Zombie Hamsters has launched on Steam, putting you and up to three friends in charge of a laboratory escape that is unlikely to pass any sort of health and safety inspection. Rogue Biscuit’s co-op action game arrived on 12 November, with BLACKBALANCE GAMES publishing the Windows PC release.
The setup gives you one clear objective: get out of a large, procedurally generated research laboratory. How you manage that is rather more flexible, with scientists, security guards and mutant experiments standing between your tiny undead escape committee and freedom. Solo play is supported too, if you would rather take personal responsibility for the disaster.
Infection is a central part of the plan. Instead of simply avoiding the laboratory’s inhabitants, you can spread the outbreak through them and turn an escape attempt into a much bigger problem for the facility. The game also includes stealth, ventilation routes and exploration, so charging directly at everything is not the only approach available.
Puzzles and platforming challenges are part of the route out, while traps and hostile creatures provide reasons to think before pressing an unfamiliar button. The developer also makes a point of warning players about their teammates, which is probably fair advice in any co-op game where somebody can turn a manageable situation into a mutant-filled catastrophe.
The team has already released Hotfix 1.01 following launch. Its adjustments include reduced fire damage, lower damage from poison and ice laboratory jars and changes to early infection effects. The Greenhouse boss now calls on fewer small plant minions and uses root attacks less often, while a location-generation bug has also been fixed.
Zombie Hamsters currently costs £5.63 on the UK Steam store, a 38% reduction from its regular £9.09 price. The official store page has the details, and the developer’s Steam announcements confirm both the launch and the first hotfix, if you want to see what has changed before organising your escape party.