The undead have been a staple of the video game industry ever since Capcom sent us to that damned mansion. We’re not mad, though.
Killing zombies has become an enjoyable pastime that’s followed us across generations, from console to console. The Xbox One library is no stranger to the shambling undead, whether it’s a backward compatible title from the past or one of today’s visual treats, but which are actually worth sinking time into?
To make sure you’re not installing trash zombie games onto your hard drive, I’ve put together this list of the 15 best Xbox One zombie games.
The Best Xbox One Zombie Games
15. Sunset Overdrive
Developer: Insomniac Games
Publisher: Microsoft Studios
Insomniac Games has quite the library of developed games. Between Spyro, Ratchet & Clank, Resistance, Spider-Man, the development studio solidified itself as a teller of engaging stories. So when it revealed a chaotic zombie shooter as its big introduction to the Xbox One, it was a little confusing. Sunset Overdrive has the stink of a forgettable game, but it actually went on to win several awards and a list of nominations.
It may be a stretch to call the enemies “zombies,” especially since they’re mutated people that drank FizzCo’s latest energy drink, Overcharge Delirium XT, but they have many of the qualities of a good Zed. They’re mindless, grunt a lot, and explode into a bloody mess when you shoot them. It’s close enough. And I really want to make sure you don’t overlook this early Xbox One title just because it’s six years old.
14. World War Z
Developer: Saber Interactive
Publisher: Mad Dog Games
World War Z started as a clever book that told the stories of survivors of a zombie apocalypse. Then it turned into a Hollywood action-horror film starring Brad Pitt. Then Saber Interactive took the concept and turned it into a third-person zombie shooter.
Surprisingly, it’s not a bad third-person zombie shooter. It had all the makings of a forgettable experience, but World War Z holds its own and delivers zombie-slaying entertainment.
Play alone or with friends as hordes of the undead follow you across locations like New York, Moscow, and Tokyo. You can see the inspiration from Left 4 Dead, but World War Z weaves its own tension with swarms of zombies. The game does a fine job of recreating the horror of mass amounts of zombies and an even better job at making them fun to mow down.
Alone, World War Z may lose its charm, but its multiplayer still shines.
13. Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel Without a Pulse
Developer: Wideload
Publisher: Aspyr
Too often, we’re placed in the role of the gun-toting hero/heroine, popping zombies in the cranium. Rarely do we get to see the world from the perspective of the undead and genuinely understand why they love brains. Wideload wanted to tell that story and did so poetically in Stubbs the Zombie in Rebel Without a Pulse.
As the titular Edward “Stubbs” Stubblefield, a newly arisen zombie seeking to right one wrong from his human life, players mow through the living. The game is set in a futuristic 1959, where science has prevailed and ultimately disturbed the earth in which Stubbs’ rested peacefully. Driven by long lost love and a thirst for revenge, Stubbs sets out to create an army of the undead and lay waste to those that stand in his way.
Stubbs has an arsenal of neat abilities, like using his hand to control enemies or tossing his head like an explosive bowling ball. He’ll need them, too, as the humans of Punchbowl, PA are equipped with state-of-the-art zombie-killing weaponry.
12. Plants vs. Zombies: Garden Warfare 2
Developer: PopCap Games
Publisher: Electronic Arts
There’s a rumble in the garden, and you’re invited.
The plants and zombies are at it again, converging on one another on the vibrant green battlefield. The follow-up to Garden Warfare is a surprisingly sound sequel with more to offer players. Garden Warfare 2 features eight plant and zombie classes, all with unique perks, and the new Herbal Assault mode. Unlike its predecessors, players can tackle every game mode alone or online, depending on how much zombie trash-talk they want to hear.
There is no serious bone in Garden Warfare 2’s body, which lends to a delightfully ridiculous experience. Maybe the most shocking thing is that the game is a very entertaining shooter that could appeal to the genre’s fans. So long as they can overlook the ridiculousness of plants, zombies, and a taco-loving nutjob in a flying RV.
11. Zombie Army 4: Dead War
Developer: Rebellion Developments
Publisher: Rebellion Developments
Rumor has it that Adolf Hitler sought a means to raise the dead. What if he had succeeded? The Zombie Army series explores this idea as a spinoff to the Sniper Elite series. Dead War continues the fight between the undead Nazi army and the Resistance, one year after they banished Hitler to hell.
