Working Title 11.20.09: Working Fodder - Zombies

Posted by Jordan Williams on 11.20.2009

Cannon fodder comes in many shapes and sizes when it comes to video games. But no one has ever really looked at why we have so much of it. It's about time we take a look at the various forms of cannon fodder we have with the current flavor of the generation. Zombies.

Welcome back to the #1 Column to once again say FUCK YOU HAHA to the Left 4 Dead 2 bitchers, WORKING TITLE. Got the game, played the game, love the game. While Scavenge and Realism mode definitely could've been some sort of DLC, the thing is that L4D2 is at the end of the day a sequel and is better than L4D1 in every single aspect. I wouldn't mind seeing it become a yearly franchise as long as each one fixes and aspects from the previous and evolves the series. That's what 'sequels' are called people. Valve deserves the money it doesn't get by doling out free content all of the time. So get over it and help the economy is SPENDING MONEY.

Now that that is out of the way, it's time to move onto what the current theme of the month will be. Seeing as L4D2 just came out I figure it would be a great time to talk about zombies. But not just zombies in general, but all of the wonderful cannon fodder that has been afforded to us via video games. You've seen them all in the form of zombies, nameless guards, government agents, giant rats.

Why do we feel so happy to lay waste to tons upon tons of these creatures without remorse and why are they always seen as the go-to guys for weak enemies that can be mass produced? I say it's about time we study this and look a little bit more into it.

But of course, in the spirit of L4D2 let's take a look at everyone's favorite brain-dead killing machines. The Zombies.


Working Fodder: Zombies

The Undead. The Soulless. The Infected. It doesn't matter what they are referred to as, they are all the same when it comes down to it.

Zombies. (In this column we are saying the zed word)


They are mindless (most of the time) killing machines that seem to have a one track mind and that is only to relive you of that pesky thing called 'life' usually by way of either brutally killing you are cracking your skull open and munching on your delicious brain meats. But why are they so common in the games we play and why do we have absolutely no problem killing them? It because they are already dead and therefore we feel no remorse for killing them? Or is it simply because they are trying to physically remove us from this mortal coil by way of a wicked fit of the munchies? Let's take a look.


Why They Exist

It's hard to define why exactly the zombie prevalence exists in the world of gaming. They have been around for as long as most stories have been. Tales of men being immortal or rising again from the dead are some of the things that most religions are based off of (technically speaking, Jesus is a zombie). But why do they always seem to make it into our games?

I think it's because they are by the majority faceless and easy to explain.

Say you have an evil warlord or scientist needs a faceless army that will either be undeniably obedient or at least have so many numbers that they will cause mass chaos? You grab some zombies.

On the more technical side I think zombies are used so much in gaming because they represent something that is weak on it's own, but scary and strong in numbers. A single zombie in most games doesn't pose much of a threat unless it's a super zombie of some sort. However when you get a horde of them together and attacking at once suddenly the game becomes a frantic fight for survival. This allows developers to constantly bombard you with simple tricks that allow you to get the experience of taking down a large group of ultimately weak and unimportant enemies.

But not every game uses zombies in that way, in other games (say RPGs where zombies/undead aren't exactly common) they are used in more of a two fold way. In games like Oblivion and the like you see necromancers constantly bring people from the dead only to become their slaves to do whatever they desire. This not only works to show the player that whoever is doing this is an evil motherfucker by disturbing a soul who is resting in peace. It also represents what ultimately may happen to you if you let said evil villain have his way. The person you are fighting was once someone who probably had a family at some point or in most cases was an innocent person who is now being twisted to do someone else's will.

And the only way we can truly save them is to destroy the head or the brain.

Or if they lack head, just destroy the entire goddamn body.


Why We Kill Them

Now we move onto to why we love to kill them so much. Yes, I might've gotten all sentimental and deep up there about Necromancers and all of that other bullshit, but let's just call a spade a spade.

We all love killing zombies.

Why do we love it? Well that much is simple. It's a harmless way to kill humans that no one will care about.

Look at the recent games like Modern Warfare 2. The OH SO CONTROVERSIAL Airport scene in which you gun down civilians (despite there being a near exact replica of that scene in Saints Row 2 if the player wished to do so) is causing up a really big stir. But do you ever hear social commentary and controversy when it comes to killing a whole bunch of zombies?

Well, let me rephrase that.

Do you hear social commentary and controversy when it comes to killing a whole bunch of non-descript zombies? Not the African zombies who were in Africa because remember its racist to make all of the zombies black when they are in Africa. Either way, by in large no one really cares about the well being of zombies. They are already dead. On top of that they are trying to kill YOU. So feel free to mow them down and dispose of them in any way you see fit. The somewhat human element works in a lot of ways when it comes to killing zombies.



Anyone who has played a GTA or Saints Row game knows that sometimes you just want to say "Fuck it all" and just go on a killing spree. Some people might have some sort of moral objection to that because honestly these people didn't do anything wrong. They were just minding their own business. Games that throw other living creatures at you sort of have that same affect. I know there are times in Fallout where I have gone on a mad Brahmin killing spree and after I was done I sort of felt bad because they didn't do anything to me.

But if you feel bad FOR ONCE SECOND about putting a zombie down for good then you is just a flat out pussy.

A giant sopping pussy.

These undead fuckers are trying to end you and its only human nature to want to preserve your own life at the expense of something that is already dead. If I meet one hippie ass motherfucker who preaches and goodwill towards zombies, then I will personally inject botfly larvae into his eye and watch it hatch.

That alone brings up the other reasons why zombies are so easy to kill and why they are used a lot. They are a common enemy.

