What is there to say about zombie games? You know what you’re here for – you either want to destroy waves like in Call of Duty or explore humanity’s darkness through desperation like in Telltale Walking Dead. We got tabletop RPGs that let you do both right here! Or perhaps you would rather craft your own dark setting with unique zombie lore. Several of the games listed here help you design mysteries and create your own zombie types. So pump your shotgun and start reciting from the ancient tome, because here are our top zombie TTRPG recommendations.
All Flesh Must Be Eaten
An older system but a staple of the zombie tabletop game, All Flesh Must Be Eaten’s claim to fame is its different “Deadworlds.” These are essentially setting templates that allow the GM to craft the game to match their favorite zombie movie or show. These come with custom zombie stats that fit the theme, such as standard shambling hordes or more alien mutates. One setting even lets players be the zombies. GMs are also given a creation system to make undead of their own. You don’t see this system played often these days, but you can find games here.
The Walking Dead Roleplaying Game
You know what you’re getting with the Walking Dead RPG: brand recognition. There will be tough moral choices and lots of walkers to kill. The gameplay system is the Year Zero Engine, which is used in many popular TTRPGs such as Alien RPG and Forbidden Lands. The story, of course, has players fighting to establish a safe haven in a world infested by walkers. You must venture out to gather supplies, upkeep your haven, and maintain good relations with everyone so that human conflict doesn’t threaten the safety of everyone.
Cypher System - Stay Alive!
Recommending Cypher System for any game genre might seem like a cop out, but it is built to do anything. There are several already-built settings for Cypher, and a post-apocalypse is one of them. It’s called Stay Alive! The setting comes with everything you need to build a horror campaign, with zombies and Lovecraftian horror being called out as highlights on the store page. Cypher System is designed to be easy to pick up and easy to prep.
The End Of The World: Zombie Apocalypse
This system comes courtesy of Fantasy Flight and Edge Studio. In fact, it uses some of the less complex aspects of Fantasy Flight’s Star Wars RPG. This makes it a very straightforward game and a good gateway into TTRPGs in general. One of the unique aspects of Zombie Apocalypse is that it includes setting info for the moment the zombies arrive and the eventual post-apocalypse, so you can follow your characters throughout the journey in a similar manner to The Last of Us’ beginning.
Hunter: The Reckoning
Perhaps you don’t want to play a zombie game set in a post-apocalypse where mere survival is just as threatening as the undead. Hunter: The Reckoning delivers more on the monster hunter fantasy. Your characters are normal people in modern society who discover monsters exist. Vampires and werewolves often take center stage due to having their own games in a shared universe with Hunter, but a zombie campaign is very feasible. In this case, your story would likely be more about how far you’ll go to end the coming zombie apocalypse rather than living in one.
Call Of Cthulhu
While you’ll primarily face eldritch monsters in a typical Call of Cthulhu game, there’s enough rules to create a zombie-focused investigation. In fact, the CoC Starter Set has two adventures featuring resurrected corpses. Edge of Darkness features the threat of a creature that makes zombies, and Dead Man Stomp has a very fun 1920s era mystery involving the dead returning to life. This is a great option for those who want to delve into the mysteries of undeath rather than mow through hordes.
Savage Worlds - Zombacalypse
Savage Worlds is much like Cypher System in that it’s a quick-to-learn with simple mechanics that facilitate multiple genres. Naturally, post-apocalypse is one of the popular genres Savage Worlds supports. The system gets a lot of support from third-party creators and fanmade freebies to expand upon its offerings. Zombacalypse is one of the higher-rated creations. It adds scenarios in different time periods and a collection of new zombie statistics to deepen the danger.
Zombie World
The Zombie World TTRPG from Magpie Games (think Avatar, Masks, and Root) is also a card game. Players draw the cards to keep the scenario moving by introducing new complications like advantages, population, and location. The visual element makes it great for introducing new players. There are also expansions for introducing new locations. The one drawback is that the card game aspect makes it much more suited to in-person play, which isn’t always possible.
Sergio Sólorzano is the best Dungeon Master in the USA (according to a Wizards of the Coast competition, anyway). He loves minis and terrain but also goes all-in on improv!
