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Looking for games to play after Dying Light: The Beast? Well, I don't blame you. It's a great game, as GamesRadar+'s very own Jasmine Gould-Wilson discussed in her Dying Light: The Beast review. Like all good things, however, you will eventually wind up coming to the end of Kyle Crane's latest odyssey and wondering what to do afterwards. The game itself, along with my recent revisit to the World War Z audiobook, has put me in a huge zombie fiction mood.
Thankfully, like the ghouls that rise from so many graves, there is no shortage of fantastic zombie games that can scratch a similar Dying Light: The Beast itch. Whether you're after pulse-pounding action, the chance to rebuild a community after everything's gone rotten pear-shaped, or strategic planning potential, we've got the game for you. Read on, and let's get cracking those zombie skulls.
The best games to play after Dying Light: The Beast
10. State of Decay 2
Developer: Undead Labs
Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X, Xbox One
State of Decay 2 is a fantastic way to explore a world gone bad, letting you roleplay as a survivor trying to piece a community back together. Over the course of a run, you will adapt abandoned buildings into a home for your handpicked group of fellow survivors, grow them into heroes, and fight plenty of the undead.
While its combat may not be as visceral as that of Dying Light: The Beast, I defy anyone to smash through a mob of zombies with a sledgehammer in State of Decay 2 and not feel something. In fact, in our State of Decay 2 review, we gave the game 3.5 stars. It's a great time.
9. Left 4 Dead 2
Developer: Valve
Platforms: PC, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, Xbox 360
It may be a little long in the tooth now, but Left 4 Dead 2 has still yet to be beaten when it comes to co-op zombie shooters (just look at our glowing Left 4 Dead 2 review for more on that). Its special infected are the stars of the show, with enemies like the Witch, Tank, and Hunter still bringing a shiver to many gamers' spines to this day. You and up to three friends will be facing these foes, along with boatloads of standard walkers. Thankfully, this game gives you an amazing selection of tools for the job, ranging from shotguns to assault rifles and fire axes to cricket bats.
The structure of each campaign is simple: get to the end of the level, completing any challenges along the way. Yet each run genuinely is different, thanks to the game's Director, who will tweak the difficulty to fit your team's performance. The best part? Left 4 Dead 2 also includes all of the original game's campaigns, giving you twice as much undead-blasting fun.
8. The Walking Dead
Developer: Telltale Games
Platforms: PC, PS5, PS4, PS3, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, Xbox 360, Switch, Android, iOS
Perhaps one of the best adventure games ever made, Telltale's series revolutionised the gaming world when it was first released back in 2012, and it's well worth playing today. Originally released in an episodic format, this game tells the heart-wrenching story of Lee and the young Clementine. Playing through their trials and tribulations as they overcome the horrors that the Wildfire virus has visited upon the world is still affecting to this day.
While earlier adventure games often had clunky puzzles and a somewhat stilted player experience, The Walking Dead streamlined all of this down to an absolute science. Whether you're a fan of the series or not, I urge you to give this game a try. Its cel-shaded looks mean it's aged better than many games of its era, while its story is genuinely one for the ages.
7. Dead Island 2
Developer: Dambuster Studios
Platforms: PC, Mac, PS5, PS4, Xbox Series X, Xbox One
To my mind, Dead Island and Dying Light will always be sister series. Techland, the team behind the Dying Light games, also made the original Dead Island, and their gameplay is rooted in very similar experiences. In Dead Island 2, you explore an infected Los Angeles (not an island), from beaches to what seems to be a TikToker's hype house. Its extremely gory combat is almost disturbingly fun, and while the story is a throwaway, you'll be having too much fun carving through the zombie hordes to care.
A silly, lightweight but ultimately fun experience, Dead Island 2 is well worth checking out for fans of zombie fiction. Our Dead Island 2 review also points out all of its "gloriously gory zombie violence", which is sometimes all you need when it comes to having a good time.
6. Resident Evil 2 Remake
Developer: Capcom
Platforms: PC, Mac, Xbox Series X, Xbox One, PS4, PS5, Switch, iOS
This remake of the classic '90s horror proved that the core concepts of old games have still got a certain kind of magic. Playing as both Leon S. Kennedy and Claire Redfield, you will explore the infested Raccoon City police station, solving puzzles, evading (or fighting) the undead, and trying to escape the loving embrace of Mr X, the game's ever-present, invincible killing machine.
The tight, confined spaces of the police station, combined with the game's haunting atmosphere, make this one an absolute horror classic, and one that I'll be revisiting for years to come. The Resident Evil 2 Remake fully deserves its high spot on any list of the best Resident Evil games, and it's 4-star rating in our Resident Evil 2 Remake review as well.
5. Red Dead Redemption: Undead Nightmare
Developer: Rockstar San Diego
Platforms: Xbox 360, Xbox One, Xbox Series X, PS3, PS4, PS5, PC, Switch
Another old but gold game, Undead Nightmare, is sometimes unfairly looked on as being a bit of a joke. It's Red Dead Redemption with zombies, a generally serious game paired with fantasy, how could it be anything but? Dig below the surface, however, and you'll find a genuinely good story that is camp, silly, and just good fun. Liberating towns from zombies, then having to keep them safe over time, doesn't stop being fun for the game's entire run time.
While the main game may be more serious than fun, Undead Nightmare leans more into the theatrical absurdity of its story, making for a fantastic change of pace. It's bundled with the re-release of Red Dead Redemption, so now's a great time to give it a go.
4. Dead Space Remake
Developer: Motive
Platforms: PC, PS5, Xbox Series X
It may not technically be a zombie game, but let's be straight with one another: the necromorphs are zombies by a different flavour. Dead Space takes the Jason X route of horror by blasting itself up into space to confront twisted, once-human horrors. It's terrifying while still empowering, as the protagonist, Isaac Clarke, has a bevvy of brutal engineering tools to call upon in his travels.
While it leans quite heavily on jump scares, Dead Space is atmospheric, too, and the Ishimura isn't somewhere that you'll forget in a hurry. It also helps that this is one of the best horror games that you can play, period. And if you need more convincing, just read our near-perfect Dead Space review. Put on your stomping boots and play this game.
3. The Last of Us Part I
Developer: Naughty Dog
Platforms: PS5, PC
If you've yet to experience the incredible story of The Last of Us in one form or another, you've got a treat in store. This absolute blast of an action-adventure game follows the now-classic story of Joel and Ellie as they journey across an apocalyptic US. The zombies, in this case, are the result of a fungus, which results in a whole other level of body horror, too.
Part I is the best way to play it nowadays. Not only is it nicer looking, but gameplay has been improved, and it bundles in the original game's DLC, too. A fantastic, haunting, deeply emotional voyage in a doomed world awaits. For more information, you can head on over to our The Last of Us Part 1 review as well.
2. Killing Floor 2
Developer: Tripwire Interactive
Platforms: PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, Xbox Series X
While Killing Floor 3 is a good choice too, Killing Floor 2 is where the series peaked. Putting you and a group of friends in a France that's been overrun with, once again, let's be real, zombies, it's an incredibly tense experience. Killing Floor 2 is not as expansive or all-encompassing as Dying Light: The Beast, but it doesn't need to be.
It gives you a huge selection of guns and wave after wave of enemies and invites you to go wild. If you've yet to try the Killing Floor series, this is where you need to start. The recently released Killing Floor 3 can wait.
1. Project Zomboid
Developer: The Indie Stone
Platforms: PC, Mac, Linux
There's really nothing quite like Project Zomboid. It's been in development since approximately the late Middle Ages (and early access since 2013), and it's the absolute peak zombie RPG. Placing you in Knox County, Kentucky, with a dizzying number of undead, it's a game where you will die repeatedly. As the game tells you, "this is how you died".
Yet along the way, you can still have a brilliant time. You'll need to do everything that you can to survive, and then you'll die. Bleak, fun, and the very best zombie apocalypse simulator that money can buy, you need to check out this fantastic indie title as soon as you wrap up Dying Light: The Beast.
For more recommendations, check out our lists of the best zombies games ever made, and games like Dying Light, if you want a full series perspective.
