Zombiexperience
Zombiexperience first opened in an outdoor venue Gloucestershire in late 2013, but soon expanded to include an impressive abandoned warehouse in Sheffield. Going forward they already have other exciting venues including a genuine old prison building, but as they relaunch their Sheffield warehouse event – we went along to the launch party to see it for ourselves.
Once in the car park we were confronted by a large SWAT team who were intimidating, aggressive and certainly meant business - they didn't break character at any point and made a strong first impression, large dogs, big guns and lots of shouting ... this was to become a theme for the evening ahead!
We made our way into the building and before long were kitted out with eye protection, weapons and ammunitions, ready for our missions ahead. We were put into groups of 8 and given a short briefing covering safety as well as a few guidelines as to what to expect once inside.
Before long we made our way into the dilapidated tool factory which spreads over several floors and into multiple buildings connected by a bridge. The setting is completely authentic and lends itself well to the game. There are plenty of places to hide - the sheer size of the property is daunting and the building is a maze of different tunnels and rooms (filled with zombies!) Despite playing for 3 hours, at no point did it feel like we were going over old ground, as we searched for items required in our mission.
At the start of the game, the zombies were spread out well around the building and this meant that we had a little time to get used to both the weapons and the pace of the game which worked well. Later on, the zombies became more clustered giving us a greater challenge as they worked in groups. The sheer amount of actors employed by Zombieperience is as impressive as it is terrifying and the enthusiasm by the majority of actors should be commended. Some serious thought has obviously gone into how the zombies should act and are more focused and faster the closer they get to you. They will react to noise too - it sounds like such an obvious trait but so often this is over looked and it seemed to work well here.
Ammunition during the game was very short and it took us half of the game to realise that if we had revisited the safe zone when we first got low, we could load up with more. This just needs mentioning in the briefing at the start of the mission not only to aid those new to the game but also for the safety of the actors. On various occasions we spotted people trying to recycle the plastic ball bearings to reuse in their weapons despite being told not to at the start of the evening - it's worth noting that the organisers were aware and did deal with the situation but with a little more emphasis at the start this could have been avoided.
Halfway through the game the SWAT team entered the building without any real explanation, sometimes they would be firing at the zombies and on a couple of occasions we ended up being shot at by them! We liked the idea that we may have been being hunted by something other than the zombies, as it added a bit of variety to the game but this could really have done with some clarification. Another slight niggle was that during the game a few of the zombies wouldn't die despite an accurate "heart-shot" - this could simply be down to being new actors to the event but did cause a little annoyance as ammo was so limited.
Towards the end, we found it really, really difficult to find some of the items required in our mission. Seasoned airsoft players might be used to this style of play but we felt that for newcomers to the game, a staff member assigned as a group leader would really have worked well to add structure, not only guiding the team when they were really struggling (or making things harder if tasks were getting completed too quickly) but making sure that the safety guidelines were being adhered to on a constant basis as the building is very much left 'as found' and hazards are everywhere. For the feel of the game this was perfect, however some people, it seemed, had left their logic at home during our session, and more focused supervision could have prevented this.
The fast paced nature of the game literally means it is every person for themselves and even though the group were trying to stick together, our efforts were futile. The undead hordes did a great job of separating us and before you'd blinked, two of your team were downstairs being attacked and at times when you had no rounds left in your gun you would have to hide behind your team and run as fast as you could to escape. There is a lot of running involved but in short bursts making it far more manageable than other events for most people. One of the highlights of the evening was being caught by one of the zombies while the team tried to rescue us by dragging us out of the door from their clutches. The actor was relentless and would not let go no matter what, until we had been given antidote.
By the end, all of us were shattered. The team/swat team/zombie hordes were happy to pose for photographs with us and it was great to see how truly enthusiastic everyone was at making this an unforgettable experience . At £70 for a three hour session, Zombiexperience is great value and it's easy to see why other players were returning time and time again. In fact, the venue are now offering season tickets for regular visitors!.
