Top 10 Post Apocalyptic games!

So the world hasn't ended yet, and we managed to reach 2013. But, what would happen if, maybe a horrific virus struck, or a sudden nuclear war wipes cities off the face of the earth!! Will a spark of humanity survive and manage to repopulate the earth, or will all of humanity be set on a slow descent to extinction. Right now, we really have no way of knowing, so video games are our only true way of visualising the apocalypse, and well... nothing could be more fun!!! Please note that this article focuses on the apocalyptic game setting and world, and does not reflect on the overall quality of the games.

10

Enslaved: Odyssey to the West

Enslaved's apocalypse is a man made one (as with some others on the list). Set a few hundreds in the future, man made vicious war machines to do their fighting for them, and ultimately (a little bit like terminator actually...) the human race are now being captured and killed by these robots who are following their original orders, to kill humans. set in a destroyed world, it's definitely a very post-apocalyptic adventure, one of the more 'upbeat' ones on this list.

9

Wasteland

Wasteland is the granddaddy of post-apocalyptic games, and really set the standards for it's genre and for RPG's all-together. This paved the way for the spectacular original Fallout, with the latter being called the spiritual successor to Wasteland. This apocalypse was caused by a horrific nuclear war, which left humanity crippled, as this game focuses on the last smudges of life, and shows the desperation for survival, which is especially evident in the characters that you encounter throughout the 30+ hour long storyline. Even though It looks very dated now, thanks to the miracle of crowd funding, there is a sequel on the way!

8

I am Alive

I am Alive is an Xbox Live Arcade and PSN game set in a world ravaged by a earth shattering natural disaster only referred to as 'The Event'. This game focuses on how, in a post-apocalyptic world, desperation and brutality are all people have left. The combat was excellent, and often really let you feel the desperation and viciousness, as you will do anything to survive. What really impressed me, was the panic and terrified way your attackers suddenly acted as soon as you point a gun, it feels very distressing, showing these people not to just be mindless thugs, but real 'people' as well, who are just trying to survive, as they cower and run away from you, which I was genuinely impressed by. The whole game is shrouded in a drab dreary grey, which sets the undertone for the whole game.

7

Left 4 Dead Series

Yes a zombie outbreak does count as an apocalypse, and which zombie game better to pick than the Left 4 Dead series. The settings are empty, the zombies are scary, and the gameplay is frantic and intense. The game world is a portrait of chaos and violence, which is presented in the gameplay as well, with the ultra-gory gun-play, which immerses the player into this wonderfully crafted nightmare. And as this game shows, the apocalypse is always better with a friend. 

6

Rage

In Rage's apocalypse, a meteor, which is real by the way, 99942 Apophis is its name and it nearly cause our own little apocalypse but, thankfully, it missed. Apparently, an asteroid this size should impact earth every 80,000 years, so I think I will sleep a little better tonight.  In Rage's wasteland  racing is a very large factor which was very reminiscent of the movie classic Mad Max, with the blood fuelled raiders as well. The graphics help give this game a really 'scrappy' look, especially when traipsing through the 'dead city', which once was a sprawling metropolis, but is reduced to a derelict ruin. 

5

The Metro Series

Firstly,  the atmosphere alone in the Metro series completely envelops you, this helps you to really immerse yourself into this bleak and dangerous world, where the population of Moscow now reside in the abandoned, and haunted Metro tunnels. These games both have excellent plots, and at times leave you terrified and alone, often traipsing down long, overgrown tunnels. After playing for some time even the tiniest squeak from a dilapidated metal rail made be jump in pure terror. It was a chilling, and not to mention thrilling experience.

4

The Walking Dead

Lets just be sure here. This is Telltale's version of TWD. Not Actionvision's, which was dreadful. This game is a spectacle to behold in terms of its story telling, which overall helps create immerse the player in one of the most barren and violent game-worlds of all time. This may sound surprising, as it is mostly a simple point and click game. The game shares the famously brilliant comic book universe instead of Rick Grimes' from the television show, but has its own characters. I must warn you though, some of the decisions that you are going to have to make in this game are going to be hard...VERY hard...

3

The Last of Us

This game really is a spectacle of Post-Apocalyptia, realising a beautiful, yet fiendishly deadly world, which is starting to get over the airborne fungal infection which turns humans into vicious, sprinting zombie-esque monsters. This world sure is nasty, as you come across bandits, cannibals and truly disturbing madmen.  The story is fantastic, and the gameplay is emersive, which helps you really delve into the game a lot deeper than most others in the genre.

 2The S.T.A.L.K.E.R series

Now, let me start with...these games are terrifying. For a brief period, I couldn't play the game when it was night time because, yes I am a massive wuss, but fore-mostly because here in S.T.A.L.K.E.R. blackness is utter blackness. Night time is pitch black, except for the solitary saving ray from your flash light, and its terrifying, not knowing where that last growl came from, or what mutated monstrosity caused the eerie splash in the puddle behind you. A certain moment in the third game, Call of Pripyat chilled my spine, as I walked through an abandoned underground station, and heard a shrill baby cry. At this point I was ready to turn off my laptop and just run, but I soldiered on, 'till I came to a perfectly innocent door. I could hear the crying through it and as soon as I moved closer, it flew open revealing the most damn ugly thing I have ever seen in my gaming years....really creepy. And anyone who has played the first game will definitely remember a certain encounter, with a certain 'operator' in an underground passage, which truly consolidated the terrifying and bleak atmosphere presented throughout the series.

1

Fallout Series

Now, these games DEFINE post-apocalyptic. They have the most perfect settings, and have populated the wastelands with the most interesting, funny, wacky, and often terrifying, places, people, and quests.The whole world is made with an amazing attention to detail, and at times you really do feel like a lone wanderer transversing the wastes, looking for some scraps of humanity, which are very rare to come by. This also reflects upon Fallout 3 in general. This game, after long periods of time, will slowly whittle down your will to live. I mean it. The complete grey filter over everything really does take a toll on your mood, personally I get VERY grouchy after extended play. But, on the flip-side this enhances the desperate and desolate feel of the game, I mean, there isn't much to be happy about, the nuclear war destroyed, well, nearly everything.