Platform: PC, XB

Genre: Action

Publisher: Aspyr

Developer: Wideload Games

ETA: Q3 2005

Related Links:

Review: Resident Evil 4 (GC)

Review: Grabbed by the Ghoulies (XB)

Review: Resident Evil Zero (GC)

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Unlike most videogame protagonists that go around killing zombie willy-nilly, Stubbs the Zombie, as his name indicates, is a zombie.

In his former life Stubbs was a traveling salesman that met with a tragic end and buried in a nondescript field.  When a “visionary” city-of-the-future development approaches its opening day, Stubbs is awoken and begins to run amuck.  Besides revenge for his murder, he has one thing on his mind: brains!  And so, Stubbs begins his quest, lurching through cityscapes and farmland (tipping his hat to past zombie films and games along the way).

The day before E3, I met with lead designer Patrick Curry of Wideload Games, a development house that is mostly made up of ex-Bungie guys that worked on Halo.  In fact, Stubbs the Zombie: Rebel Without a Pulse uses the Halo engine; a decision that Rob says cut down on development time and allowed the team to concentrate on the gameplay rather than trying to figure out the limitations of any brand-new engine. (This was very evident in the small touches, like legless zombies dragging themselves forward with their arms.)  It also helped keep a reign on the number of people on the team.

The level that was demoed had Stubbs attacking a farm house after wading through the yard filled with trigger-happy militiamen.  As a zombie Stubbs has a very limited arsenal.  Besides a basic set of melee attacks, he has a few “super” moves including a fart/stink power – officially, “unholy flatulence” – that knocks back large groups of enemies and the ability to throw a chunk of himself which behaves like a grenade.  To charge up these powers, Stubbs must feast on brains.

To eat a brain, Stubbs needs to get up close and personal to a human target, wail away on it then munching into the top of its head.  The fact Stubbs lurches forward and faces enemies firing guns – Stubbs can’t directly use guns – practically forces you to develop some kind of 

strategy.  Fortunately for Stubbs every human he kills turns into a zombie, which will act on its own, seeking out brains (and thereby increasing the number of zombies) but Stubbs also has limited control over the zombie horde.  (Basically “Come here!” and “Eat their brains!”)  If that weren’t enough, Stubbs can also detach one of his hands and send it to scout areas and/or possess hapless militiamen in order to use their own weapons against them.

There are also drivable vehicles!  In the demo, Stubbs took control of a tractor with pitchforks installed on the front and drove around impaling militiamen.  Although it made quick work of a 

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line of militiamen, the downside was that none of them were transformed into zombies.  I asked about the possibility of flying vehicles and although Patrick mentioned briefly “flying cars” in connection with the city-of-the-future development that awakens Stubbs in the first place, he offered, “No comment.”  Considering the capabilities of the Halo engine, I’m going to speculate and predict we’ll see flying cars or some other flying vehicle.

After playing Stubbs the Zombie later that week on the show floor, I can say that control is responsive and tight, much like the original Halo.  But most heartening is that the overall experience shows originality – a quality that more game publishers are shying away from.  Aspyr Media, most known for porting hit console and PC games like Doom 3 to Mac, is behind the project with some enthusiasm.  Originality and publisher?  It seems to happen less and less these days.  Does this act against Stubbs?  A small developer and a small publisher producing an original title?  It’s a bloody, gory game, with some off-beat humor, but it has the kind of originality, solid gameplay, and polish that should create fans – legions of fans.  All searching… for brains!

But we’ll give you the verdict when Stubbs the Zombie: Rebel Without a Pulse ships later this year.

- Omni

(May 29, 2005)