SCARdiff 2014: City of Horror Giveaway

SCARdiff is Cardiff's annual expo celebrating all things horror: books, comics, movies, cosplay, the works.

2014′s event is an ALL AGES show, scheduled for Sunday 19th October at a brand new venue, Cardiff Masonic Hall

Zombie Shop have teamed up with the SCARdiff crew to offer a free copy of City of Horror to one lucky horror fan. Book your tickets before 27th June for a chance to win yourself a copy and show your friends once and for all that if the zombies come, you're tripping them first!

Zombie Shop will be demoing a number of Zombie Board, Card and Dice Games at SCARdiff this year.

City of Horror is a backstabbing survival-horror game. A shambling horde is invading the city. The goal is to survive the assault. (Un)fortunately, surviving often means sacrificing some of your fellow players to the undead...

 Each player controls several characters with different abilities; these characters can move to various limited-capacity locations, which they can then barricade and scavenge for items and weapons. Critical situations, such as zombies breaking in and eating a character, are resolved using vote.

 The basic game mechanics are the same as Mall of Horror, but City of Horror differs in both materials and game play in a number of ways: the city map changes each game, twenty characters are included, they can use antidotes (or die if there aren't enough to go around), action cards become more scarce as the game progresses and you can gain points with other stuff than surviving characters...

Early bird tickets for SCARdiff are just £6.66, book your now at SCARdiff.co.uk

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It's the Zombie Apocalypse... Let's Play!

Zombicide

We've been playing quite a bit of Zombicide at Zombie Shop HQ recently and we have to say that all in all we love it. It's at least as good as Last Night on Earth and rather than replacing it, it adds a new slant. Last Night on Earth is set in small town America, Zombicide brings the zombie action to the city streets!

Zombiecide was a bit of a Kickstarter phenomenon when it went live in 2012 it over-funded by £761,000.

Yes, that's right, over-funded by £761,000! This was perhaps due, as many Kickstarter projects are, in part to the superb graphic style and perhaps the fact that we gamers can't get enough Zombie action!

There's always a worry that throwing money down on a Kickstarter project might result in a great looking but not so good to play game. No worries here though!

Zombicide is a well balanced game that has clearly been well thought out and play-tested.

The components are top-notch (you get what you pay for and this is not a cheap game by any stretch of the imagination) 71 miniatures, including 6 survivors, 40 walkers, 16 runners, 8 fatties and 1 abomination.

All 71 miniatures are stunning.

The board is wonderful to behold.

Best of all, as far as we are concerned, Zombicide is co-op, so not only can you play it solo (a massive pus in our book), up to 6 players can take on the Zombie Apocalypse together. There are 10 scenarios in the basic game ranging from nice and easy to 'Oh-my-look-at-the-crap-o-meter' (with plenty more free scenarios available on the Guillotine Games Website), the Zombies are controlled by a pretty neat card deck and brings to mind Left 4 Dead as a board game. It is simple to pick up and the challenges the game presents mean plenty of re-play-ability

Our last game ended in tears for everyone... except the zombies.

Whilst the game was initially only available through the Kickstarter it is has been available on general release for some time and has been getting pretty rave reviews from gamers everywhere.

Zombicide is available now at Zombie Shop. Pick up a copy now, don't miss out on all the fun!!

Zombie Gaming and Entertainment

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Zombie Card Games and Board Games - Part 3

So, you ate all the survivors in Humans!!!, survived Zombiegeddon, and you were the last one to die an unimaginable death in Zombie Survival: The Board Game. Your buddies are on the way over and nobody's got to be anywhere soon.

Zombie Game Face On!!
The beer fridge is stocked, the chips are down and the salsa is chilled to perfection. What we playing this time?

