Zombie Escape

Surviving a vicious attack by a plague of zombies that want to turn your flesh into a midnight feast isn't just about getting your running shoes on. Knowing just where you should be hot-footing it is every bit as important.

As any seasoned zombie slayer knows, in the heat of the moment it's all too easy to run slap bang into a dead end. The question of whether you're about to be turned into a stew then becomes a case of when rather than if.

Rather than handing you a gun and charging you with blowing bullets aplenty through the skulls of such spooks, Zombie Escape has you focus on finding safe routes for a band of escapees.

In each stage your objective is to rescue a helpless group of civilians from scores of zombies looking for a quick bite of brains.

Viewed from above, the game cleverly takes the form of a line-drawing exercise. You guide as many civilians as possible towards escape helicopters by drawing a line from one to the other.

Naturally, the zombies themselves have a habit of getting in the way. Some directly hone in on their prospective meals, but most act as obstacles. Their sluggish style makes discerning the most hassle-free routes for each and every survivor a task easier said than done.

In fact, unlike in most other line-drawing games, the fact you're avoiding enemies rather than your own planes, boats, or blobs of gunk gives Zombie Escape an unique edge.

You don't have control over all of the elements, so even the smartest of players is likely to run into trouble every now and again.

As such, it's no surprise that Zombie Escape comes with weapons and tools aplenty. Unlocked and upgraded with points picked up at the end of each stage, at your disposal are a wide range of arms designed to alleviate the pressure from time to time.

Taking out zombies with a sniper rifle or – perhaps most amusingly – calling in an emergency helicopter to land on top of them and squish them to smithereens requires nothing more than a quick tap of the screen.

Of course, though your arsenal is bolstered as the rounds progress – upgrades both increasing each weapon's impact and frequency – so too do the zombies up their game.

Eliminating them becomes a hazard in itself, some especially stinky fellows leaving a poisonous gas in their wake that can take out any civilians who happen to wander into their paths. Just as you start to feel comfortable, the game subtly shifts up a gear or two.

Any feeling that you're finally on top can be easily eroded by a level where your weaponry is restricted to slabs of meat, for instance, each chop luring your foe away from the living for only a few short seconds.

This sort of unexpected variety helps to keep things fresh in a way that distinguishes the game from the rest of the Flight Control wannabes. As such, while it may not be the most original, Zombie Escape has a certain spark.