PS4 The Last of Us

America’s obsession with the living dead kicked off in 1968 with George A. Romero’s aptly-titled horror flick, “Night of the Living Dead.” Since then, the slow-moving, brain-eating creatures have infiltrated every corner of our cultural zeitgeist. Zombie TV shows (“The Walking Dead,” Netflix’s “Santa Clarita Diet”) and books (“The Zombie Survival Guide” by Max Brooks) have spiked in popularity. Even the Center for Disease Control is in on the action: It featured a zombie preparedness blog on their website a few years ago. The agency claims it’s fictional advice — but we have it bookmarked, just in case.

The best way to practice for an end-of-days zombie scenario is with a zombie video game. They give you the chance to test-drive your own survival tactics or learn how to prepare for scenarios you never even considered. If you’re not buying into the zombie apocalypse mindset, you can still lose yourself in some of the best zombie games money can buy.

Today’s zombie games go well beyond basic first-person shooters — you have to do more than just kill as many sluggish, brain-crazy zombies as possible. The hallmarks of a great modern zombie game are a compelling storyline, realistic graphics, a variety of weapons to choose from and characters that you connect with. Game creators like Capcom and Sony have dozens of titles to pick from on multiple systems. 

How do you find the glistening needle in this zombie game haystack? You check out our tips and advice, then use your newfound knowledge to go forth in the night and defeat the zombies once and for all.

• First off, make sure that the game you have your eye on is built to work with whatever system you own. If you’re buying the game as a gift, double check which system your recipient uses before you buy. There are great titles for every video game system, so don’t despair if the one you had your eye on wasn’t released for your hardware. “Left 4 Dead 2” looks great on the Xbox 360, “The Last of Us” is a favorite on Playstation 4, and “Dying Light: The Following” knocks it out of the park on the Xbox One. 
• Thanks to major advances in graphics and realism, today’s zombie games are not for the faint of heart. Make sure that you’re ready for some blood and guts, and check out the game’s ESRB rating before you buy it (especially if you’re buying it as a gift for a younger family member). ESRB ratings are doled out by the Entertainment Software Rating Board, a regulatory organization that assigns age and content ratings to consumer video games. All four of our top picks have an M17+ rating (Mature, ages 17+) for things like blood and gore, language and intense violence. 
• A fascinating storyline is what makes today’s zombie games worth buying, and you’ll get the most value out of your game if you find one that really speaks to you. The blockbuster “Resident Evil” series gets a facelift in PS4’s “Resident Evil 2.” It’s a remake of the 1998 smash hit, but it’s well worth the money, even if you already played the ‘98 version. Almost all of the residents of Racoon City have turned into zombies after the release of the evil Umbrella Corporation’s T-Virus. You can play as either rookie cop Leon S. Kennedy or college student Claire Redfield, who each take their own path to fight through Racoon City and meet up at an evacuation train.
• If you like stories that have a longer, grander arc, PS4’s “The Last of Us” is right up your alley. It jumps from an initial viral outbreak in the suburbs of Austin, TX to 20 years later, when the infection has almost decimated civilization as a whole. Survivor Joel is a member of the Fireflies, a rebel militia. He encounters Ellie, a teen girl who is demonstrating resistance to the deadly Cordyceps fungus, and they take off on a journey to find the remaining Fireflies and potentially defeat the virus. 
• Each zombie game has its own gameplay style. Some, like “Dying Light: The Following,” use a first-person point of view. It looks like you’re right in the game, looking through the eyes of your character as you fight off zombie attacks. DLTF also uses parkour-style movements, meaning that your character moves using only their body and any part of the environment. This opens up the game’s world, creating larger, more detailed maps and more nooks and crannies to explore. “Resident Evil 2” plays from a third-person over-the-shoulder perspective, so the camera follows behind you as you sneak up on the walking dead and take control of the situation. Think about past games that you’ve enjoyed and what perspective and gameplay style they’ve used. That will help you figure out which zombie game you’ll enjoy the most. 
• Exploring new weapons is a huge part of zombie game fun. The most entertaining games have many weapons to choose from, ranging from your basic knives and handguns to high-powered rifles or flamethrowers. “Left 4 Dead 2” builds off the weapons from the first game in the series and introduces new ones, like a katana and a chainsaw. “The Last of Us: Remastered Hits” helps you mow down zombies with everything from a bow and arrow to Molotov cocktails.
• The main storyline in most zombie games use a single-player approach to solving Earth’s zombie crisis. However, most of the games offer additional playing modes to switch things up. “Left 4 Dead 2” has its core single-player mode, plus a four-player cooperating campaign mode, an eight-player online versus mode and a four-player survival mode. “Dying Light: The Following” includes an asymmetrical multiplayer mode, and “The Last of Us” also has a multiplayer option.
• Games with different difficulty levels or more than one ending will keep you coming back for more (and make the game worth your money). You can play as either Leon or Claire in the “Resident Evil 2” remake. Both paths take you down wildly different paths. Players can gain experience points through the bounty mode in “Dying Light: The Following.” The game’s new Nightmare Mode adds hours to the story’s deadly nighttime, and it increases the zombie’s stamina and strength for crazy-hard runs.