games include Last Year, Hide Or Die, Islands of Nyne: Battle Royale, Crucible Beta, Overkill's The Walking Dead and others.