If there is one frequent trope that has been the subject of video games in the last decade, its a zombie or post-apocalyptic game where a chunk of the population was wiped out or turned evil by some sort of deadly virus. Not that this is a bad thing. In fact, some of the biggest hits in video games fall into that category
There are some longtime developers that inspired the genre years after their classic game was released. Some newer developers have taken this concept and made it into their own. Either way, it's easy to look out there to see 10 pandemic-themed video games that are a step above the rest.
10 DayZ
A cult hit had been in constant development for years, DayZ failed to meet some expectations, especially considering the technical problems with the game, but the early-2010s had many people falling for the format of this survival multiplayer game. The game takes place in a fictional state that is dealing with a mysterious plague that has turned most of the population into the "infected." The goal of the game was simply to survive on the map for as long as possible before someone, or something, took you out.
9 The Amazing Spider-Man
The 2012 film The Amazing Spider-Man is nothing like its video game entry with the same name. Taking place after the events of the movie, Oscorp experiments have gone wrong and their experimental subjects have escaped their facility, unleashing a deadly virus on the city. The game has Spider-Man team up with Curt Connors, who created the research that was behind the experiments, and Gwen Stacey as they try to stop the disease from spreading all while the Oscorp CEO, Alistair Smythe, tries to stop them and cure the virus himself
8 Prototype
Another game based in the New York City area, Prototype deals with an outbreak called Blacklight, a virus that mutates people into monsters. The game's protagonist, Alex Mercer, is a shapeshifter who is looking to stop these monsters while also dealing with conflicts from the U.S. Military and Blackwatch, a covert operational force.
The title is an action-adventure game, but it is also an open-world that allows players to explore Manhattan in a sandbox-like format. The sequel of the game focuses on a different view of the pandemic, with Mercer being the antagonist.
7 The Division
The Tom Clancy video game series is always worth checking out, and The Division is generally among the more well-liked. The first game takes place in, once again, New York City. The player takes on the role of a special agent of the Strategic Homeland Division. In a post-pandemic world, the player must work to rebuild their operations in Manhattan and stop any criminal activity that has been sparked in the area. In addition, players will need to learn about how the pandemic was caused.
6 Left 4 Dead
This time it's New York's neighbor, Pennsylvania, that is the center of a pandemic game. Left 4 Dead deals with the "Green Flu," a disease that turns infected individuals into living zombies, mutating their body and making them angry. This survival horror game puts players in the position of a survivor that needs to kill hordes of zombies in order to survive and escape. The game has multiple modes depending on what experience the player is looking for. The game also has strong replay value as level pacing and item placement are randomized each time.
5 Deus Ex
The changes caused by this pandemic have led many to describe it as a dystopia, and Deus Ex is probably the best example of a futuristic world that has become rather scary thanks to a pandemic. Set in 2052, the game puts players in the shoes of JC Denton, an agent for a fictional anti-terrorist organization who has supernatural abilities thanks to nanotechnology. As Denton, players must fight back against hostile forces that have turned against his organization. The game gets darker as the story moves on in this action RPG.
4 Plague Inc.
Many of these games revolve around fighting back against a deadly virus. In Plague Inc., players are the virus. The popular iOS real-time strategy game allows players to create and name a plague that will start to affect millions of people around the globe.
The goal for the player is to fuel the disease spread as much as possible and preventing any innovation made to stop the disease from having any success. As the game goes on, players can choose from a series of different pathogens to base their disease around.
3 Bloodborne
Hidetaka Miyazaki has created some excellent action RPGs over the years and Bloodborne was one of the best PS4-exclusive games, putting a twist on the Souls series as a whole. Players are hunters in the gothic city of Yharnam where those that lived there have been transformed by a blood-borne disease, hence the title. The goal of the game is for players to fight back against these monsters in the city in order to find a source of the illness and any other mysteries about the area.
2 The Last Of Us
The smash-hit from Naughty Dog is considered one of the greatest games of all time. The Last Of Us is an action-adventure game that has players take control of Joel, a smuggler who is trying to take care of a girl named Ellie as they travel the country in post-apocalyptic times. The apocalypse was started because of a disease called the Cordyceps Brain Infection, which is caused by a fungus. Those who are exposed to the fungi are quickly turned into living zombies. Ellie, however, is immune to the virus, which is a major story point throughout the adventure.
1 Resident Evil
The wildly-popular horror franchise Resident Evil has been dealing with a fictional pandemic since the first game came out in the mid-1990s. The story of all the games surrounds the Umbrella Corporation who developed a disease known as the T-virus. The disease as the ability to turn humans into zombies and other creatures into horrifying monsters. The first installment revolves around Chris Redfield and Jill Valentine as they are stuck in a mansion trying to find their fellow officers of the special police unit S.T.A.R.S.