God Save Birmingham works as Survival game first and foremost. There just happens to be a lot of zombies in your neighborhood, and you’ll need to learn a lot quickly if you hope to survive. I got my hands on this game during PAX East, and I have to say it was a great time once I got it.
It’s an incredibly complex game with a lot of moving pieces, but at its core it’s a survival game where you’ll need to keep yourself clothed, fed, and safe from the zombies. It’s not a genre that hasn’t been thought of before, but there’s an interesting physics engine to play with, so the game feels very alive.
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I’ll cover what the game is and how some of the systems work, followed by impressions about what I’ve experienced in my short time with the game. This really struck a chord with me because cutting off parts of zombies and watching them climb over them was so much fun.
Did God Save Birmingham?
It’s a strange title if you don’t understand the context, but basically, God Save Birmingham is a survival RPG centered around a Birmingham overrun by zombies. It takes place in medieval times, so you will have some simple weapons available to use. With a real physics system, you can roll zombies up with small objects or aim to cut off their legs to slow them down.
Like most survival games, you’ll need to be careful with things like food and water if you’re going to stay longer than one night. There are also many items you can drop from weapons, such as the scythe, to items used for crafting, such as nails and wood. The depth of this zombie-based survival game is amazing.
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Every now and then, the game is not far from the textbook.
The real draw, however, is the amazing physics engine that allows you to cut certain pieces of zombies or use furniture to block doors. It seems a little silly to think it would have such a big impact, but it’s so integrated into the game that it just feels amazing. You can bump into zombies, and they will just fall to the ground.
Other than that, it’s a very fun survival game with a lot of frameworks completed on other potentially interesting pieces. The attitude was so great that it came out when I talked to the devs. As the game revolves around you killing your zombified friends.
Is Physics That Important?
Usually, the answer is no, but in God Saves Birmingham, it becomes arguably the most interesting aspect of the entire game. Everything in the game can be a temporary projectile if you use it right. Push the broken door on the zombie and watch them collapse as you stomp on it.
The best part is how it makes each weapon work slightly differently. If a few zombies are chasing you, and you have a scythe, you can turn around and aim at their legs, then take out all of their knees. It will even cut to different lengths based on where you cut, which was very interesting to see when the parts started flying.
Amazing physics engine […] allows you to cut certain pieces of zombies or use furniture to block doors.
This sort of thing has been done before, but it felt especially poignant when God Save Birmingham was played. It was a good thing, especially when the weapons had different attack patterns. Swinging each weapon was a little different, and you had to aim differently, too. Cutting off arms to prevent grabbing or cutting off feet to cause a few to roll over each other turns out to be a lot of fun.
It doesn’t just work to attack, like I said earlier, you can use the furniture to block the doors so you can sleep well at night knowing you won’t be zombie food. It also meant you could easily set up your location, which is great for a survival game.
A Difficult But Interesting Game
From my limited time with God Save Birmingham, it is clear that this is incredibly complex and there are many systems that govern how things work. Want to use a bandage? You need to select the wound you want to use before you bleed. Do you want to break something? You’ll have to use a weapon or object to knock it down.
That’s not a bad thing if you have a lot of time, but when the clock is running, it becomes powerful. I’m sure if I had unlimited time to play and explore, I would have been able to understand things to a much greater extent, but as it was, I would have been incredibly lost if it wasn’t for the expert help of the gentleman walking me through the demo.
That depth and complexity is great, and will serve the game well as more players can get their hands on it when it’s released. It could be a lot, and it’s a lot for developers to handle, but for what it is, it feels solid and a relatively fun time.
There is a lot more to come with the game before it launches, like multiplayer, but what will be most interesting is how the game handles the storytelling. These zombies are not just zombies; they are your friends in town, and there are many thoughts running through the main character’s head when you cut one down.
All in all, this is a game worth keeping an eye on. It’s fun, it’s intense, and it looks great. The designs are compact, and the animations feel amazing, especially the scythe. While there is no Early Access release date yet, I have to hope we see something from the devs at Ocean Drive Studios soon.
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