Quick Review: Dead Trigger on Apple iPad

By Gadjo Cardenas Sevilla

Dead Trigger by Madfinger Games, which is available on iOS and Android, is a first-person action shooter involving hordes of zombies that need to be put down. I tested the iPad version on the new Retina-display iPad and was very impressed with the detail, clarity and smoothness of the gameplay.

The objective is to complete various missions by quickly mowing down the zombies that lurk in a post apocalyptic city. For this this you will need skill and patience. Dead Trigger is one of those games that makes it easy for new players to familiarize themselves with the controls and the objectives of the game. 

I quickly learned that it isn't just about killing the zombies, it is also a lot about skill. You can fire off rounds and waste bullets or you can go for lethal headshots that ensure a one shot kill and earn you points.

Points and money earned are important as these qualify you for much needed weapons upgrades and medicine kits as well. You can opt to spend real money, which I did via the in-app purchase, to get a better gun but you still have to earn experience the hard way to be able to carry multiple weapons and this will take time. Lots of it.

Visually, Dead Trigger is one of the more impressive Retina-enabled iPad games we've played. The on screen button layout isn't bad although we kept toggling the the reload button without really wanting to. As action gets more intense you will really give your thumbs a workout.

Gameplay does become more intense and difficult and strategy is required. All in all, this is a fun an cathartic game that will please most first person shooter fans. There are ragdoll physics, realistic blood spatter and the lighting effects are just gorgeous in a creepy yet cinematic way.

The zombies themselves are a bit too cartoony and seem to lack variation in the look or attributes, but that may change as I progress further in the game. There also doesn't seem to be much one can do without guns or ammo (no knife or baseball bat as a basic backup?)

I'm not kidding when I say that visually, this is the closest to a console shooter on an iPad that I have experienced.  Also, any game that has securing crates of rare whisky as an objective can't be that bad. For $0.99 Dead Trigger is a no-brainer.

Rating: 3.5 out of 5