If you like your zombie board games with just a smidgen more depth and re-playability

Last Night on Earth
Flying Frog Productions' Last Night on Earth is quite possibly the coolest zombie board game on the planet. It is a perfect mix of survivalist strategy, gun-toting action and long-term re-playability. Set in the sleepy town of Woodinvale you get, among other things, a cast of eight small town heroes (more than you can play all at once), a modular board with a double sided centre-piece, and some of the best miniatures seen (scaled at around 28-32mm, for those who play zombie skirmish games) it even comes with a CD soundtrack to get you in the mood. The mechanics of the game are pretty easy to pick up, but there's enough complexity that is might take a game to get a it right, but once the rules are squared away the possibilities are endless. Best of all the game is scenario based, with 5 scenarios included to get you going and there are currently four more official Last Night on Earth web scenarios. Last Night on Earth has a cinematic action-horror feel so make sure you have plenty of popcorn to hand. The feel and quality of the components are superb and it's a game you can play again and again.

Flying Frog Productions Last Night on Earth - Zombie Board Game

Last Night on Earth: Hero Pack One
Want more?  Last Night on Earth: Hero Pack One brings you four new fantastic characters, cards and miniatures, ten new game cards and a brand new scenario.

Last Night on Earth - Hero Park One



Last Night on Earth: Zombies with Grave Weapons
Still want more? Last Night on Earth: Zombies with Grave Weapons provides 14 plastic zombies, featuring seven new sculpts, to add to your horde and comes with two exclusive new weapons only available with this set.

Last Night on Earth - Zombies with Grave Weapons

All Things Zombie
All Things Zombie from Lock 'n' Load games is based on Ed Teixeira's 2006 Origins Award-Winning miniatures game of the same name. All Things Zombie is a name synonymous with zombie tabletop gamers the world over as one of the finest sets of zombie gaming rules available. All Things Zombie, otherwise known as ATZ, is all about real life in an unreal world. It can be played as a one off game or, when it really comes into its own, as an ongoing campaign in which the same survivors develop from game to game, if they survive. The game features counters in place of miniatures and despite some issues with a small percentage of copies from the first print run, ironed out in the second run, the production is good and the artwork top-notch.

All Things Zombie - Zombie board game by Lock 'n' Load Games

All Things Zombie is designed for 1-6 players, yup that's right, ONE to six. Where ATZ really stands out is its playability as a solo game. No spider solitaire and, in the opinion of many, it's possibly best as a solo game. That's not so common these days. All Things Zombie is scenario-led and the rules cover so much it skirts the boundaries of being RPG-lite and actually works if you want to run it that way.

All Things Zombie - Zombie

If you want a more in-depth board game you can play solo, fancy an RPG-lite session or like the idea of a zombie skirmish game and don't have the time or modelling skills to build your own zombie infested city, All Things Zombie fits the bill perfectly.

Get yer Zomb on!

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Zombie Card Games and Zombie Board Games - Part 2

Okay, so you've reached 10th level in Munchkin Zombies, eaten brains and avoiding getting shotgunned in Zombie Dice and you've made it to the choppa in Zombies!!! If that hasn't quite satisfied your hunger for brains or survival in a world gone insane and you want to take things a little further, what do you do now? Twilight Creations still have a lot to offer.

Humans!!!
For a slight change of pace, Humans!!! flips the viewpoint on its hugely popular Zombies!!! game. This time you get to play as a zombie and go shambling after the humans victims as only semblance of your former self. It's a stand alone game but even more fun, you can combine this with the original game and choose between playing as a zombie or a survivor in the same game. Humans!!! uses the same basic mechanics of Zombies!!!, with an even more undead twist.

Humans!!! zombie board game from Twlight Creations.

Zombiegeddon
Reiner Knizia is a multi award winning games designer so when Reiner's name is behind something you may attention. Zombiegeddon is a game of two halves, the first half spend frantically racing around the board collecting when you think is rightfully yours and the second half of the game is spent trying to survive. Whoever has the most stuff at the end of the game wins. Aimed very much from the euro-gamer, Zombiegeddon is definitely more strategy heavy than a zombie themed blast-em-up. It is slightly let down a little by some graphic design elements but remains a very strong game.

Zombiegeddon - Reiner Knizia's zombie strategy game

Zombietown
A more accessible game from Twilight Creations is Zombietown. Instead of hitting the streets in a bid to escape the action, Zombietown centres around the happenings of a small local neighbourhood. Unfortunately for you, your house is right across the street from the cemetery. Collecting and using your guns barricades and rushing off in an attempt to claim other abandoned homes is all part of the fun and the more of that you do, the more likely you are to win. 100 plastic zombies sure seems like a lot when they start shambling across the street towards your hastily barricaded home. Zombietown is designed for 3 to 6 players, however - rules for a two player game are included.

