Zero Punctuation Season 13 Episode 11 Left Alive

In season 13 episode 11 of Zero Punctuation, Yahtzee Croshaw reviews the game titled Left Alive. The game is a survival shooter set in a war-torn city where the player takes the role of three different protagonists, each with their own storyline, weapons, and abilities, who must fight their way through the city occupied by heavily armed soldiers and giant mechs.

Yahtzee starts off by describing his initial experience with Left Alive as quite underwhelming, due to clunky controls and awkward animations. However, he also notes that the game's design is quite impressive, as there are many ways to tackle each level, from stealthily avoiding enemies to strategically setting traps or ambushing foes. The levels themselves are highly detailed and offer a variety of environments, from ruined buildings to narrow streets and sewers.

One of the features that Yahtzee particularly appreciates in Left Alive is the ability to customize weapons. Players can collect parts found scattered throughout levels, and use them to upgrade and modify their guns, adding attachments such as scopes or silencers, or improving their performance with increased accuracy or damage. This allows for a great deal of experimentation and personalization of gameplay, as each player can tailor their weapons according to their preferred playstyle.

Another notable element of Left Alive is the decision-making that affects each protagonist's story. Each character has their own set of choices to make, from whether to spare or kill soldiers, to which objectives to pursue and who to trust. These choices can have consequences later on in the game, and can even affect the other protagonists' paths. Yahtzee notes that the game's narrative is quite engaging, with complex characters and political intrigue adding depth to the post-apocalyptic setting.

However, Yahtzee also highlights some of the game's flaws. The AI of enemy soldiers is not particularly intelligent, and they often run straight into traps or walk past obvious danger zones. This can make the game feel less challenging than it should be, as players can exploit the AI's predictability and easily dispatch groups of enemies without much effort. Moreover, the game's difficulty can be quite uneven, with some levels requiring precise timing and skill, while others can be completed simply by running and gunning.

Finally, Yahtzee comments on Left Alive's overall presentation, which he finds to be somewhat lackluster. The graphics are decent, but not particularly impressive, and the game's sound design is functional but not memorable. The voice acting is also somewhat uneven, with some characters delivering their lines convincingly, while others sound stilted or unemotional.

In conclusion, Yahtzee finds Left Alive to be a mixed bag. While the game's design is impressive and the customization options allow for a great deal of flexibility in gameplay, the clunky controls and poor AI detract from the overall experience. Nevertheless, he notes that the game's narrative and characters make it worth playing for those who enjoy immersive, story-driven shooters.