Zombie Research Society
We recently received a copy of the brand new zombie card game 30 Seconds to Live from Kitten Kaiju Games. Despite being relative amateurs at tabletop games, this competitive two-player experience was easy to learn and a lot of fun to play! Once we understood the rules, the training wheels came off, and every session turned into a fast-paced race for survival.
The goal is simple; make your way down a zombie-infested alley to freedom. However, you’ll have to fend off the undead while managing your health, weapons, and tactics. Of course the thirty-second timer is constantly ticking, forcing you to be resourceful, innovative, and make snap decisions along the way. It’s a stressful situation, but certainly keeps the action moving!
Creator and developer William Angus has spent a number of years designing, building, and play testing 30 Seconds to Live. And while many modern zombie games can feel like sitting through an entire season of your favorite television series, Angus describes 30 Seconds to Live as the last ten minutes of the season finale; fast-paced, intense, and full of drama.
30 Seconds to Live is more like the last ten minutes of a season finale of your favorite tv show. It’s one survivor in a single desperate encounter, fighting alone to survive. The Survivor must fight past the zombies to get to the street to a waiting truck to win the game. Their opponent controls the zombies and they win if they can kill the Survivor. Both players have 30 seconds to take their turn insuring drama and intensity every step of the game.
If you were fighting for your life, you aren’t going to have time to debate what you’re doing or pause the game to answer a text. You react OR YOU DIE. There’s no time to do that when you play this game either, so your focus is on the game and nothing else. The zombies must maneuver their forces and close in for the kill before the Survivor finds the weapons they need to kill them and escape. No thick rule books, no minis or sprawling maps. Just a tight, tense fight between one human and hordes of zombies!
Whether you’re controlling the zombies or playing as a survivor, veteran gamers should have no problem jumping head first into the action. However, the game comes with at least three different rule books. And we had to seriously strip down some of the mechanics on our first few attempts. Obviously the thirty-second timer was the first thing to go, followed by the knockdown tokens, and an occasional action point. But we eventually found our footing.
As we’ve already mentioned, William Angus has spent years streamlining 30 Seconds to Live. So you may actually find a number of early versions and playthroughs available online that aren’t representative of the the final product. Thankfully, he’s extremely accessible and very helpful. If you’re having any problems, just reach out to Kitten Kaiju Games and you’ll get a reply in no time. He might even offer to hop online and play a session with you personally!
Despite being a group of card game neophytes, we managed to learn the rules in a single setting, and had a great time running the gauntlet. Adding the thirty-second timer back into the mix heightened the intensity, drove the pace, and had us eagerly awaiting our next turn to fight off the undead. We suppose it’s called 30 Seconds to Live for a reason!
If you’d like to learn more just swing by the official website or Facebook page for additional information including videos, artwork, and game play! You can also click here to help fund the project with the option to purchase an exclusive Warehouse Expansion. Good luck and have fun, but hurry up and place your order now because you only have 30 Seconds to Live!