Left 4 D---Err--I mean, Zombie Apocalypse

Zombie Apocalypse. Heard of it? Don't worry, not too many people have; let me catch you up. ZA is being published by Konami, a well known publisher in the games industry. This top down arcade style shooter will be available for download on Xbox Live and Playstation Network in the near future, so if you're a PS3 owner, get ready for one small taste of the likeness of a better game. That's right, I said it. Zombie Apocalypse is about as original as Miley Cyrus, holding out for a small fortune with the release of a game so similar to one released not even a year ago. Of course I am talking about Left 4 Dead.

ZA promises to take you through the zombie invasion one day at a time (55 days total), killing hoardes of zombies (and special zombies--how unique), with an arsenal of weapons (admittedly much wider than those availabe in Left 4 Dead), and exploding "zombie bait" taking the form of a cuddly teddy bear (which is the game's equivalent of a pipe bomb).

Now maybe I'm over-exaggerating--no, no wait I'm not. Here, look at this.

Left 4 Dead Characters:



Zombie Apocalypse Characters:



I'm sorry. I think I'm seeing double. Okay, okay. So L4D is a first person shooter and ZA is an arcade shooter. Maybe that justifies this lack of originality. Oh wait. No it doesn't.

I mean this has to be a copyright infringement of sorts. The characters look the same, the premise is the same (there is even up to 4 people multiplayer--whee!), even the areas look similar. I understand that games have things in common. Multiplayer--got it, games have that in common. Common areas--makes sense. Zombies--its a given. But the only difference between a game being the genre?! That's just ridiculous.

This should set off a bell in someone's mind that there is something odd happening int the video games industry. The lack of originality put into this game (from what I've seen so far. I have never played it and cannot judge it beyond what I have seen) is atrocious. I really hope half-ass copies of already made games don't become a trend in video games.