UNDYING - "KINGDOM" | Game Brain — video game discovery

About

In "Undying - Kingdom," Anling fights to lead her son Cody through a zombie apocalypse and her own infection, with their survival dependent on the player's choices and interactions with various characters. Every decision impacts the story's outcome, making for a unique and potentially tragic journey. Trust is fragile, and the line between friend and foe blurs in this brutal world.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

81%

Audience ScoreBased on 696 reviews

story146 positive mentions

grinding44 negative mentions

The game offers a unique and emotional narrative centered around a mother teaching her son survival skills in a zombie apocalypse.
The art style and sound design create an immersive atmosphere that enhances the emotional impact of the story.
Gameplay mechanics, such as resource management and skill teaching, provide a rewarding experience as players progress.

The game suffers from balancing issues, making resource management feel tedious and frustrating, especially in higher difficulty settings.
Combat mechanics are clunky and can lead to frustrating experiences, particularly when dealing with multiple enemies.
The game lacks clear guidance and tutorials, leaving players confused about objectives and mechanics.

story
426 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
62%
4%
The story of "Undying" is a poignant and emotional narrative centered around a mother, Anling, who is infected with a zombie virus and strives to teach her son, Cody, survival skills before her inevitable transformation. While many players appreciate the touching relationship and unique premise, some criticize the gameplay's focus on resource management and fetch quests, which can detract from the storytelling experience. Overall, the game is recognized for its engaging narrative and character development, though it faces challenges in pacing and quest design.
- “Undying is a testament to the potential of video games as a storytelling medium.”
- “The story hooks me up with how the mother tried to teach everything to her son while trying to survive her nightmare of being bitten by a zombie and slowly turning into one.”
- “A touching story of survival in the zombie apocalypse.”
- “Revolving fetch quests and limited time to make substantial progress in a single day have killed it for me.”
- “Since such a large part of the gameplay is gathering resources, the story is not interesting at all. It's just a mom and son survival story, and you comfort him because he is scared, pressing space while doing stuff so you can delegate later on.”
- “The story is understandably unfinished, but sometimes feels disconnected as you stumble on other humans or interact with Cody at home.”
gameplay
256 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
27%
63%
9%
The gameplay of "Undying" combines survival mechanics with a poignant narrative centered on a mother and her son in a zombie apocalypse, featuring resource gathering, crafting, and a unique skill-teaching mechanic. While many players appreciate the emotional depth and innovative aspects, such as the urgency created by the mother's deteriorating condition, criticisms arise regarding the game's repetitive nature, lack of clear tutorials, and some clunky mechanics that can detract from the overall experience. Overall, the game offers a compelling blend of storytelling and gameplay, though it requires further refinement and polish to fully realize its potential.
- “This combination of time-sensitive gameplay and deeply personal stakes makes 'Undying' a powerful and memorable experience.”
- “The game’s mechanics are straightforward yet effective, adding depth without overwhelming the player with overly complex systems.”
- “It seamlessly combines fun gameplay with a compelling narrative, creating an experience that lingers in the minds of players long after the credits roll.”
- “Boring - 80% of gameplay is resource gathering/allocating; to proceed with the story, you need to find resources, craft, and all that crap.”
- “Every gameplay aspect feels rushed and unfinished.”
- “Undying is a terribly broken game, with multiple functional and visual bugs, bad translation, lackluster voice-over, missing helpful explanations, and game mechanics that are not working properly, like Cody stopping to use his slingshot at all.”
emotional
114 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
"Undying" is praised for its deeply emotional narrative centered on the bond between a mother and her son in a zombie apocalypse, effectively blending survival mechanics with poignant storytelling. Players report feeling a strong emotional investment in the characters, particularly as they navigate the challenges of survival while grappling with themes of love, sacrifice, and impending loss. Despite some criticisms regarding gameplay mechanics and translation issues, the game's heartfelt story and character dynamics resonate strongly, making it a memorable experience for those seeking emotional depth in gaming.
- “The dialogue and interactions between Anling and Cody are genuine and touching, portraying the bond between a mother and son in a way that feels realistic and deeply moving.”
- “Ultimately, 'Undying' offers a deeply affecting take on the survival genre, combining resource management with a touching narrative about love, sacrifice, and resilience.”
- “Undying is more than a game; it's a captivating, emotional journey.”
graphics
72 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
46%
4%
The graphics of the game are widely praised for their charming low-poly art style, which features soft pastel tones and a minimalist aesthetic that enhances the overall atmosphere. Reviewers appreciate the intuitive UI and the emotional depth conveyed through the visuals, noting that the graphics, while not hyper-realistic, effectively complement the game's unique story and gameplay. Overall, the visuals are described as beautiful, cute, and engaging, contributing significantly to the game's appeal.
- “The game features stunning graphics that bring its fantastical world to life.”
- “The low-poly art style is a visual treat, and the music sets the perfect tone.”
- “The atmosphere, graphics, and music are brilliant.”
- “I don't love this art style, but it is what it is.”
- “It's this war of mine on a more personal and much upgraded level and graphics.”
- “- although minimalistic, the game has neat low-poly graphics with soft pastel tones.”
