Okay, let’s talk serious PC gaming favorites, the retro and contemporary classics that have made our beloved platform into what it is today. Runescape, lovingly relaunched as Old School Runescape, definitely belongs in the annals of PC history. Likewise, Left 4 Dead and, more recently, DayZ – if zombies and survival are two of gaming’s most popular tropes, DayZ is the game that combines them most effectively. Now let’s take all three of these games and mix them together. From the makers of pioneering ‘90s MMORPG Tibia, this is like a new Runescape game with zombies and guns instead of goblins and spells.
This is Persist Online, an upcoming MMORPG from CipSoft. Initially a hobby and passion project from two of CipSoft’s long-serving developers, who produced concepts and early builds of their own personal dream game. Now, Persist Online has expanded, and combines classic massively-multiplayer-style gameplay with a more rugged, survivalist aesthetic and tone.
Arriving into Persist Online’s sweeping open world, you can explore the entire map at your leisure. There’s a dynamic day-and-night cycle that will have effects on gameplay, and every single building can be entered and plundered. The best way to survive, naturally, is to pal up with some friends and work as a team. The world is – as the name would suggest – persistent, meaning there are no instances, and you and your compadres are free to do whatever you want, whenever you want.
Helldivers 2 has changed online gaming, however. Just like Arrowhead’s superlative FPS game, in Persist Online, friendly fire is always enabled, and as much as the hordes of undead, you need to keep your peepers peeled for human enemies who might want to rob you of your hard-gotten loot.
As much as I like to think of myself as a team player, I can already feel my inner quisling stirring awake. Squad up with someone, use their help to clear a big building, then shoot them in the back and take the spoils for yourself. In true zombie apocalypse fashion, no-one is truly trustworthy.
With an expansive arsenal of both realistic and wacky weapons, and a robust crafting system so you can build and customize death dealers of your own, Persist Online is a mix of WoW, Runescape, DayZ, and Left 4 Dead. We’re still waiting on the release date, but if you want to stick it on your Steam wishlist, you can do so right here.
Otherwise, try some of the other best survival games, or maybe the best zombie games available right now on PC.
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