I just picked this up on sale on Steam, and it's really a lot of fun -- think Sons of Anarchy meets The Walking Dead for an idea about the setting.

Your hero is an ex-bike gang member navigating the post Apocalyptic world with his good buddy Boozer. I haven't got far enough in to really get a sense of the story, but so far I've been for a few bike rides, had my bike stolen and stripped for parts by a gang living in a tent-city, raided a ruined Army Medical Unit and a tumble-down motel, and tangled with some really nasty, blowtorch-wielding raider types. Oh, and killed a few zombies -- which in this game are very, very fast and dangerous and early in the game you are definitely NOT Michonne or Daryl, so running away is often the best response.

The graphics are okay, nothing great but good enough to be immersive. It's one of those games with lots of busy-work, rummaging through abandoned buildings, crafting crossbow ammo and health packs on the run and constantly being on the lookout for things to gather.

Apart from the missions, which are fairly linear, the game is open-world and looks pretty interesting from my first couple of hours of play.

Anyone else ever tried it?

I haven't tried it, but I am happy to get to read about it.

I'm no good with these Darkside Games but some of them really look good and I also enjoy hearing about them.

So, I'm starting to get the hang of combat and the crafting system.

The game is technically an RPG since you do level up and get to pick different skills as you progress, plus every time you find an old military checkpoint you receive a syringe that allows you to increase one of your attributes.

It's set in Oregon, so the game world is green and hilly, with lots of dirt back roads to travel. I started roaming freely, which can be a mistake since your motorcycle frequently runs out of gas -- and I mean really often. Part of the experience of travelling is finding gas along the way. But stopping anywhere to look for gas cans has its risks, since the undead can be anywhere, and sometimes you run into a huge swarm that you cannot fight off. And they're always faster than you are if you're on foot, unless you have a head start. Anyway, for now I'll stick to missions since they net more experience points than random encounters do. Once I have enough money I can upgrade my bike with a larger tank and some other cool stuff.

It's a little on the macho side so far, though.

EDIT: I meant to add that riding a bike in this game is very easy, as compared to Cyberpunk. I don't crash nearly as often. Mind you the bike is pretty old and sluggish, too. Another aspect of the game is that the bike deteriorates as you ride along the bumpy dirt roads. You have to check every so often and if it needs repairs, you need to make them before it's too late.

What I like about the gas scarcity is that it requires a bit of advance planning -- otherwise you can find yourself stranded in unknown territory with little to no ammo, and have to search for gas and repair scrap on foot.

Of course, my bike gets damaged frequently because you can mow down enemies in your way if you're moving fast enough.

Aaaack!

I just ran into a town full of zombie children, and they are CREEPY. Zombie children playing creepy little zombie children games. Ugh. I had to hide out in a garbage bin until they moved away. The game does do a very good job at setting a mood, and at times it really is kind of unsettling.

Like TWD, there are hordes of zombies, abandoned towns with dwindling supplies, derailed trains, wrecked vehicles, and the odd tiny, vulnerable settlement for trading, motorcycle repairs and turning in bounties.

" CREEPY, Zombie children"

I actually have The Walking Dead but don't know if/when I'll ever get around to trying to play it.

I have a couple of the Walking Dead episodes, too, and I've not played them. I don't think they're very long.

This game is a lot of fun. If you don't feel like doing a mission, there are lots of little logging roads through the woods to explore, as you'd expect in a landscape like Oregon, and it makes me kind of nostalgic for the days when we used to just take off down a logging road in our SUV to see where it went.

I just took out a horde of zombies with a knife, sneaking up behind each one after running away from them and turning back to take them out one at a time as they started to return to their cave. It took me over an hour and a half, but it was kind of fun. I could have reloaded but I wanted to see if I could do it.

So, 45 hours in, and a whole new area just opened up for exploration. I feel as though there's a lot more game to come. There is a pretty decent, if simple, story line to follow, and the voice acting is really quite good so I'm happy to keep playing to find out how it all turns out in the end.

This is one of those games in which there's some little thing going on around every corner, and you choose to engage in it, or just ignore it for the missions. But the game world is worth exploring, because there's a lot to find.

I'm recommending this game for anyone who wants a decent RPG/Action game that isn't set in a fantasy world.

Very helpful info about the game, and I am so glad that you are enjoying it!

The other thing is, on Normal the game is not all that difficult. I note that Normal is the second-easiest setting of five, so the most difficult setting would be almost impossible for me -- I'd get bored with the constant reloading! The bike-riding is intuitive, the menus are easy to navigate, and the inventory and crafting screens are easy to use.