music
52 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
46%
48%
6%
The game's music is widely praised for its emotional depth, featuring a melancholic soundtrack that enhances the overall atmosphere. However, many players express frustration with the frequent pauses in music during loading screens and menu transitions, which detracts from the immersive experience. Overall, while the soundtrack is considered beautiful and fitting, there are calls for improvements in its implementation.
- “The game’s sound design and music further enhance its emotional atmosphere.”
- “The soundtrack is subtle, with melancholic piano and strings that underscore the tension and sadness of Anling and Cody’s situation.”
- “I love Undying and I love its music; Undying is an indie game you shouldn’t miss out on, really.”
- “Loading screen transitions, opening menus, or the inventory completely pause the game's music (and this happens way more than it should).”
- “It's an awesome experience except for one thing... the music pauses anytime you do anything and it's really annoying and ruins the atmosphere.”
- “The music and sound effects are not all there.”
grinding
44 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Players generally find the grinding in the game to be extremely repetitive and tedious, often feeling like a chore rather than an engaging experience. While some appreciate the emotional aspects that keep them invested, many express frustration with resource management, crafting, and certain quests that require excessive back-and-forth. Overall, the grind is seen as a significant drawback, though some still recommend the game for its other qualities.
- “Extremely repetitive and tedious.”
- “Some areas, such as the police station, feel horribly tedious and are just genuinely a waste of time.”
- “It was disheartening to say the least to have all that grinding for nothing, and it would be one thing if the RV park had some fresh water or at least a regular meager meal to hand out every once in a while.”
atmosphere
12 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
42%
25%
The game's atmosphere is widely praised for its brilliant graphics and sound design, effectively immersing players in a compelling emotional experience, particularly in the context of a zombie apocalypse. However, some users find the music pausing during gameplay to be a significant distraction that detracts from the overall atmosphere. Additionally, the high difficulty level can limit exploration, impacting the ability to fully appreciate the game's environment.
- “The game’s sound design and music further enhance its emotional atmosphere.”
- “Can really feel the zombie apocalypse's atmosphere.”
- “The atmosphere, graphics, and music are brilliant.”
- “It's an awesome experience except for one thing... the music pauses anytime you do anything, and it's really annoying and ruins the atmosphere.”
- “The game is very catchy with its atmosphere; played on a high difficulty level, I was constantly short of supplies and had almost no time to explore the world.”
- “I can really feel the zombie apocalypse's atmosphere.”
stability
10 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game suffers from significant stability issues, including bugs, missing textures, and unbalanced gameplay, which suggest it was released before being fully polished. While some players report that the gameplay remains functional despite these glitches, others experience persistent problems, particularly with choice selections as the game progresses. Overall, the stability concerns detract from the overall experience, indicating a need for further refinement.
- “Unfortunately, it is horribly unbalanced and buggy.”
- “It's buggy, missing textures, and generally lacks guidance; honestly, it feels like the game was not remotely ready.”
- “Still a little buggy when you get about 20 days in; with the choice selections, it seems to struggle a bit and not allow the selections to be chosen.”
replayability
6 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
33%
33%
Overall, the game exhibits high replayability, with many players eager to revisit it to explore different narrative paths and retain skills and items for subsequent playthroughs. However, some users express disappointment, citing a lack of engaging content that diminishes their desire to replay after a certain point.
- “Good replay value, especially as you can keep some skills and items from one game to another, which makes it easier the next time you play.”
- “I saw so little replay value from the game at this point that I just had to quit at day 25. I wouldn't bother to play the game over again when it's done, and at that point, I've been playing for some time without being entertained.”
- “The replay value is high, as players find themselves drawn back to uncover additional layers of the narrative and explore alternate paths within the game.”
humor
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is characterized by dark and absurd elements, with players noting instances of inappropriate comedic responses, such as a character's nonchalant reaction to serious situations. This blend of humor can create a jarring yet entertaining experience, appealing to those who appreciate unconventional comedic styles.
- “There are a lot of funny responses, like a mother trying to commit suicide and Cody just answering a few sentences down the line, 'hahahahahha'.”
- “The other funny thing is that I may have missed a progression gate somewhere.”
optimization
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
50%
The game has been criticized for its poor optimization, with players expressing frustration over performance issues and inefficient quest design that leads to unnecessary backtracking. Overall, the optimization appears to detract significantly from the gameplay experience.
- “I ran Cyberpunk at launch but can't run this poorly optimized piece of garbage.”
- “There's a cooking quest which frankly could be better optimized, as running back and forth is just wasting time.”
character development
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The game features intricate character development, enhanced by plot twists and unexpected turns that significantly enrich the overall narrative experience.
- “The game weaves a rich tapestry of plot twists, character development, and unexpected turns that elevate it beyond the typical gaming experience.”