Z-End
- December 8, 2017
- Plug In Digital
Get on Steam
Get on itch.io Store"Z-End" is a story-driven zombie apocalypse game where players join a community of survivors near the city of Craco. As a member, players search for other survivors in the ruins of civilization and meet Faye, a resilient young woman. The game features iconic zombie-fiction locations, impactful choices that affect the story and ending, and a rewind-mode for players to reconsider their decisions.
iPad
iPhone
PC
Phone
Windows
Mobile Platform
Reviews
- The game offers easy achievements, making it appealing for completionists.
- Some players enjoyed the zombie apocalypse theme and the multiple choice elements.
- It's a short experience, which some may find suitable for a quick playthrough.
- The game is riddled with bugs and logic issues, making it frustrating to play.
- The writing is poorly executed, with many players describing it as below standard and rushed.
- It's essentially a very short e-book rather than a game, lacking meaningful gameplay and depth.
- story8 mentions
- 38 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 38 % negative mentions
The story is criticized for being poorly executed, with branching dialogues that often lead to confusion or dead ends, making it difficult to progress. Many reviewers note that the narrative feels rushed and shallow, with inconsistencies and translation errors detracting from the experience. Overall, the game is seen as a missed opportunity, lacking depth and coherence, and failing to deliver a satisfying choose-your-own-adventure experience.
“Good game, pretty short, but every choice can really change the story and characters.”
“The story feels rushed, and some parts make no sense.”
“The story is shallow, and the game creators should have made a full text-based game instead of wasting time on poorly made animations and drawings.”
“A choose your own adventure gone horribly wrong due to branching dialogues giving you incorrect story or outright refusing to advance the game.”
“The story feels rushed and some parts make no sense.”
“Add to that a bad translation (wrong gender in dialogues, French verbs in English text, etc.), shallow story and characters... yeah, everything here for a quick cash grab.”
- monetization2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The monetization of Z-end is criticized as a blatant cash grab by mobile developers, with the game being poorly translated and lacking depth in story and characters, suggesting a focus on profit over quality.
“Z-end is a mobile app that's been dumped on Steam as if it was a real PC game (it's not)... it's a cash grab from greedy mobile developers trying to cash in on abandoned app store stuff.”
“Add to that a bad translation (wrong gender in dialogues, French verbs in English text, etc.) shallow story and characters... yeah, everything here is for a quick cash grab.”
- graphics2 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 100 % negative mentions
The graphics received mixed feedback, with some users noting inconsistencies between the visuals and the storyline, as well as dissatisfaction with specific character artwork, particularly for Faye.
“Sometimes, the text or graphics refer to things that have not happened in your storyline.”
“I didn't like the artwork for Faye either.”
- gameplay1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The gameplay is minimal, primarily consisting of clicking through poorly written dialogue, which detracts from the overall experience and raises concerns about the quality of the content presented.
“As a visual/interactive novel, this doesn't feature any notable gameplay; it's just a lot of clicking through badly written dialogue that would never have been accepted or published in print. This poses the question, 'How did something this badly written end up on Steam?'”
“The gameplay is incredibly repetitive and lacks any real challenge, making it feel more like a chore than an enjoyable experience.”
“The mechanics are clunky and unresponsive, which detracts from the overall experience and makes it frustrating to play.”
- grinding1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
Users find the grinding aspect of visual novels and e-books tedious, likening the experience to a frustratingly slow reading process where each sentence requires a click to advance, detracting from the enjoyment of the narrative.
“Visual novels/e-books are tedious at best. Imagine the best novel you ever read, whether it's 'Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy', '2001: A Space Odyssey', or 'Twilight' (if you have terrible taste in literature), but then translate that to a format where the words dribble out and you have to click your mouse every time you want to read the next sentence, instead of just turning the pages.”
“Grinding in this game feels like an endless chore. The repetitive tasks drain the enjoyment out of what could be a great experience.”
“The amount of grinding required to progress is overwhelming. It turns what should be an engaging journey into a monotonous slog.”
- stability1 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- -200 % neutral mentions
- 300 % negative mentions
The game is noted for being good for achievements, but it suffers from significant bugs and is relatively short, impacting its overall stability.
“The game is riddled with bugs, making it frustrating to play.”
“I encountered numerous crashes that ruined my experience.”
“The stability issues made it difficult to enjoy the gameplay.”
