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0 HumanitZ is an isometric, open-world zombie survival game. After a couple of years in early access on Steam, developer Yodubzz Studios is venturing into 1.0 release. Pick up the pieces as one of the few remaining humans to build, farm, explore, and survive as long as possible. It is available on Steam now with publishing by indie.io (Coromon, Dark Deity 2). The 1.0 release is live on Friday, sixth of February.
How Long Can You Keep Your Humanity in HumanitZ?
Zombies and survival games seem to just go hand in hand. The nice thing is that they come in all different flavors. I recall spending a number of days in zombie modes of CoD, and others in the early days of DayZ. I was curious to see how HumanitZ felt in comparison. Especially since that last zombie survival game was just… yeah. So check out my review below and let me know in the comments which game is your go-to for fragging zeds.
Gameplay
HumanitZ is an isometric survival game set in the midst of a zombie apocalypse. Alone or with a group of friends, complete objectives to learn more about where you stand in the world and how to prepare for a better tomorrow. Survive thirst, hunger, environment and infection. Oh and don’t forget about the zombies.
The mechanics and detail put into HumanitZ really turn up the realism factor. This makes the game an even deeper survival simulator. The gameplay itself feels like a cross between Project Zomboid and DayZ. Thankfully, you’re able to scale the difficulty to meet your skill or play style. I’m a filthy casual, so I was glad to be able to set the bar low playing solo.
There is also a scenario mode in addition to the base survival. HumanitZ currently features two scenarios with at least one more down the road. These offer more focused experiences and less worry about the survival aspect. A great way to give more content to the game.
Highs and Lows
One of my favorite things that I found playing HumanitZ was that from the start (at least as a rookie), you have a broad set of building plans immediately available to you. Progress isn’t some mystery and you can focus on which materials you want first. You can dismantle many of the items in the environment for parts and scrap. Scavenging is stressful enough with zombies hanging around, I don’t need more trying to find one piece of metal!
I was at first thrown off by the keyboard and mouse controls. They felt clunky and awkward and took some getting used to. It’s especially frustrating at times when trying to pick up tiny items. I think the issue was more how often I spend in other 3rd-person games lately and just understanding the camera movement took a hot minute. I also found a few oddities, some quirks more than anything, right away in HumanitZ that set me back a little bit getting into the game. Such as being unable to find or understand if I could somehow craft a shovel for the intro crop plot quest.
Graphics & Audio
HumanitZ is currently only available on PC. With that being the case, the default resolution of 2k and other graphics settings didn’t need much adjustment. The lighting adjusts smoothly as you move around and various game models and the environment look very crisp. They have a realistic aesthetic to them that compliments the game’s mechanics well. I didn’t get a chance to test how it translates to the Steam Deck, if at all.
I was fairly impressed by the audio track in HumanitZ. The music overall is very calm and laid back and I was thankful to not have to listen to constant, gross sounds of zombies. Otherwise nothing spectacular or out of place that I found, just about what you’d expect for the genre.
Longevity
I haven’t gotten nearly enough time into HumanitZ yet for a solid feel of every aspect. I did enjoy the option to play against waves in an area when I just want to smack things. A ton of content and improvements come with this 1.0 release with more in the works for future releases. A good trend to follow it seems now more than ever: release a full game, but don’t plan to be done with it right away.
Final Thoughts
HumanitZ feels like a great addition to a considerably-sized field of both theme and game genre. It blends in just enough realism to keep you in check, but provides the ability to change just how difficult you want those checks to be. Despite some initial frustrations, I was able to press on and find a good mix of playing survival and scenarios. If you’re someone who enjoys playing solo or with friends in games like DayZ, Project Zomboid, a 7 Days to Die, I think you would enjoy this one too. I’d have to give HumanitZ the Thumb Culture Gold Award.
Disclaimer: A code was received in order to write this review.
If you enjoy this review, check out my other reviews here.
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