Zombies Ate My Neighbors

"A Weird And (Sometimes) Wonderful Game"

'Zombies Ate My Neighbors' has two positive factors that I love in video games: a unique feel, and two-player cooperative play. So while the game occasionally frustrated me or left me feeling underwhelmed, it is definitely a cut above the crowd. And who doesn't love a game that has a sense of humor?
'Zombies Ate My Neighbors' is based on those old 'alien invasion' movies, where innocent suburbanites fall prey to pod people and blaster-waving space mutants. The game definitely has a sense of comedic style, playing up the retro angle at full tilt. You (or you and a friend) run around various neighborhoods and other locales, trying to rescue your fellow Earthlings from the clutches of evil. Of course, you can always fight back, wielding weapons such as squirt pistols, soda bombs, and bazookas.
The variety of weaponry adds a lot of fun and style to the game, but it does add a problem to the mix as well. Certain enemies are weak to certain weapons, but you'll probably have collected so many in your travels that it takes a long time to cycle through them all before arriving on the one you need. So as you're desperately looking for the silverware weapon to fight off a werewolf, you have to skip through the plates and the weedwacker and the squirt gun and the monster potion and the cross and the.... you get the idea.
When you're not battling monsters, you're saving your neighbors, and this is the real task of the game. You need to save at least one neighbor to move on to the next level (you carry over your neighbor total from level to level, up to a maximum of ten), so don't dawdle around, looking for power-ups while your Earthling pals are being eaten by mummies. And while saving the different types of neighbors is fun (my favorites are the crazy army guy and the poor dog), it can be VERY frustrating. Even though saving one neighbor will keep you advancing through the game, I personally tried to save all of them, and it became very stressful, running around frantically while knowing that neighbors were being eaten with me being unable to get there in time. More casual gamers probably won't mind, but if you're the type (like me) that doesn't like scraping through a game with minimal effort, you might pull your hair out as your neighbors rapidly expire in the later levels.
The game has a lot going for it, though. There are all kinds of fun little surprises, especially the point bonuses at the end of the levels, which are rewarded for a variety of things, such as clearing weeds or scaring off UFOs. There are plenty of secret levels, and one of them is even based on 'Day of the Tentacle,' the classic adventure game. 'Zombies Ate My Neighbors' is definitely a game with a lot of little touches that tell the player that thought and care went into the making of the game.
The graphics are pretty solid. The levels are filled with all kinds of small details and eye candy, but none of the visuals are especially outstanding. Some folks might complain that there is too much on the screen and it can be hard to tell what is background and what can be interacted with.
The music is above average, with a catchy tune or two in there. The sound effects are used pretty well to set the mood, especially in the caverns or haunted house levels. (And, as always, the sound of a chainsaw is pretty darn creepy.)
The game play is simple and effective, minus the weapon selection problem I mentioned earlier. The only real trick is learning the uses of each weapon to their maximum effectiveness. Unfortunately, though, the weapons have limited ammunition, and the enemies never seem to stop coming. Unless you enjoy empty weapon stocks or dead neighbors, you have to spend most of the game running around like a madman, only stopping occasionally to strategize. It's very challenging (and sometimes rewarding), but it can be pretty hectic.
I think I would have enjoyed the game more if the neighbors were still distributed all over the level, but they were just being held hostage and wouldn't be killed by the beasties. That way, there would still be the threat of running out of ammunition, but diligent players could still rescue all of the neighbors each time without having to worry about them getting butchered thirty seconds into the action. Nothing puts a damper on the fun like seeing neighbors get eliminated right as you get over to rescue them.
But I still recommend the game, when all is said and done. Action gamers (and fans of old science fiction stories, especially) will get a kick out of it. And after all, if you don't rescue the cheerleaders from the zombie menace, who will?

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 02/21/00, Updated 02/21/00