City of Zombies is a co-operative, dice-based intense team survival game. Players combine dice to target and remove zombies from an ever-advancing horde before their barricade is overrun.
The game is suitable for all ages and abilities, and can be played in as little as 15 minutes (in the shorter version). The key game mechanics involve manipulating the numbers rolled on the dice via combinations of mathematical functions (from basic addition and subtraction through to squaring and cube rooting) to hit the exact numbers on the encroaching zombie cards - you need a precise head shot to take them out! As a co-op game, the difficulty can be tailored to suit the skills of the players, and supports groups of mixed abilities well.
Originally developed to assist the designer's daughter with her maths, the game has fantastic learning potential for players. It offers number manipulation skills by stealth rather than in a more traditional overtly "educational" game setting. What was designed with educational intent has become a great game for gamers and their families, and suits more experienced groups as a good warm-up or end of night filler.
- Fun and clever aspect of using math to fight zombies
- Works well with kids
- Not the best zombie game for kids
- zombies
- Outnumbered: Inprobable Heroes
Mechanics (from transcript analysis)
- cooperative play — You are rolling dice as a cooperative game to fight them.
- Dice Rolling — You are rolling dice as a cooperative game to fight them.
- Math calculation — Using math (add, subtract, square, cube) to fight the monsters.
Video topics + discussion points
Quotes (from this video)
- There was a time where we thought, 'Oh, there's so many zombie games.' And of course there was.
- Zombies are a very easy mechanism to put into a board game cuz the bad guys will move slowly towards you or run fast towards you, whatever.
- Zombies are predictable, they don't have brains, they're trying to eat them, and so they're coming towards you and it just makes it an easier game mechanism.
- Frankly, in the past several years, the number of zombie games has gone down considerably.
- It is a neat way to get rid of that alpha gamer where someone a quarterback or telling everyone what to do.
- At the end of the day, your biggest enemies are the other humans.
- You're just chucking dice. So, this is kind of like mixing a Yahtzee type game or King of Tokyo with zombies.
- This is one of the meanest games out there.
- This is my favorite of all the Zombicides, which I know that I'm in a minority.