Zombie Nation

Zombie Nation

Overview & History

Developed by Meldac and released for the Famicom in 1990 before hitting the NES in 1991, *Zombie Nation* stands as one of the most delightfully bizarre side-scrolling shoot 'em ups in retro gaming history. Loosely inspired by Japanese horror tropes and satirical cinema, the storyline follows the disembodied giant head of legendary 19th-century samurai Namakubi and the spirit of a kidnapped ninja girl, Kiyo. They travel from Japan to the United States to defeat Dargulis, an evil alien entity who has turned the American populace into flesh-eating zombies and possessed the Statue of Liberty.

Gameplay Features & Mechanics

Unlike traditional horizontally scrolling shmup protagonists flying nimble fighter jets, players pilot a massive, floating severed samurai head that fires eyeballs as standard projectiles and vomits a powerful stream of green bile as a screen-clearing bomb attack. The gameplay requires navigating densely packed, vertical and horizontal urban landscapes filled with skyscrapers, monuments, and iconic American landmarks. Players can rescue helpless civilian hostages trapped in bubbles to earn power-ups, upgrade their firepower, and grow the length of trailing zombie minions attached to the head that act as both extra shields and auxiliary weapons. Boss encounters include mutant baseball players, flying hamburgers, and towering demonic monuments, delivering an unforgettable, surreal audio-visual trip driven by unique, eerie chiptune music.

Keyboard Controls

• Arrow Keys / D-Pad: Move Namakubi's floating head across the screen
• Action Keys: Shoot eyeballs (A Button) / Use vomit bomb attack (B Button)
• Enter: Start / Pause