There often comes a point in No More Room in Hell 2 where you realize you’re screwed, and it usually happens about five minutes before the inevitable happens. Surrounded by shuffling corpses, barricades screaming under their literal dead weight, you’ll pop zombie heads with grim precision as cold reality sets in. Maybe it’s the click of your revolver as its ammo runs out that triggers the revelation, or another survivor. we barely realize we are being overwhelmed by the horde. Maybe it’s just the sight of another twenty or so undead stumbling past their silhouette. Either way, the feeling is the same: you are going to die, and no amount of fighting can stop it.

In moments like these, No More Room In Hell 2 captures the creeping terror of George Romero’s films better than any zombie game I’ve played in ages. Torn Banner’s pitch-black survival shooter sits at the extreme end of the zombie spectrum compared to Left4Dead’s frenzied undead gauntlets, a chilling experience that seems almost mundane until it falls on you. It’s a promising start to Early Access, although I worry that Torn Banner’s plans for the future are already in danger of spoiling the experience.

No More Room In Hell 2’s main gimmick has nothing to do with its zombies or the way they move. It’s an eight-player cooperative shooter set on a single, openly explorable map, where you scour buildings and cars for weapons and equipment before attacking a central objective (in the case of alpha, a powerhouse on the verge of failure). The problem is that all eight players start in different locations, appearing on the fringes of the map with nothing but a piece of pipe, a revolver, and a barrel of ammo to defend themselves. The idea is that as you sneak closer to the center of the map, you’ll encounter other players dynamically and randomly, leading to daring rescues, organic teamwork, and perhaps even fleeting friendships. .

It’s a wonderful idea. In practice, the predefined spawn points and heavily formatted natural map design rob the concept of some of its power. Between the spawn points at the edge of the map and the main objective at its center, there are secondary objectives that house equipment stashes, which the map directs two of the eight players to. As a result, you’ll quickly know when and where you’re likely to encounter other players, making the experience more predictable than it might initially seem.

Nevertheless, it still somehow works. While figuring out how to open the equipment cache in an abandoned bar, I was accosted by a trio of zombies and my revolver ran out of ammo on the second headshot. Just as I was about to get my face bitten off, the zombie lurched to the left as if it had been hit sideways by a car, its brain blown out by a rifle bullet from a newly arrived player.

The structure also makes playing with random internet users, if not more engaging, at least more appropriate. Your awkward conversations and insecurities about each other’s abilities blend perfectly into the theme. I played a match with a Chinese player who shot every zombie he saw, oblivious to the fact that his trigger-happy approach always attracted more zombies to us. While annoying, it was also the exact mistake a newcomer to a zombie apocalypse might make. In another game, I spent some time following another more experienced player who kept calling me “buddy.” At one point, I fell through the floor of a building into its burning basement. “Oh buddy! Don’t worry, I’ll get you out,” he said reassuringly. But it soon became clear that I was going to die before he reached me. As my character slowly succumbed to the flames, his desperate cries of “Oh buddy, my friend, maaaaaaate” echoed in my headphones.

It’s an interesting convergence of theme and community. But it’s important to point out that No More Room in Hell 2 doesn’t rely exclusively on this to make the game interesting. The game has its own dark atmosphere. Quite literally, this is one of the darkest games I’ve played since Amnesia: The Dark Descentthe only illumination often coming from the headlights and brake lights of abandoned vehicles, often washing scenes in crimson silhouette. This constantly inspires you to light your torch, even though this will inevitably attract more undead. I also appreciate its use of simulated radio transmissions to communicate objectives and subtly inform you of the players’ locations.

Combat is also distinctive to the experience. The guns are a mostly semi-automatic mix of rifles, shotguns, and handguns, all of which are slow to aim and even slower to reload. Combined with the general scarcity of ammo, each missed shot will have you cursing under your breath, while multiple misses in a row are likely to send you into panic. When the shots connect, the effect is undeniably satisfying. Headshots result in an explosion of cranial matter, while shots to the limbs with heavier weapons often sever them completely, making zombies slower or less dangerous.

However, it is generally best to keep firearms as a last resort. If you can, it’s always best to fight in close combat with knives, tire irons, and baseball bats. Although they increase the risk of taking damage, they are also quieter and do not consume ammo. Melee attacks have a similar sense of weight and impact to guns: hitting a Zed in the noggin and sending him reeling to the side. That said, I think Dead Island 2 has the edge in first-person zombie drumming, with more refined and creative bludgeoning tools.

The fundamentals established by Torn Banner make it an unusual cooperative experience, similar to a less predatory game. Hunting: confrontation. Indeed, Torn Banner clearly took inspiration from Crytek’s austere mining shooter, although I’m not sure every idea it borrows is a wise adoption. The most obvious of these is that character death is permanent, and you start a new avatar after each disappearance. While this is consistent with the harsh world of No More Room in Hell 2, success in Torn Banner’s game depends much more on other players than in Hunt, where your party is limited to pairs or trios. As such, it’s possible to lose a character simply because you played to the wrong audience. Again, thematically appropriate, but in a decidedly less fun way.

However, my least favorite aspect of No More Room in Hell 2 is how it breaks away from its classic zombie setup. The way it depicts the gradual buildup of the undead, how they become an unstoppable force without you reaching the tipping point, is fantastic. But then the crowd of traditional walkers parts to let a more modern undead pass, who can easily avoid your slow aim of knocking you to the ground. Not only does this completely disrupt the intended pace of the game, but it also ruins the atmosphere. It’s like a toddler who should be sleeping in his own bed and keeps crashing during a dinner party at home. The first time it happens it’s cute, but after the fifth time they burst into the roofless room to spill the dips, the novelty has well and truly worn off.

Among the various commitments of Torn Banner on his roadmap to early access (which includes welcome additions such as a new map and more weapons), it lists “more zombie types.” Frankly, I think adding a bunch of original specialist zombies is more likely to ruin the game than improve it. The thing about zombies is that they’re not special. In fact, they seem mundane to the point where you realize that three of them have become three hundred. No More Room in Hell 2 captures this feeling beautifully, and it should focus on refining it rather than adding an acid-spitting zombie or something.

I’m slightly baffled by the drubbing No More Room in Hell 2 received on Steam. Sure, there are rough edges, from fun bugs like zombie hair disappearing when you hit it with a pipe, to more serious issues including occasional crashes. But in terms of structure and tone, it’s comfortably the most engaging zombie game I’ve played since the original Dying Light. It takes the concept seriously, patiently builds its tension, and weaves some interesting social dynamics into the mix. I can understand why some people might take one look at Torn Banner’s work and consider it another zombie game. But on the contrary, No More Room in Hell 2 is a great example of why you should never take the undead for granted.

A copy of No More Room in Hell 2 has been provided for early access review by Torn Banner Studios.