Zombies won't want to invade this game.
Dead Nation is a top-down zombie shooter available for 9.99$ on the PlayStation Store (right now, until the end of June 2011, you can get it for free because of the PSN mishaps). It is quite a difficult game, even on the easier modes, and also bares quite the steep learning curve. It's almost so frustrating that you just want to stop playing, but what will keep you going is knowing that the levels are short, and that if you try just a little bit harder, you can get to the end. The levels at the beginning are very short, and if you have a fully-upgraded gun early on in the game, you can practically walk to the exit.
There are lots of guns to unlock throughout the game's ten levels, as well as plenty of upgrades, so you'll always have something to spend your cash on. You can get money by opening up car trunks, opening little lockers here and there, and by killing zombies. Another reason that the game is so hard is because you'll want to explore every bit of it - not because the game's world is all that interesting, but more because there are tons of armor pieces and chests full of money hiding in alleys and parks.
The game is really linear, which is disappointing, because it's better to have lots of freedom in a zombie game. The city has a really good feel to it, though, even if it is small. It feels somewhat like Resident Evil 3: Nemesis, as lots of things are on fire everywhere, there are zombies everywhere you look, and there's a zombie that looks just like Nemeis. They also tried to copy Left 4 Dead a little bit, because you'll notice that there are zombies that resemble some of the special zombies from Left 4 Dead, such as the Hunter and the Boomer.
Graphics
One would expect a top-down game to have great graphics, since there are very few things going on in the screen, and everything is zoomed-out - no, that's not the case with Dead Nation. It doesn't look horrible, but the textures are quite off and the game overall doesn't look all that pretty.
The locations all look the same, and every car looks the same as the one beside it. The cut-scenes are at the end of each level, and each cut-scene is just a few slow-moving slides that look sort of like graphic novel panels, so they also got kind of lazy in that area.
Sound
There is very little voice-acting in the game, seeing as the only cut-scenes (which is pretty much the only time the characters ever talk) are in between chapters. The voice-acting isn't poorly done, but it would have been nice to get to know the characters a bit better.
The sound effects were done well, so there isn't really anything to complain about there. The music tracks are very infrequently used, and they don't really contribute to the game's overall ambiance much, which is disappointing, because the game could have actually been quite spooky if it had creepier music.
Story
The story is actually quite short and to the point. I wouldn't go so far as to call it boring, but it's definitely not enough of a story to get you interested, nor is it original. There are two characters to chose from, a man and a woman each with their own story. To explain the story simply, all the characters are doing is finding an excuse to move from place to place, it seems, without anything exciting happening along the way. Character goes to police station to find radio, radio does not work and character must go find another place to get a radio - that's simply what the male character's second mission is. Why can't the male character go to a police station to look for a radio, then not find it, then have to find an alternate escape route through the sewers because the zombies are surrounding the police station?
Multiplayer
The co-op online features you and up to three other people whom you may or may not know. If you want to play with your friends, there's also an offline co-op feature that you can choose, where you and your friends can all play on the same television screen. It's kind of an awful experience playing four-player split-screen on a game where you can barely see what's going on, since you're playing from way above your characters.
The co-op online and co-op offline are essentially the same as solo mode in terms of gameplay, except there are more of you, which means more items and more zombies. It's a lot more fun than playing by yourself, but it isn't one of the best co-op experiences out there, especially if you're team splits up and doesn't work together. There really isn't all that much to say in terms of the differences - it plays out the same as solo mode, as I mentioned previously, just with more people. It's not really all that appealing after you play it for a few hours, and you and your friends are just going to wind up playing Left 4 Dead instead. It's a much better experience than playing solo, and you'll have fun for a few hours, but as I said, it's going to get boring quickly.
Longevity
For 10$ (free until around the end of June in the Welcome Back program!), you really aren't getting a bad deal on this game. It's pretty fun, and it will probably give you at least 10-15 hours of enjoyment before it starts to get really dull, which is actually pretty good. There are plenty of trophies to keep trophy hunters busy, except they're extremely hard, because it requires you to beat the game on its harder difficulties, which are incredibly tough. The main story mode shouldn't take you more than ten hours to beat, if you're playing on the easy or medium difficulties. The multiplayer could consume another ten hours of your time if you and your friends really work together well, but the online is a mixed bag.
The Verdict
Pros:
• Get your money's worth
• Zombie killing is fun
• Plenty of weapons
Cons:
• Dull story
• Mediocre graphics
• Boring multiplayer modes
• Not much to do
Gameplay: 8.0
Graphics: 7.0
Sound: 6.0
Story: 5.0
Multiplayer: 7.5
Longevity: 8.5
7.5/10