What happens when zombie shooter games such as Left 4 Dead meet zombie-themed marathons such as Zombie Run?
Zedtown is born. It is essentially a real-life zombie survival game where participants will have to battle the zombie horde with Nerf blasters. The game has taken the US and Australia by storm and has finally arrived on the sunny shores of Singapore at the National Stadium on 26 October 2019.
We had the great fortune of being invited to the media preview of Zedtown Asia. Don and I were thrilled. We ended our National Service many months ago, and it has been far too long since we held something that even resembled a rifle, so being able to perform ‘live firing’ once again got us very excited.
The first order of business was to download the Zedtown app and collect our dog tags. Participants were split into two factions—red and blue. There is initially a third faction, gold; however, since it was a media preview, the group size was much smaller. This was just one of the many aspects of the game that was scaled down to accommodate our size.
The Zedtown app allows players to learn the basics of the game and form a #squad with their friends. On game day, once the players have scanned the unique QR code on their dog tag, they will have access to the in-game radio and be able to scan QR codes in the play area for missions.
We were then brought into a room for a briefing and introduced to an arsenal of Nerf blasters, courtesy of Nerf Singapore, before being briefed on the rules of the game.
Zedtown Rules
You ‘die’ and become a zombie if you are tagged by one—but the fun doesn’t stop here. Go after the other humans with your newfound allies.
While it is essentially a Human vs Zombies game, both teams can shoot at each other, which causes a player to be stunned. Then, they will have to run back to their base with their hands up in the air and will be unable to shoot any further until they have reached their base.
If you are a zombie and you get hit by a dart, you have to run back to your base before you can return after the survivors.
Be a good sport, and call out when you get hit or tagged.
As I walked past the zombies who were being contained in their base, adrenaline filled my veins. They looked as if they had just popped out from a video game, with their surreal makeup and outfits. I was praying to the Gods that they weren’t the fittest zombies out there—I didn’t want to die in the first five minutes.
The game then began. The first mission was intense—both teams were scrambling to complete the task which was to push a payload to the base with zombies flanking us left, right and centre. Due to their relentless assault, it wasn’t long before I lost Don to the horde.
The opposing blue team eventually gained control of the objective, which meant that the red team would lose their safe haven—we would no longer have a cordoned-off area of our own where the zombies could not enter.
As I was fighting for survival, Don was undergoing his transformation into the undead. Due to the constraints of time, the makeup for the recently turned was not as intricate and detailed as the original zombies; however, you can expect to be transformed into a full-fledged one on game day.
I was ‘killed’ 14 minutes and 25 seconds into the game and transformed into a zombie. Being a zombie was tough work as the humans were armed with blasters that could shoot from a distance while we only had our hands. Each time we tried to attack the survivors, we ended up being shot at point-blank range.
Our game ended after 25 minutes, with the blue faction still having six survivors. I can’t imagine playing the full three hours—we had already worked up a sweat from all the running and dodging.
While we barely used ten per cent of the area for this exclusive preview, the actual Zedtown game will utilise the entire space the National Stadium has to offer—which means more missions, more hiding spots, and you can even find crates of ammunition.
There won’t be just one session on game day as well—you can play a night game of Zedtown, where enthusiasts can enjoy the thrill of battling zombies in the darkness of the stadium. Whether you like the tactical advantage that daylight provides—the ability to observe your surroundings with clarity, or the eeriness of playing in the night, there is something for everyone.
You can even buy tickets to be a zombie right from the get-go and chase after the brains of the humans.
While the blasters and darts were provided to us for this preview, take note that they will not be provided on the actual day. However, if you would like a Nerf Jolt Blaster, use the code <ZTSGNERF> when you purchase tickets on SportsHub, while stocks last. Not only that, the first 100 ticket holders who present their Zedtown tickets at Zouk on 26 October will enjoy free access to Zouk’s Halloween Party.
To gear yourself up for the zombie apocalypse, I would recommend you to be in comfortable shoes and bring a change of clothes as the zombie makeup will stain your clothes. Costumes are also recommended—it is the spirit of Halloween after all!
There was a considerable level of depth to this game, and it was something different to experience. Even though I played within a limited time and space, I already had great fun and a good workout. Can you imagine playing this for three hours and with the entire National Stadium as your battlefield?
Zedtown SG is your zombie apocalypse dream come through, but here’s the question: will you survive?
Date & Time: 26 October, 12pm (day session) , 6.30 (night session)
Price: S$60 (day session) , S$65 (night session) , more rates here
Zedtown Asia: Battle For Singapore: Website | Tickets | Email
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