No matter what race, sex, religion or creed you are. You hate zombies. They don't discriminate from who they are going to attack and kill; they don't care if you are for or against abortion and gay marriage. They don't care if you are 8 years old or 80, black or white, skinny or fat, you just look like a meal to them and that means they have to die.



Therefore you can drop them into near any situation around the globe and the same rules will always apply. Kill them all and don't think twice about it. Which makes putting them into a videogame as the mindless cannon fodder even easier.

But just because we all equally hate them doesn't mean that all zombies are created equal. Believe it or not there are actually lots of ways to change something as simple as a zombie to turn it into something completely different.


Zombie Types

Although the common idea of zombies are mindless reanimated corpses, there are some games and fiction that have taken that rule and turned it on its ear. There are as many types of zombies as there are other enemy types in the gaming world. It all really depends on the setting and the type of game you are looking at. Some very broad examples are...

• Magic Zombies

These are the zombies you usually see in games where Magic populates the world. They are almost always the product of some sort of magic or spell that tampers with the dead. For some reason these zombies tend to be different from the whole "Destroy the head or the brain" rule because they seem to be completely and utterly indestructible unless you either stop the spell or destroy the body completely. It's not uncommon to see these zombies missing vital limbs, organs, or sometimes even a head yet still hunt you down to kill you.

Another way to kill these usually might mean killing whoever put the spell on them in the first place, which more often than not means that you have to go head up with a very strong Necromancer.

Liches also tend to fall into this category. While they might not be zombies in the truest sense, they are usually undead beings that have been imbued with magical power and more often than not they can control other zombies. In most magical settings it is also good to note that the power of anything Holy can also destroy (and in some cases cure) the effects of being a zombie.

Notable Games: Elder Scrolls, Dungeons and Dragons, Final Fantasy, Eye of the Beholder.


• Shambling Zombies

These are what many would consider the standard zombie. Slow, stupid, and cannibalistic by nature. One of them isn't too much to deal with, but when you get a bunch of them into one place then they become a problem. On top of being the zombie that you would more commonly see in movies, the Shambler is also the zombie you would more commonly associate with the literal "This person has died and come back to life somehow" perception of zombie.

The main thing that puts the Shamblers apart from the other types of Zombies is that these zombies are clinically dead. Their bodily functions have ceased working outside of the brain, and the only thought they have is to eat. They feel no pain, no remorse, no anything. Setting one on fire will not hinder it at all, nor will doing grievous amounts of damage to any part of it that is not the head.

Usually these zombies are the results of some sort of chemical warfare or disease which is keeping them still alive, and more likely they are also having genetic mutations that allow them to withstand more damage or in some cases even get stronger in death than they were in life.

Notable Games: Resident Evil 1-3, House of the Dead Series, Call of Duty: World at War, Hunter: The Reckoning


• Infected Zombies

Now Infected Zombies are a whole new beast altogether. They are one of the types of zombies where them being dead is NOT a prerequisite for them becoming an Infected. As the name states, The Infected are not zombies in the literal term that they are the walking dead, they are infected with some sort of disease that gives them the effect that they are undead. In most cases it IS true that they are dead reanimated corpses, but in some others it could simply be that this disease rids them of their thoughts and turns them into nothing but berserkers in a giant fit of rage.



The good part (if you can call it that) about Infected Zombies are that they still react like a normal human would to most things. They react to pain, suffering, and death as any normal human would. They also still have enough mental capacity to use tools such as blunt (or even sharp) objects as instruments of death as well. Unfortunately they also react in a way an animal would. There is no hesitation when it comes to killing a human to them.

They also share one very noticeable trait when compare an Infected to a Shambler.

These fuckers can MOVE. For some reason that is never really explained these Infected are not limited like Shamblers who just slowly creep towards their victim. Once they catch wind that there is a target in the area they will burst into a full out sprint in order to close the ground between the two. Also Infected are also seen to not require human flesh as nourishment. Half of the time they are just hell-bent on killing you instead of eating you.

While the term 'Infected' might conjure up thoughts of The Horde in Left 4 Dead, it's not exclusively linked there. Movies like 28 Days/Weeks later and the last two installments of Resident Evil have used normal humans that are somehow infected with a disease (or in RE's case, a parasite) that forces them to act this way.

Notable Games: Left 4 Dead, Resident Evil 4 and 5, Half-Life 1 and 2

So maybe now we understand how versatile and useful zombies are in video games. Not only are they easy to mass produce and explain (although I wish Valve would hurry up and explain theirs) but they are also great from a development standpoint because they can be used in almost any situation, in any region of the world, in any timeline and they can still be considered great. Plop some zombies in a fantasy, modern, or in some cases a completely comical setting and they will still fit in perfectly because zombies are a common enemy and the closest thing we can get to playing a manslaughter simulation completely guilt free.

That is unless all the sudden there are some pussy-ass Zombie Lovers who want to boycott and moan about that, too.

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Working Question


Now that the year is almost over seeing as this week marks in many eyes to be the last big week of gaming with AC2 and L4D2 out. This is a two part question. What game that came out this year will you think get lost in the shuffle when it comes to the Year End Awards that everyone does simply because of all of the sheer awesome that has come out of this year.

And the second part is given how many games ran like pussies into 2010 because they were afraid of Modern Warfare 2...which one of those delayed games do you think should've stayed in '09 because they would've beaten Modern Warfare 2 in terms of critical and financial success?

I don't know if a game could've beaten MW2 on those terms, but a game I definitely would've liked to see come out this year instead of getting pushed to 2010 would've been Mass Effect 2. I am jonsing hard for my Wrex fix.



That wraps it up for this column, until next time I'm Jordan Williams...and next week we find out why giant rats (and other animals) always get the short end of the stick.