Generation Zero Review (PC)

Generation Zero is not the game people imagine, even if they read about it or watched the trailers. Somehow, it’s more than the sum of its parts, and it’s difficult to say why.

People usually know ahead of time what they are buying, and today’s market leaves little room for surprises. Leaks, spoilers, and developers who don’t know what to actually reveal ensure that gamers already know pretty much everything about the new titles.

It’s not somebody’s fault, but this is how things are. So, imagine my surprise when I started playing Generation Zero and it’s nothing like I imagined. I read about it, watched all the trailers, and in my mind, I already knew, or so I thought, what Generation Zero is about. I couldn’t have been more wrong.

And being proven wrong is extremely helpful, from time to time, especially if the result is generated by a much better product than you were expecting. At least for me, Generation Zero is so much better than I expected, but it’s also so much different as well.

Before we analyze the game a little bit more, we also have to mention the developers, Avalanche Studios. They should sound familiar because they are responsible for Just Cause 2, 3, and 4, and the great Mad Max adaptation. It turns out they are also working on Rage 2 with id Software. I think it’s safe to say their games are not boring.

But Generation Zero is not a sequel, it’s not based on an existing franchise, and it’s not done in collaboration with other studios. I think that it’s something Avalanche Studios wanted to make for a long time, and they finally got around to it.

Story

Avalanche Studios is a Swedish company, and they decided to have Generation Zero take place in their country. You take on the role of a teenager coming back from a trip, onto a small island, only to discover that everyone is missing or left. And there are some robot corpses scattered about.

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The idea used as a basis is that Sweden is a relatively small country, with no means of defending themselves against a large army. So, everyone in the population is trained to fight, at least at a basic level. The premise of the game is either that the people disappeared or they are fighting the intruders in guerilla-style combat.

Either way, this is pretty much the extent of the story, at least in the beginning. You’ll find clues here and there, but Generation Zero is not about what happened, but more about what can be done right now to survive.

Gameplay and multiplayer

As I already said, Generation Zero is not really how it’s described, and that might have affected how people perceived it. For the most part, the game is described as a first-person shooter, and that’s true at a basic level, but it almost always feels like a survival game.

You’re always opening boxes, trucks, and doors to rooms where something of value might be found. The character arrives on the island just after the incident, whatever that may be. The food is still on the table, some cars are still running, and it feels like everything might have taken place just a couple of hours ago.

Players start off by searching through a house and its surroundings to find a weapon and some stuff to help you be on your way. You’re prompted to go further up the road, towards civilization and maybe find other people.

Since Generation Zero is an open world game, you can go wherever you want, but it’s a good idea to stick to the road, for a simple reason. This is where the safe houses are located. It’s important to remember that Generation Zero is also a multiplayer game, so you can't save. If you die, you’ll return to the last discovered safe house. And, if you’re not careful, that could be a long way back.

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I also said that the game was very different from what I was expecting. Generation Zero might be an FPS at surface level, but stealth and planning go a long way. You see, the island is now full of all kinds of robots, big and small. They can hear and see you, so you’ll be crouching a lot.

One or two of the smaller robots (come to think of it, they look awfully similar to the ones built by Boston Dynamics) are not difficult to deal with. They have vulnerable components, like the big canisters on the back. Two well-placed bullets from the pistol take them out, and you only need a rifle bullet for the same job.

But some locations are guarded by four or five units, not to mention that in larger settlements are many others. This is where the strategy comes into play. You’ll find scattered all over a lot of interesting stuff, like explosive canisters and radios. Since the robots respond to sound, you can place a radio on the ground and a canister, and set up a trap.

Things are not always that easy and clear cut, but other things in the environment can be used as well, like power transformers. The robots are also easily confused by fireworks, and they set off to get away or for a better shot. The bigger units are much more difficult to take down, and you could need multiple tries. It's also a permanent world, os if you damaged a robot, and you encounter it later, it's going to show

The game is sometimes easy and sometimes incredibly difficult, with not much in between. Weapons are precise, but you’re always hurting. Fortunately, first aid kits are available everywhere. The spikes in difficulty are not as pronounced when you’re playing on the same map as other people, but that’s not easy to achieve.

Let’s not forget that Generation Zero is also a multiplayer game, and in theory, this is where it should shine. But as far as I can’t tell, I can’t gather a few friends and play with them, as the server decides who are my mates. Also, there is no voice chat support, which is at least a little bit annoying for a multiplayer game.

I know there are other solutions, but it’s not the kind of thing that should be missing. What I can tell you is that the multiplayer, when it comes together and you've not kicked off sessions for no reason, it helps ease the pressure.

Atmosphere

I don’t usually make a different category out of this, and it’s folded into the graphics or design, but I’m making an exception in the case of Generation Zero. I don’t know if it’s the Apex engine, the design, or a combination of both, but it’s something that I rarely experience.

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The entire world feels alive, even if you’re only meeting robots. The weather system enhances that experience, and you’re dreading and loving each second spent looking for resources. Somehow, encountering enemies lifts the loneliness cloud for just a few minutes, and that says a lot.

I can’t put my finger on it, but I’m almost certain that the work put into Generation Zero, at least from a design perspective, could have better put to use in a single player, third-person horror game; the same settings, the same story, with just minor tweaks.

The Good

The Bad

Conclusion