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Dead Nation scares onto PS Vita...
Fri, 25th Apr 2014
FYI, this story is more than a year old

The popular Dead Nation finally makes its way onto the PS Vita system. Is the game still a terrifying experience on the small screen?

Dead Nation became a hit when it was first released for the PS3. It reminded players a lot of the original Resident Evil games.

This is because Dead Nation also has a fixed camera and the emphasis here is more on survival rather than just shooting zombies all the time.

Much like many other re-releases, the PS Vita version of Dead Nation doesn't offer any new content. If you own the PS3 version, you are actually already entitled to download the PS Vita version for free.

That being said, this PS Vita version will only appeal to those that want to play the game on the go. Other than that, it's the same game as always. Not to mention the PS Vita version lacks the DLC that is packed with the new PS4 version.

If you've never played Dead Nation before, you are in for a treat because the game is still a terrifying experience even on the smaller screen of the PS Vita.

Zombies come thick and fast and there are also different varieties of them as well. To excel in Dead Nation, you have to be prepared with the right types of weapons to be able to survive the onslaught.

Dead Nation Screen 3

There are ten levels in total in the game, but even the first level was hard for me to complete. Zombies are not easy to kill and some of them take a multitude of bullets before they go down.

Also, zombies usually love to attack in large groups and running away is not really an option since the levels are cramped and offer not much space.

There are also different types of zombies for you to kill as well. There's the usual slow type that walk around waiting for you to kill them, but there's also fast ones too that run up really fast.

Thankfully, you have the ability to buy weapons during some of the checkpoints in the game. You can either upgrade the firepower of your current weapons, or buy some new ones.

Some of the more interesting weapons include grenades, rocket launchers and even a flamethrower. Once you are able to afford the better weapons, the game gets more fun.

Graphically, Dead Nation on PS Vita resembles that of the original PS3 version. I didn't notice many changes other than I was playing the game on a much smaller screen.

I would say the smaller screen does make things harder to see since Dead Nation is always set in very dark places. The top-down camera viewpoint doesn't make things easier on the eyes either.

Dead Nation Screen 2

Dead Nation is also a pretty hard game so don't expect to breeze through it. If you've never played the game before, be prepared to die a lot of times as these zombies are relentless and very persistent at seeing your demise.

If you own a PS Vita and wanting to seek a challenge, Dead Nation is the game that will satisfy your need. It's a hard game, but it's rewarding once you are able to get used to it.

If you've played the game before, there's little incentive for you to play the game again. Still, it's fun to play and is long enough to keep you occupied for a while due to its difficulty.

Score: 7.5 out of 10