Left To Survive

Game overview

Left To Survive is a free-to-play third-person shooter that incorporates fresh and unique arcade style shooting mechanics with a secondary game mode that involves base management, set in a zombie-filled post-apocalyptic world.

Players will play through a story-driven PvE campaign that contains many different levels where your marksmanship with various weaponry will be put to the test.
Gathering resources and building up your base are the key progression methods, as you need stronger guns and armour to tackle more difficult missions. Other game contents like PvP battles are offered in addition to customization of your character.

While free to play, the cash shop can be obtrusive but overall it's a fun game that offers a nostalgia trip especially due to the arcade feels.

➔ Main points:

• Free to play arcade style shooter
• Base management sim included
• Good graphics and sound design
• Action-packed and fast-paced

Full review

What Is Left To Survive?

Released in December 2020, Left To Survive is a free to play third person shooter that also includes base management gameplay, set in a post-apocalyptic world where zombies rule the earth.
Players take on the role of a seasoned survivor who must navigate the dangers through a PvE campaign, and through profile progression, can unlock more game modes like PvP and seasonal content.

That good ol' arcade feeling

The arcade-style levels are very fun and offer a good nostalgia trip.

Left To Survive drops you straight into the PvE Campaign and through its story levels, players will encounter the main game mode which is the shooter portion.
Every level of the campaign progresses the story, and it's filled with zombies to kill and objectives to fulfil.
Players are given a weapon, melee ability and grenades, and the best part about these levels is that they harken back to old-school arcade-style shooters.
You don't move your character forward with WASD, but the game moves you automatically instead, so your only focus is to score the kills.
Environmental objects like gas containers and fuel tanks can be shot to cause strategic explosions, scoring you more points at each level, in addition to headshots and multi-kills.

Certain missions will also put you at the helm of a helicopter mission gun, and taking out enemy bases with massive firepower can feel oh so satisfying.
While some may not like the arcade style feature, it's a unique way to play a modern game and one that hasn't been done too often in the zombie shooter genre.

Outside of the PvE Campaign levels, Left To Survive contains a secondary game mode which is base management.
It is here that players can construct crucial buildings like farms to grow food that is needed to take on more quests and missions, alongside other resource-producing structures that can upgrade various equipment like guns and armor.
Once a player is at a high enough level, more game modes become available, like the 2v2 player battles that are rather fun due to their fast-paced nature.

How To Progress

Don't skimp on base management.

Like most games of this type, currency and experience points are kings. Players earn XP points to level up their characters in addition to cash and crafting materials to upgrade their arsenal whenever they complete missions.
The XP progressively unlocks more important content like missions, better guns and more base construction slots. The cash and materials are for micro-progression items, like upgrading weapons and armor to meet the campaign's combat power requirement.
This will increase the more you play through the campaign, so it's important to constantly keep your equipment upgraded.
This is where the base management aspect of Left To Survive comes into play, as strategic construction and upgrades of buildings will keep the materials and cash flowing regularly for you to use, although it can take awhile before you reap the benefits.

Aesthetics

For a semi-third-person shooter, the graphics are better than expected, and its overall presentation is well crafted. Guns sound accurate while environmental graphics and character models for both humans and zombies are in-line with today's standards.

Where it comes up disappointingly short is when you get to base management, where you're back to staring at boring 2D graphics and icons.
The menu and interface aren't intuitive either, which makes you just want to stay in the arcade shooter portion longer. Overall it isn't bad, but at times can feel like you're playing two separate games.

Cash Shop

Fortunately for free players, Left To Survive can be played without spending any money, but it's going to be a very annoying experience.
The game will constantly push pop-up windows in your face with paid offers to quicken progression, and there's no way to turn it off until you purchase something.
Even then, it's not likely that these in-game advertisements will go away.

Conclusion

Ultimately, Left To Survive's two very different game modes will either leave players feeling underwhelmed or indifferent, as the mix doesn't always work in the game's favor.

The campaign portions bringing back that good old arcade-style shooting gameplay end way too soon in most cases, while the base building phase is the real time & money sink that's become all too common, despite its best efforts to blend it in with a shooter which is unique.
For a free to play title, zombie fans may want to give it a look, but be wary of the aggressive cash store.