Zombie Teenz Evolution: The Board Game Your Kids Will Obsess Over
We play a lot of board games in our family. There are a lot of trusty old favorites on our shelves, but we still go through long spells where we aren’t sure what game to play. And then there are a lot of new games that we only play once and then forget about for a long time. But every once in a while there comes a game that captures the imagination of our kids so powerfully that we play it over and over again - and the life is completely breathed back into family game night.
That’s how it was with Zombie Kidz Evolution when it came out last year. Our son was obsessed with the system of progression. He adored keeping track of his accomplishments with stickers and opening the many secret envelopes over time to unveil new ways to play.
And then, when the sequel was announced, we eagerly anticipated its release for many months. And now the obsession has started all over again with Zombie Teenz Evolution. It’s simply an obvious choice for our Game of the Month, and a natural recommendation for this year’s gift guide.
Disclosure: Some of the links in this article are affiliate links. These links will take you to view the item on Amazon. Scorpion Masque and IELLO USA provided us with an advanced copy of Zombie Teenz Evolution. All thoughts and opinions are our own.
If you played Zombie Kidz, Zombie Teenz is going to feel familiar - but at the same time bigger and better than ever. There are more achievements to collect, many more envelopes with secrets to discover, and gameplay that I personally find more satisfying, better tuned, and more cooperative than ever before.
The zombie attack has expanded from the confines of the school, and now you’ll be running all over town instead. And while the goal of the original was to lock all of the gates leading to the school, this time you’ll be working together to gather valuable supplies scattered around the city. And it’s the way that you have to pass the supplies to each other that adds an extra layer of strategy and cooperation that sets it apart from the original.
The way you can lose a game has changed as well. This time around, the zombie horde is trying to overrun 4 buildings - the arcade, the police station, the restaurant, and the hospital. Your job is to collect all of the necessary supplies and return them to the school before all 4 buildings are overrun - all the while trying your best to control the zombie outbreak at the same time.
It’s important to note that that this game is not scary at all by any means - unless your kids are simply scared by the word zombie or the idea of zombies. The design of the game is very much constructed to be kid-friendly. Even their weapons are designed to be cute and innocent - like the plunger gun used by my son’s favorite character.
In fact, the art and the design is by far one of the best things about the game. The characters are just fantastic - especially this time around. My son’s favorite character is a boy in a wheel chair with a fancy computer setup and the plunger gun. The girl I always play with is holding a pool cue and has a ferret riding on her head. I really can’t say enough nice things about the style and aesthetic of this game. And this time it all feels even more fleshed out which is great.
If you never played the original, it’s important to know that this game is a legacy game - meaning it evolves the more you play. Every so often, after playing the game a few times, accomplishing some optional achievements, and placing some stickers on your tracker, you get to open an envelope. And I can’t properly articulate just how much kids absolutely adore these envelopes.
You might get entirely new characters to use or discover new rules and challenges to face - and this time around you’ll also discover bits and pieces of the story as you play. You get to build your own little comic inside the rule book. These comic strips were a genius addition to breathe the story of the game to life, and my son is a huge fan of this update.
And if you were a fan of the original, you’ll also undoubtedly be interested to know that you can combine Zombie Kidz and Zombie Teenz together for new ways to play. And the plan is to release new challenges to tackle over time through an online campaign. The first new challenge is currently labeled January 2021, and I for one am ecstatic to see that Scorpion Masqué plans on making this great game even more replayable than the first. And that’s really saying something.
The official age recommendation is 8+, but our son was very easily able to play the original when he was 6. The fact that it’s cooperative means you can generally error on the younger side, because you’re encouraged to work together and openly communicate your ideas and plans. And although you can play with up to 4 players, it plays very well with just 2 players as well - which is great for our father/son marathon sessions.
I can’t stress enough that this is a game that kids simply obsess over. I’ve heard nothing but universal praise from other parents as well, who all have kids who have fallen head over heels in love with the progression system. Frankly it’s a delight to see my son so excited about anything, and it doesn’t hurt one bit that I love to play this one just as much.
You can find Zombie Teenz Evolution in many local game stores today, or you can preorder it from Amazon for the official release date of December 17th.
Did your kids fall in love with Zombie Kidz Evolution too? Have you tried Zombie Teenz yet? Let us know in the comments!
