Infected

"Mindless fun... a monkey could figure this game out"

I had actually been wanting to play Infected for awhile. Why? Because I had yet to find a PSP game I actually wanted to hold on to, and thought this one might've been it. Well, I don't know if I was quite right on that, but that doesn't mean it's not a fun game.

PRESENTATION:
The story here is simple: New York City has been overrun by zombies, and you need to save it. Why you? Because you have "special" blood, and you can't become a zombie if you get bitten by one. So you're sent out to do the dirty deed. Perhaps the most important part of the presentation in Infected is humor--this game is hilarious (sometimes even offensive, heh heh). I actually laughed out loud at some points (that news reporter gets me every time). The things your commanders say to you are so ridiculous and funny, you'll be excited to see your next mission just to hear them talk to you and each other. Even the instruction booklet made me laugh out loud--for example, in describing how to play the civilian-rescue missions, it describes "you can rescue civilians by running up to them. They will blink and dissappear into your, uh, 'backpack' (let's not think too much about that), at which point you will carry them to a Helipad Evac site." It's great to see how not only this game makes fun of other videogame cliches, but can also pick on itself just as easily. Great stuff.
PRESENTATION: 10/10

GRAPHICS:
This game doesn't look too bad. The character models are pretty bizarre, with very strange body types. The zombies look nice too, even though you won't ever really be looking closely at them. The models aren't the prettiest in the world, but they get the job done.

Environments also look good, if not better. You are in New York City, and that sort of atmosphere works out well for Infected. The detail is there.

Oh, and there's a ****load of blood.
GRAPHICS: 8/10

SOUNDS:
Okay, Slipknot sucks ass. If you have actually read their terrible lyrics or paid attention to their crappy guitar licks you know this. But... I suppose this sort of music works out well for Infected's concept.

The voices also sound very well-done, though you won't be hearing them during actual gameplay.

Lastly, the sound effects also sound good. The weapons, explosions and zombie-noises are all you'll be hearing over the insane music, but it's all this game needs.
SOUNDS: 8/10

GAMEPLAY:
So the way you play this is simple: shoot any and all zombies you see in front of you. Simple as that. You have a variety of weapons that get better as you kill more zombies. But first you must buy these with your reward money from previous missions. Just shoot, shoot, shoot. It's also stressed that you try to get combos so you can get power-ups and get better rewards afterwards.

There's nothing really wrong with this at all--it's fun and addicting as hell. But the thing is, there's nothing else. Sure, you'll get obsessed with killing all those zombies, but there's no doubt it'll eventually get old.

Luckily, they've added multiplayer, both online and off. If you are part of the small percentage of people who have friends who actually OWN PSP's and own this game, then it'll be a blast since there are so many fun multiplayer modes. Online though, is very limited. You simply have one-on-one deathmatches (even though it looks like there could be four people!). This is fun for a short while, and it's cool because not many PSP games allow you to play against people all over the world yet, but it's far from the experience that multiplayer gives you. It's also kind of cool to that you can "spread" your virus to other Infected players across the world, which makes you more notorious to the other gamers. It's a nice feature, and hopefully an improved online mode will help make it reach its potential in a sequel.

Aside from that, there's really not much to do. You can edit your character, watch some (terrible) music videos, or watch the movies in the game, but that's just side stuff.

On paper, the gameplay is awesome--shoot zombies like crazy AHHHH!!!!! It's fun as hell, but there's just not enough content to let the gameplay get an impressive score here.
GAMEPLAY: 7/10

LASTING APPEAL:
The campaign mode is VERY short, which is really unfortunate. It is probably the one reason that makes Infected a game to rent. The multiplayer is there, but the chances you'll have friends with this game are slim (let alone even heard of it), and the online mode is limited. The game just won't last you long, and it's the main drawback of Infected.
LASTING APPEAL:
4.5/10

OVERALL:
Infected provides some of the best fun you'll have on the PSP. It's simple, funny, and addicting... it's just too bad there's not enough in it to make it last long. Still, I'm very glad I played Infected and made my PSP useful for once.
OVERALL:
7/10

Thanks for reading =)

Reviewer's Score: 7/10, Originally Posted: 01/02/07