Three Dead Zed is an upcoming Zombie puzzle platformer that’s going to be on PC next week. Of course, there’s going to a small change to the typical archtype zombie game… this time you’re the zombie.

In the indie market a great pitch is paramount and I have to commend Gentleman Squid Studio for Three Dead Zed. They start by addressing the rather large undead elephant in the room:

‘But wait! Not another zombie game! Before you jump on that bandwagon, hear our story. When we first planned Three Dead Zed, the zombie craze wasn’t nearly as bad as it seems now. This was almost 3 years ago. Other projects hindered progress so it took a while for us to bring this game to the market. Zombie game after zombie game was announced and to be frank, we were getting nervous.’

Obviously any team with a zombie game today has to expect some cynicism and much pffft-making, and so Gentleman Squid Studio rises to the challenge with a pitch that addresses these concerns. The developers do make a compelling case for how their game stands out.

As mentioned above, their title gives you the ability to play as the zombie, which is definitely a route less travelled in the zombie games genre (the only one that pops to mind is Stubbs the Zombie, actually). I think the role reversal is a really simple yet significant change that makes the game far more fun. I’m surprised that there are so many zombie games but not that many that actually let you take the role of the much maligned zombie.

In Three Dead Zed you take on the role of not one but three undead protagonists. The first is a sort of baseline character, with average strength and speed. He’s a disgruntled-looking zombie who appears to be missing a large chunk of his head (perhaps that’s why he’s so disgruntled). The second is an agile zombie sporting a pretty snazzy cape and some sweet shades. The third is a giant lady zombie who has incredibly large arms which will make quick work of pretty much anything. You can switch between the three characters in play and switching appears to be done through a rather gruesome transformation procedure. The game appears to have some pretty solid platforming action and it promises some nice puzzles as well.

Three Dead Zed has a very humorous feel to it, and it promises an amusing story that unfolds as the player explores the levels and accesses certain areas. I’m already curious about the story because it involves collecting cats with tin foil hats. That’s definitely one way to pique our interest, Gentleman Squid Studio. So far, I’m really enjoying the game’s design. It has vibrant and cartoonish hand drawn artwork, and its style reminded me a bit of Jhonen Vasquez characters (particularly Invader Zim).

Three Dead Zed will be available on Desura on January 24^th, and it’s available for pre-order.

[Three Dead Zed]