Review: Deadly 30

Can you survive the horror? … a retro-style survival horror game developed by the two-man indie team of Gonzossm and Iggy Zuk. Survive 30 days and nights in a zombie-infested world by recruiting companions, upgrading weaponry and fortifying your position

Pros:

• Simplistic graphics with a cartoon feel, Animations are puppet like yet fit the game play well.
• 2D shooter with a Zombie survival defend your base work ethic. By day go and scavenge parts and level up by killing stray zombies. By night defend and fortify your base from the relentless hordes of zombies.
• Killing zombies will get you parts used for building defences and earning xp helps level you up, Which in turn unlocks new guns.
• New equipment, base defences and health packs are all bought from an in game shop (crate) located in your base.
• Your base is a two level building but be warned as zombies can and will use the stairs!. You can add fences to slow them down or turrets to help fight them back.
• Game is all about choices, I say choices, Its more like a balancing act. Supplies are in short supply so when you do have them its hard to know what to buy first. Do you upgrade your skills? Buy a new gun or fortify the base?
• You can find abandoned vehicles and break them down for parts but it will take some time, So be wary of zombies.
• You can go out hunting on the night but the zombie count will be huge. The level will be pitch black with only torchlight to aid you. Luckily the torchlight is attached to your gun so it will move as you shoot.
• Has many different areas for you to find and explore. As you level up, Travelling becomes easier and more beneficial.
• Day and night cycle with a notification icon to let you know its dusk,early morning etc. This helps you in determining when to head back home or set off on a day of scavenging.
• The way in which zombies die is a gory pixelated mess, In a good way. They crumble into a pile of flesh and crap that stays on the screen.
• Full assortment of video options like resolution, v-sync etc.
• Detailed stats screen that keeps records of all your expeditions. Down the bottom right will show your best run, measured by nights survived.
• Price point is low and the amount of content is huge.
• Controls are keyboard and mouse only but work really well once learnt. Keyboard is for movement and interaction with the mouse used for aiming and shooting.
• Steam achievements with in game achievement pop ups. (they are the same but do a better job of notifying you)

Cons:

• No controller support which is a shame as it would be a great game to kick back on the sofa and play.
• Melee takes a bit of getting used to. It only kicks  in when you are really close to enemies. The reason its awkward is the melee button is also the reload button. Melee works better when you are just out of reach rather than up close.
• My copy didnt seem to save my video options so I had to set it back up every time.
• If its then then it isnt obvious, I couldnt find a way to just save and quit. Only a surrender (game over) option. Meaning I had to play in one sitting without breaks.
• The day night cycle is very short. You get to a good part and its already going back to night.

In Summary, The game is basic looking but packs so much gameplay. It is a good idea for the somewhat over used zombie genre. It feels like its almost a trial run for a bigger and better version later down the road. Dont get me wrong, You will have fun and god knows there is enough content to keep you coming back. You just wish it had a bigger area to play in and the ability of online co op and a bit more base modifications. That said I did like it and I will continue to play it on a whim. Check out the game yourself and see how you get on. The learning curve at the start is steep but then becomes second nature.