Zombietown - look out for your neighbours.

Zombie Survival: The Board Game
The mysterious event that has reanimated the dead has also given them an unhealthy hunger for your brains! Taking things a stage further comes Zombie Survival: The Board Game. Plan on staying in your own house and waiting for this to blow over? The action takes place in and around your house. Stock up on common sense survival necessities and try to out-last, or out-survive the waves of zombies and. The winner isn't the one who survives the longest, it's the one who dies last! Zombie Survival: The Board Game has a great 'this is what most people would probably end up doing' feel to it and cranks up the production value with some great game pieces.

Zombie Survival: The Board Game - Barricade

Hooked on zombie board gaming? Stocked up on munchies and ready for a lock-in?

Next time we focus on two of the most popular and in-depth zombie board games available.

Get yer zomb on

zombieshop.co.uk

Zombie Card Games and Zombie Board Games - Part 1

Not that long ago, if you wanted to get your zombie fix via a board game, it was like being the recently risen on the Shetland Islands, slap-bang in the middle of winter; slim pickings.

Now, we're spoilt for choice. Whether you're a hardcore euro-gaming uber-hobbyist or just entering the realm of zombie gaming there is a massive choice.

Zombie Gaming Quick-Fix
If time is short and you're looking for an insta-fix, Looney Lab's Zombie Fluxx should fit the bill. If you're not familiar with Fluxx, the premise is simple: draw one card, play one card - there's no set way to win and the rules change with the turn of every card, even that one above - and this time there are zombies. The rules are quick to pick up and the mechanic is a maddening mix of luck, judgement and, as with every version of Fluxx, adaptability.

Zombie Fluxx from Looney Labs

Zombie Dice
Like Zombie Fluxx Steve Jackson's Zombie Dice is perfect for an entré, palette cleanser or dessert. It's quick, simple and brain-munchingly good fun.

Zombie Dice from Steve Jackson Games

Munchkin Zombies
We could hardly mention Steve Jackson Games without bringing up Munckin Zombies. Once more, not to be taken too seriously, unless of course your character is a 10th level zombie and you insist on telling people about it. Even stangers, even your boss, even the mailman, and the lady at the post office and your shrink's cat. "There was this one time..."

Munckin Zombies from Steve Jackson Games

Zombie in my Pocket
Cambridge Games Factory put out some of the neatest little pocket games around, of which Zombie in my Pocket is undoubtably their coolest offering yet. Zombie in my Pocket is a decidedly non-cooprative game. Which is great for getting you in the dog-house with your friends, siblings or significant others.

Zombie in my Pocket from Cambridge Wargames Factory.

Zombies!!!
Twilight Creations have unquestionably produced the lion's share of zombie gaming goodness. Zombies!!!, their flagship game, is still as popular as ever in it's improved Director's Cut release.

Zombies!!! from Twilight Creations

Zombies!!! Is generally considered to be the quintessential zombie board game. Its the game most people instantly think of when they think of zombie board games and deservedly so. Coolest of all, it comes with 100 plastic zombies. It's a great little game and perfect for anyone who wants to take their zombie gaming just a little bit further without being too caught up in game mechanics. You can play the game cooperatively, or at least you can try, because once push comes to shove and escape is close at hand, you might just be worrying a little less about 'those others' than yelling "Get to da chappa!" to your buddies.

Can't get enough Zombies!!!There are nine, count 'em, nine supplements for Zombies!!!, each one adding combinations of new areas to explore, more cards, more zombies and new rules. Probably the most tantalising and terryfying of all are the Mall Walkers and Send in the Clowns expansions, which even comes with custom scuplted Zombie Clowns!!! and you can pick up more Zombie Clowns!!! if you need them!

Zombies!!! 7 - Send in the Clowns from Twilight Creations.

Next time... take your zombie gaming to the next level as we explore the zombie board games that are the perfect accompaniment to a chips, dips and beer gameathon.

Get Yer Zomb On!

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