Of course, even that can’t stop the power of the Reich and the swarm returns – hungrier than ever. Dead War is a fine addition to the series, with the gore and atmosphere ramped up to 11.
Is it the perfect zombie game? No, but it utilizes the best of Sniper Elite to deliver a surprisingly engaging and action-packed shooter that definitely has us rising from the grave for a fifth entry.
10. Dead Island: Definitive Collection
Developer: Techland
Publisher: Deep Silver
It all started with a pretty roaring party on the island of Banoi. The next morning, a band of survivors wakes up to a paradise turned red as an undead horde claims the sandy beaches and poolside lounging for themselves.
Dead Island set the stage for two follow-ups – Riptide and Retro Revenge, both of which are included on the Definitive Collection. Dead Island receives a graphical upgrade and includes all DLC and patches for the most complete – and entertaining – version of Techland’s zombie FPS. Riptide also underwent a graphical overhaul and expanded upon the zombie infestation seen in the original Dead Island.
Retro Revenge is the odd man out in this collection as a 16-bit side-scrolling endless runner. It’s an unusual direction to take the Dead Island series, but one that perfectly tops off this must-have undead collection.
9. Killing Floor 2
Developer: Tripwire Interactive
Publisher: Tripwire Interactive
When a failed experiment turns Europe into a playground of the grotesque and the monstrous, only the brave, bold, and the insane rise up to fight back. Killing Floor 2 picks up one month after its predecessor and sends players on a mutant-killing spree. Zeds are everywhere, so it’s good you’re coming packed with an assortment of explosive and heavy-hitting weapons.
Survival is the name of the game, and you can do so alone or with up to five other players. There’s safety in numbers – but only if everyone works together. Make one wrong move, and one of the newest Zeds will make quick work of your fleshy bodies.
Killing Floor 2 is a gory romp that has something for everyone. From the brutal combat to the expansive perk system, you’ll be hard-pressed to fight something to complain about.
8. Dead Rising 3
Developer: Capcom Vancouver
Publisher: Microsoft Studios
The first two Dead Rising games were criticized for being too restrictive. With a story on a time limit, it wasn’t easy to explore the expansive, zombie-infested worlds. Dead Rising 3 ditched the time limit for the main story missions, finally giving players that zombie-slaying freedom they were looking for. It was a move that paid off exponentially as Dead Rising 3 is the most entertaining entry in a series that, two games in, was already growing stale.
As Nick Ramos, players explore Los Perdidos, CA ten years after the Fortune City outbreak. Names like Frank West and Chuck Greene have long-since been forgotten. That is, of course, until another outbreak spreads across the West Coast. Lifting even more restrictions from Dead Rising 2, Ramos is able to craft weapons on-the-fly. It’s clear Capcom Vancouver really wanted players to enjoy slaying the countless zombies on screen.
Dead Rising 3 is bigger and bloodier, hitting all the right notes that were missing from its two predecessors (and their one-off DLCs).
7. Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare
Developer: Rockstar San Diego
Publisher: Rockstar Games
I’ll never not tout Undead Nightmare as one of the best zombie games ever made. Surprisingly, it’s simply an expansion pack to Rockstar’s wildly successful Red Dead Redemption. The San Diego studio knew exactly how to turn its bright, open Wild West setting into an environment of nightmares, with unstoppable hordes of the undead at every turn.
There is something truly haunting about riding through the open prairie and coming upon a zombie chowing down on a hapless victim. Or narrowly making it to your horse as the unsatiated groans of the undead rush in from behind you.
John Marston has quite the adventure in front of him as he tries to uncover the mystery behind the reanimated corpses. Familiar faces from the main story return in their respective roles, either hindering Marston’s mission or helping him along the way. Though it is, of course, not canon, Undead Nightmare is absolutely the best DLC Rockstar could have crafted using the world of Red Dead.
6. State of Decay 2
Developer: Undead Labs
Publisher: Microsoft Studios
I feel like I’d be lying if I didn’t warn that State of Decay 2 is a little rough around the edges. It’s a much better experience than its predecessor, but there is still plenty of room for improvement. However, it’s kind of the perfect zombie game in that it really captures the dread of the undead apocalypse.
It’s just you and a band of survivors. Maybe you guys get along; maybe you don’t. All you know is that together is the only way you’ll survive. But all it takes is one slip up. Forget to resupply before heading out or forget to fuel up before leaving town, and everything can fall apart so quickly.
