The new zombie survival shooter World War Z has sold nearly 2 million copies just over a month after release. However, it has been relatively quiet about the game.
What is World War Z? World War Z is a zombie shooter in the style of Left4Dead, based on the 2013 film of the same name. In a team of 4 players, you move through various levels, fighting against huge hordes of zombies and can play cooperatively or alone with bots.
How is World War Z doing?
These are the sales figures: As DualShockers reports, World War Z sold over a million copies within the first week after its release on April 16, 2019. And this, despite the fact that the game was hardly promoted. It just appeared more or less out of nowhere.
Now, as of May 22, developers Saber Interactive and publisher Focus Home Interactive have announced that nearly 2 million copies have been sold. This includes all available platforms: PC, PS4, and Xbox One.
World War Z is well-received: Most fan reviews, which can be found on reddit for example, praise the game and its ridiculously large amounts of zombies that can be blown up, sliced apart, and shot. The gameplay seems to be a lot of fun for many.
Still, it seems the breakthrough was somewhat lacking. On Twitch, the game never really found its audience. On release day, about 135,000 viewers were watching simultaneously. Now, in the past three days, it has dropped to just under 8,000 viewers. (via Sullygnome)
Moreover, there is a rather mixed Metacritic:
- 74/100 points for PC (User Score: 5.5)
- 67/100 points for PS4 (User Score: 6.2)
- 71/100 points for Xbox One (User Score: 6.0)
This is how fans see the numbers: In a reaction on reddit, fans of the game are pleased with the figures, especially because they like the studio and hope for a good future. However, they also wonder about the relative success given the lack of advertising.
Some players, however, feel that the brand “World War Z” has harmed the game more than it has helped. The film was rather mediocre to poor, which is why some suspected that the game would also be mediocre to poor.
Additionally, World War Z is only available on PC via the controversial Epic Launcher. This is a reason for many players to avoid the game altogether.
Another zombie shooter that still has to establish itself is pursuing a completely different strategy:
