Zombie Panic in Wonderland DX (Nintendo 3DS) Review

Arcade blasting never gets old - just ask anyone who loves the House of the Dead or Virtua Cop games. Jump in, shoot like crazy until eventually succumbing to the onslaught of weapon-fire and then start all over again, this time trying as hard as possible to edge past the previous high score. Zombie Panic in Wonderland on WiiWare was just like that, and the good news is that this 'DX' edition on 3DS is no different. The only difference is that hand cramp is a little more likely from desperately trying to grip the small stylus, pressing it against the screen to direct the fire at all manner of weird and wonderful zombie creatures.

Inspired in part by Treasure's Sin & Punishment games, what seems like a very light-hearted action title on the outside is in fact a downright gruesome, tough-as-nails, über-hardcore shooter. In fact, those that adored EnjoyUp!'s Little Red Riding Hood's Zombie BBQ on the Nintendo DS will also love this, and probably find a few links between the two. First of all, there is the childhood story link, as in the game's names bearing a passing resemblance to Alice in Wonderland and Little Red Riding Hood. Then there is the more predominant fact that the two look almost exactly the same. This is nothing to complain about, however, and is not meant in a negative way since Zombie BBQ is a truly fantastic little DS shooter that was criminally overlooked upon both its retail release and belated eShop launch. In fact, some of the people from Akaoni (the CEO and Lead Programmer), worked with the team that was involved in parts of Little Red Riding Hood's Zombie BBQ...so it is not too shocking to see similarities.

The game itself is centred round a young hero that finds himself involved in world cleansing, slaughtering as many zombies as possible and protecting his friends from the 'Amorous Zombies' spell they cast by using his machine gun to mow them down (amongst other powerful weapons). On top of this carnage, he must also solve the mystery of the 'Scented Dwarves,' little creatures that linger around stages from time-to-time. Players control the lead character using the Circle Pad, whilst aiming weapon-fire using the stylus, which successfully mimics the WiiWare combo of Nunchuk and Wii Remote as closely as possible.

The 3D stages are littered with enemies to shoot down and players are actively encouraged to blast through absolutely everything in sight in order to rack up the highest score possible. Whilst not as attractive as its WiiWare counterpart, it still looks extremely lovely on the smaller screen of the 3DS and the added effect of 3D depth really adds to the eye candy.

With the Circle Pad movement, simple shoulder button presses to jump/dodge and the tap-and-shoot mechanic, despite the game's general super high difficulty (hair-pullingly tough at times), the actual basic controls can be picked up by almost anyone with the greatest of ease.

With a wide range of levels included and numerous end-of-stage boss characters to tackle before seeing the end credits roll, there is much to see and do along the way. Each stage changes significantly as well, with more objects available to be destroyed (with added bonuses awarded for demolishing whole buildings), although if there is time to take concentration away from the on-coming monsters it will be very surprising...

The levels are spread across varying locations, with a devastating bosses waiting at the end, and to add incentive to proceedings, the development team puts strong emphasis on the story development, which is handled in a Manga-esque manner, thanks to the help of a professional Japanese mangaka. The imagery and design throughout are directly based on Japanese Manga and anime in general, whilst the soundtrack is focused on as well, taking on a similar feel to the visuals but with an added element of humour (for example, there is a level that features an oriental feel, with a Japanese opera singer providing vocals and choirs in the background!).

Shooting antics, gorgeous visuals, impressive audio quality, and a dastardly difficulty level makes Zombie Panic in Wonderland DX a stunning package, but certainly no easy ride.