Just when I was thinking I was close to the end of the game, it opened up again, and is a lot longer than I had anticipated. I am at level 25 -- the game is clearly playable up to level 45, as one of the game Trophies is awarded for that. I imagine that getting there will take a bit of doing, but obviously there is a fair amount of game left to play.

While there is a fair amount of busywork in the game, you can avoid most of it if you prefer. I like it, personally, as the game world is worth exploring and there are cool things to find while tooling around.

Also, I am very fond of hunting Freaks, as the zombies are called, on my bike. While ramming them does damage the bike, the satisfaction of hearing the thump of another dead Freaker (and the points gained) is worth it. Also, my bike is now fully upgraded and custom-painted, so it can take a fair amount of damage.

Some desirable finds can only be reached by jumping a chasm on the bike. It took me ages to work out how to do it, but finally I figured it out. So much fun. Wheeeeeeeeeee!

It sounds like you are having a good time with this game! And it's always nice to find out that the game is longer than you thought when you are still enjoying it.

Yes, the game is considerably longer than I thought. And the story is pretty good, too. The new area is much more difficult, and actually quite frightening, with tougher enemies and new variaties of freakers. I mean, there is a real sense of dread as I ride around, especially at night. It's really creepy.

So far, no real bugs, either, except for a glitch that happens in the camps every now and again, where none of the merchants show up. All it takes is a game exist and relaunch and it's all okay. Pretty stable and smooth on my laptop. Not a single crash so far, and I'm at over 100 hours now.

Wow. And the technical side of this is impressive, too. That is quite a testament to the stability of the game.

It's a port from consoles.

Apparently the original launch was a bit of a schemozzle, and so it got poorish reviews. SInce then it's been worked on quite a bit, and the reviews for the PC version are good to very good. On Steam it's got Overwhelmingly Positive reviews -- the highest praise from players -- which is why I bought it.

So...the plot gets thicker, and better, and the game just got quite a bit more difficult. However, having just unlocked a powerful new weapon, I feel far more confident when facing a horde of 300 Freaks (which is what the zombies are called). You cannot fight your way out of a horde attack. You have to sneak up and use underhanded tactics. Lots of fun.

I think I'm about 3/4 of the way through the story line, though apparently you can play on after the end.

Nice that the game keeps throwing little surprises your way!

Yes, at this point the game is partly survival/horror. The action keeps getting moved to caves and old mines, and Freaks sleep in enclosed spaces during the day....

Sounds like something I might have to get into on the strength of your posts

It's a LOT of fun. My bike is now fully upgraded, and it is fast and can go a long way without getting gas.

I'm at the point where the game is making demands on me I can no longer shirk. You can sneak past the hordes only up until about the 80% mark through the game, and then...you HAVE to take out a horde. And then another one. And then the worst one of them all, which I am now scrounging ingredients for because I really, really want to be fully loaded with every kind of bomb I can make.

Oh, and I'm not going to be proud about fighting this horde. I'm lowering the Difficuly setting to Easy. The biggest horde I've killed so far was about 550 zombies, and that took me about 15 tries. This one is bigger. Much bigger.

Of course, once you come up with the right tactics, it can be quite easy. It's just working out the tactics that takes the skill, because you CANNOT shoot at a horde when you're running away from them, and trust me, if they see you, you WILL be running away. And away. And away. They are persistent. And very, very fast.

Okay, well, that was fun!

A decent enough ending, though you can play on after the main quest to do some mopping up of unfinished quests and some quests only complete after the ending.

So, I am coming up towards the end of my second run through this game, and am still heartily enjoying it. This time I go looking for the zombie hordes instead of running away from them.

Too funny, hagatha!

Once you now how to take them out it is relatively easy. However, there is one HUGE horde that is a mandatory part of the game, and it is


EDIT: I am really puzzled by the lack of enthusiasm for this game. I'm enjoying it even more on the second go-round. The game absolutely deserves a sequel. While the individual story lines are all tied up at the end, the over-arching story -- the Freakers -- is not finished, and it would be wonderful to see that explored further.

Aha. Last time I stopped playing once the credits ran.

This time, I continued playing after the credits because I felt like taking out all of the many hordes of freakers, because it's just so much fun.

And then I was given one last mission, one last thing I had to do, one last secret to uncover...and it was mind-blowing, and now I'm really sad that there won't be a sequel to this game because it is great.