Earlier this month, I covered the news that PlayStation was promoting a ‘Resident Evil rip-off‘ named Ebola Village. As I write this, I’m hot off a lengthy session in the game, which dropped on PlayStation 5 and Xbox today, January 23. I’m firm on my position that it’s still a Resident Evil clone, but I’ve now also learned that it’s pretty damn deceptive.
I went into Ebola Village with the lowest expectations possible. Everything from the artwork and trailers to the fact that it was mirroring Resident Evil at every turn had me doubting the game’s validity.
But you know what? For the fact that this game was pieced together by a single developer, I have to admit that it’s not that bad.
Is Ebola Village Worth $10?
You can get Ebola Village for around nine dollars and change on Steam (at the time of publishing), and for that, you get a few hours of zombie-slaying, puzzle-solving entertainment that’s rough around the edges, but has a retro charm to it that you just can’t deny.
I was handed a review copy for the PlayStation 5 release, which was great, as the game had piqued my attention earlier this month, and I saw the potential playthrough as little more than meme content.
Boy, was I wrong. Mostly.
Ebola Village opens in a destitute apartment block, putting players in control of Maria, a hardy and capable female lead. She’s quickly invalidated somewhat by an outfit change that sees her equip the tightest, smallest booty shorts known to man, but that’s a discussion for another day.
There’s an Ebola-fuelled zombie outbreak sweeping the nation, and Maria must head to save her mother and ex-husband, who reside in a small village, hence the game’s title. When she gets there, she finds that a) she has run out of fuel, b) the village has been overrun by bloodthirsty zombies, and c) there are stacks of puzzles to solve and items to find before she can complete her mission.
The Resident Evil comparisons start early. The menus, inventory systems, healing items, combat mechanics, and even some of the game’s fonts are unmistakably Resi-coded. There’s even the classic ‘creaking-door-shrouded-in-darkness’ transition mechanic as you move between locations.
In retrospect, it’s more an homage than a straight copy and paste, and that’s kind of fine.
I will say that Ebola Village looks quite nice on-screen. It runs okay, even for a rough port, and the zombie models aren’t so bad. It’s pretty hilarious how you can chip away at them with guns and knives, reducing them to piles of bones and gore, and they can often ragdoll in spectacular fashion.
It’s janky, but it’s a funny janky.
The worst aspect of this being a port is that the combat is obviously made for a keyboard and mouse. Aiming down the sights of a weapon results in bizarre acceleration that makes it almost impossible to accurately take down a group of enemies, but it’s manageable.
Ultimately, you dive into Ebola Village and are presented with three to five hours of content. There’s a trophy for completing the game in under three hours, and the nature of those trophies means you need to finish the game at least four times to unlock them all. There are minor collectibles to find, basic puzzles to keep your mind working, and a bit of inventory management needed, just like in Resident Evil.
It’s extremely basic, but considering it was made by the single-dev studio of ‘Indie Games Studio’ (really), and it kept me engaged for four hours without too many qualms, I’d absolutely say it’s worth ten bucks.
I mean, the game is entirely in Russian, and the English translations leave a lot to be desired, but it’s entertaining, and that’s what matters. I don’t care that the voice acting is fractured and cheap, nor do I care that the story is predictable. I’m more amazed that one dev has managed to produce this, and that it’s the fourth game in a six-year-old series.
Ebola Village Review Verdict
The heart of Ebola Village is a weak-beating, low-budget thing, but it’s a heart nonetheless. I love that a solo developer has spent so many years relentlessly creating these throwbacks to the 1990s horror game scene, and what you get for $10 isn’t the worst thing in the world. I’ve paid more for less, let’s put it that way. It won’t win any awards, but for a few hours of pretty mindless entertainment, it’s just what I wanted.
Ebola Village is available on PC, Xbox Series XS, and PlayStation 5. To talk about this game and others, join the Insider Gaming Discord server.
Ebola Village
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Ebola Village
Grant's adoration for gaming started on the Amstrad CPC in 1996. Now, he's a multi-platform expert gamer with a deep love for the industry, a passion for esports, and more…
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