Nobody is safe in State of Decay 2. Even that character you put umpteen hours into. Once the horde drags them down or a Juggernaut rips them in two, their story is over. The game’s permadeath raises the stakes and actually makes you care about a game that could otherwise be easily forgotten.
5. Call of Duty: Black Ops III
Developer: Treyarch
Publisher: Activision
When trying to decide which Call of Duty game to include on a “best Xbox One zombie games” list, you really have two options: Black Ops or Black Ops III. The community would surely agree. The primary reason Black Ops 3 creeps ahead of Black Ops has nothing to do with gameplay. It’s all about content.
If you loved maps from previous Zombie iterations, Black Ops III has you covered. Though not included in the original purchase, an additional buy-in will get you Zombies Chronicles. This DLC includes eight remastered maps from World at War through Black Ops II.
The core experience of Black Ops III zombies isn’t bad, either, with Jeff Goldblum, Ron Perlman, Heather Graham, and Neal McDonough providing the vocal talents. It’s quite the cohort, but they mesh well together for the unusual zombie story that serves as a prologue to the Dimension 63 storyline.
4. Telltale’s The Walking Dead: Season 1
Developer: Telltale Games
Publisher: Telltale Games
Robert Kirkman’s The Walking Dead is an emotional journey through a land of the undead. Only the first few seasons of the series were able to capture that, but fans had another outlet if they needed that depressing touch. Telltale Games created a standalone story with The Walking Dead: Season One, an interactive episodic experience based on Kirkman’s graphic series.
Each episode follows Lee Everett, an unexpected hero who saves young Clementine from a flesh-hungry horror. The story follows the pair through trials and tribulations, which includes a stop at Herschel Green’s farm and a run-in with Glen Rhee.
The story was deep, emotional, engaging, and everything fans could want from a game that’s part of The Walking Dead property. And, hey, there is plenty of zombie violence – especially when players screw up a command prompt.
3. Dying Light
Developer: Techland
Publisher: Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment
After appealing to the zombie-loving audience with Dead Island, Techland returned with Dying Light. It was faster, scarier, and everything players wanted to see in a Dead Island sequel. You know, minus the island.
Dying Light incorporates free-running parkour, which gives players an edge over the zombie horde. Until the sun sets and the true horrors come out. During the day, zombies are fun to bash around. Beneath the moonlight, they’re threats of a different nature, capable of running down protagonist Kyle Crane.
While there are ranged weapons to take down the infected, it’s the upgradable melee clubs and swords and knives that are a ton of fun to use. Outfit them with fire, electricity, and a host of other attributes to really give the undead something to groan about.
2. Resident Evil 2 (2019)
Developer: Capcom
Publisher: Capcom
You may want to push that Resident Evil 4 was the best in the series, but this isn’t a “best of Resident Evil” list. The fiends Leon squares off against in Resident Evil 4 aren’t zombies – so there isn’t much to argue over here.
Resident Evil 2 (1998) is the pinnacle of Resident Evil games and its 2019 remake absolutely does the original justice. It’s also the only way to play the Resident Evil 2 story on an Xbox One – as silly as that is in 2020.
Resident Evil 2 (2019) captured the tone and atmosphere of the survival horror genre so perfectly. The soundtrack and audio cues create an unforgettable tension while the slightly dopey voice acting is a nice throwback to the 90s. The remake was everything we could ask for from a horror game, complete with ample gore and plenty of frights.
Resident Evil 2 (2019) didn’t surpass the original, but the way it handled Mr. X as a persistent force constantly tracking you down added an element we wish had been in the 1998 game. The zombies of the RPD are terrifying, and they’re joined by even more horrifying creations of Umbrella.
1. Left 4 Dead 2
Developer: Valve
Publisher: Valve
Go ahead and feign surprise that Left 4 Dead 2 made a “best of zombie games” list. Valve really broke the mold with this multiplayer FPS, making it near impossible for any game to surpass it. Left 4 Dead 2 is the ideal zombie party game, where players can team up to take on a horde of AI-directed undead.
Though the main horde is made up of standard, running zeds, special zombies are mixed in. From the terrifying Witch to the bloated Boomer, each flesh-eating horror has its own quirks. It’s because of them that Left 4 Dead 2 has much variety. They may be scattered sporadically across each chapter, but their occasional appearance adds to the game’s overall tension.
While we may never see a Left 4 Dead 3, the second entry is a game that will stand the test of time and be a fan favorite for years to come.
READ NEXT: 14 Best Xbox One Survival Games
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