One zombie is scary. A few zombies are a big problem. Millions of zombies are, accurately, considered an apocalyptic scenario. Thankfully, the shambling flesh-eaters are restricted to the realm of fiction, so any talk of how you’d survive a zombie apocalypse is purely theoretical. There’s plenty of entertainment to be had, casting ourselves as hardbitten survivors against the undead threat, so zombie games are a dime a dozen. A few, though, stand out as highlights of horror.

If you think you have what it takes to survive in a world overrun by the dead, these games are practically must-plays. From engaging gameplay to gripping storylines, they’re the best of the best when it comes to one of the most nightmarish ideas human creativity has ever dreamed up.

Stubbs The Zombie In Rebel Without A Pulse (2005)

Stubbs The Zombie is a comedy game, but it lets you follow an outbreak from a unique perspective; that of the initial zombie. As Stubbs, you’ll go from picking off lone victims to unleashing legions of the dead on a 1950’s “city of the future,” leaving chaos and destruction in your wake.

If you need a break from the gritty realism of modern zombie media, Stubbs is a fun parody with plenty of cartoonish horror to cleanse your palate. Who knew brains were so tasty?

Dead Rising (2006)

Capcom’s chaotic zombie series is irreverent, over-the-top, and ridiculous, but also manages to be unsettling and scary at the same time. The original game, which trapped you in a shopping mall with a couple dozen survivors and a few hundred thousand zombies, let you ride out the nightmare however you wanted.

The 2024 Deluxe Remaster is a great way to check out this 20-year-old classic. Just be sure not to miss the helicopter!

They Are Billions (2019)

Most zombie apocalypse games fall squarely in the action-adventure category, or occasionally survival crafting, but They Are Billions is a notable outlier. This steampunk sci-fi strategy game challenges you to build and defend a city against the undead hordes.

The title isn’t joking around, either – when the dead attack, you can expect your screen to be completely flooded. If you’re not careful, you’ll be treated to a birds-eye view of your settlement being overrun.

Dying Light (2015)

Dying Light adds high-octane action and parkour to the usual zombie scenario, reminding us that it doesn’t always have to be doom and gloom. This intense first-person romp and its sequels put the Rule of Cool front and center, setting up plenty of set-piece fights and edge-of-your-seat moments.

There’s debate to be had over whether the original game with all its DLC is best, or if last year’s Dying Light: The Beast is the franchise’s high point to date. Either way, though, you can’t argue with a game that lets you fight zombies in style and have fun doing it.

Days Gone (2021)

Days Gone has it all for zombie fans; an lavish open world, a gripping story, and of course a world overrun by the infected. Its grungy biker aesthetic fits right into the post-Walking-Dead media landscape, so if you need more scrappy survival in your diet this is a real winner.

While it’s story-driven rather than being a pure open-world survival game, Days Gone has so much to do, including New Game Plus and other challenges, that you’ll still get plenty of mileage out of it.

7 Days To Die (2024)

Of course, if you’re looking for the pure open-world zombie survival experience, it’s hard to go wrong with 7 Days To Die. It was in early access for over a decade, and now it’s one of the most complete ways to survive the apocalypse (or not) with your friends.

7 Days To Die isn’t just a great zombie apocalypse game, it’s also a pioneer of its genre. While most of the other games on this list were single-launch affairs that occasionally saw a remaster, 7 Days To Die will likely see updates and expansions for years to come.

Left 4 Dead 2 (2009)

There’s nothing quite like an evening of frantic co-op gaming with your friends, and no game has ever quite pulled it off like Left 4 Dead. By now, everybody knows the series’ unique forms of infected; Hunters, Tanks, and of course deadly Witches are all iconic parts of video game lore, and they’re still just as dangerous as they were over a decade and a half ago.

Left 4 Dead 2 takes everything that made the original an instant classic and improves on them. It’s one of the all-time greats, and while most of us are waiting for another Valve title with a 3 in it, a new Left 4 Dead would be just as welcome in my book.

Project Zomboid (2013)

Project Zomboid is the deepest zombie survival sim ever created – and it’s not even finished! Still in early access after twelve years and counting, this isometric open-world RPG is continuously being adjusted, updated, and improved.

It’s an indie project that might not have the big, flashy visuals of the more cinematic games on this list, but it’s the ultimate test of how you’d survive in an authentic zombie apocalypse. Project Zomboid is ambitious, dense, and unforgiving, and no other zombie game comes close in that regard.

Resident Evil 2 Remake (2019)

The first Resident Evil game had zombies, but wasn’t really a zombie apocalypse game; the second and third, however, dropped you into an overrun Raccoon City with nothing but your wits and a pistol. As fantastic as the original release of RE2 was, Capcom has been hitting it out of the park with the remakes, and 2019’s update of Leon and Claire’s adventure is possibly the best of the bunch.

To sum up, Resident Evil 2 (2019) is one of the best remakes of all time, based on one of the best horror games of all time. The only way it could be better would be if it fundamentally changed the way we think about storytelling in video games…

The Last Of Us (2013)

Entire books could be written about the impact of The Last Of Us. Before it was a TV series featuring Pedro Pascal and Bella Ramsey, it was a game that reminded us that the best zombie stories aren’t actually about the zombies. Its deeply flawed, human characters all struggle to cope in a ruined world, and find themselves changed in unexpected ways at every turn.

There are very, very few games in any genre that I would insist everybody should play at least once. The Last Of Us makes that short list without a second thought.