Considering we were the first group through on the first day of the relaunch, the evening ran really smoothly. Zombiexperience is a quality event, so if you are looking to shoot zombies in a genuinely rundown warehouse, with loads of surprises – we’d recommend you book now!
Once in the car park we were confronted by a large SWAT team who were intimidating, aggressive and certainly meant business - they didn't break character at any point and made a strong first impression, large dogs, big guns and lots of shouting ... this was to become a theme for the evening ahead!
We made our way into the building and before long were kitted out with eye protection, weapons and ammunitions, ready for our missions ahead. We were put into groups of 8 and given a short briefing covering safety as well as a few guidelines as to what to expect once inside.
Before long we made our way into the dilapidated tool factory which spreads over several floors and into multiple buildings connected by a bridge. The setting is completely authentic and lends itself well to the game. There are plenty of places to hide - the sheer size of the property is daunting and the building is a maze of different tunnels and rooms (filled with zombies!) Despite playing for 3 hours, at no point did it feel like we were going over old ground, as we searched for items required in our mission.
At the start of the game, the zombies were spread out well around the building and this meant that we had a little time to get used to both the weapons and the pace of the game which worked well. Later on, the zombies became more clustered giving us a greater challenge as they worked in groups. The sheer amount of actors employed by Zombieperience is as impressive as it is terrifying and the enthusiasm by the majority of actors should be commended. Some serious thought has obviously gone into how the zombies should act and are more focused and faster the closer they get to you. They will react to noise too - it sounds like such an obvious trait but so often this is over looked and it seemed to work well here.
Ammunition during the game was very short and it took us half of the game to realise that if we had revisited the safe zone when we first got low, we could load up with more. This just needs mentioning in the briefing at the start of the mission not only to aid those new to the game but also for the safety of the actors. On various occasions we spotted people trying to recycle the plastic ball bearings to reuse in their weapons despite being told not to at the start of the evening - it's worth noting that the organisers were aware and did deal with the situation but with a little more emphasis at the start this could have been avoided.
Halfway through the game the SWAT team entered the building without any real explanation, sometimes they would be firing at the zombies and on a couple of occasions we ended up being shot at by them! We liked the idea that we may have been being hunted by something other than the zombies, as it added a bit of variety to the game but this could really have done with some clarification. Another slight niggle was that during the game a few of the zombies wouldn't die despite an accurate "heart-shot" - this could simply be down to being new actors to the event but did cause a little annoyance as ammo was so limited.
Towards the end, we found it really, really difficult to find some of the items required in our mission. Seasoned airsoft players might be used to this style of play but we felt that for newcomers to the game, a staff member assigned as a group leader would really have worked well to add structure, not only guiding the team when they were really struggling (or making things harder if tasks were getting completed too quickly) but making sure that the safety guidelines were being adhered to on a constant basis as the building is very much left 'as found' and hazards are everywhere. For the feel of the game this was perfect, however some people, it seemed, had left their logic at home during our session, and more focused supervision could have prevented this.
The fast paced nature of the game literally means it is every person for themselves and even though the group were trying to stick together, our efforts were futile. The undead hordes did a great job of separating us and before you'd blinked, two of your team were downstairs being attacked and at times when you had no rounds left in your gun you would have to hide behind your team and run as fast as you could to escape. There is a lot of running involved but in short bursts making it far more manageable than other events for most people. One of the highlights of the evening was being caught by one of the zombies while the team tried to rescue us by dragging us out of the door from their clutches. The actor was relentless and would not let go no matter what, until we had been given antidote.
By the end, all of us were shattered. The team/swat team/zombie hordes were happy to pose for photographs with us and it was great to see how truly enthusiastic everyone was at making this an unforgettable experience . At £70 for a three hour session, Zombiexperience is great value and it's easy to see why other players were returning time and time again. In fact, the venue are now offering season tickets for regular visitors!.
Considering we were the first group through on the first day of the relaunch, the evening ran really smoothly. Zombiexperience is a quality event, so if you are looking to shoot zombies in a genuinely rundown warehouse, with loads of surprises – we’d recommend you book now!
Pictures used with permission of Brian Lancaster Photography
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