Arizona Sunshine Remake Review: It Gets Fatter

Arizona Sunshine Remake Review

Vertigo Games' Arizona Sunshine Remake brings the 2016 zombie shooter classic to the same standards as its younger brother, Arizona Sunshine 2. Arizona Sunshine 2 released in December 2023 and is a notable improvement over the original game. You can read COG Connected's review of Arizona Sunshine 2, here.

The 2016 version of the game was playable on all VR platforms and was a huge hit, especially on PSVR 1. Although the game was visually glitchy and entertaining, it persevered because it offered a decent campaign and, well, zombies. It also included a protagonist who told the backstory and his mental state through running commentary during the game. A welcome addition because you don't know anyone else alive.

Arizona Sunshine was also fun as an action-focused first-person zombie shooter with a twisted sense of humor. The protagonist's habit of calling all zombies Fred, whether male or female, endeared them to the player. Fred's nickname gave the zombies personality. A clever twist on a genre where the enemies are just a faceless mob, distinguished only by their level of decay.

The setting of Arizona Sunshine was also unique, as it was in the desert. Obviously, for technical reasons, it made the environments easier to render. They have a familiar Roadrunner cartoon look. A flat, compact terrain with little to no vegetation beyond the occasional cactus and all surrounded by mountains is much easier to render in VR. Still, Arizona Sunshine had a few cards up its sleeve. There are other areas to explore, the most notable being the mine section.

The remake gets bloodier

The mine is the most prominent section of the game. In the mine, things are much more confined and the addition of the element of darkness creates a greater sense of fear and tension. Add in gun magazines that only hold six bullets, and the fight to protect yourself from a swarm of zombies makes for some sweaty gameplay moments.

When Arizona Sunshine 2 launched in late 2023, fans of the first game were salivating to see how the new game would benefit from advances in virtual reality gaming technology, both software and hardware. On the visual side, there is a lot to be happy about. The environments are more detailed, but more importantly, so are the zombies. The zombies in the first game are quite low resolution, as is the wound damage.

In Arizona Sunshine 2, the zombie models are much more detailed and so are the damage models. You can inflict wounds of varying degrees of blood. In a pinch, when you are attacked by a crowd, shooting from the extremities is an excellent strategy when you don't have time to line up headshots. Arizona Sunshine 2 also introduced a co-op mode which is always a welcome addition for this type of game. Shooting zombies with a friend is a lot of fun.

The big advantage of the Arizona Sunshine 2 is the addition of a manual reload option. Players can opt for easy reloading with the push of a button. As tense as fighting a mob of zombies may be, pressing a button is a cheat. When you have to perform the physical movements of reloading the gun, man, the tension level goes through the roof. If you panic and lose your recharge, well, see you, darling!

Game engine crashes persist

However, not everything was rosy with Arizona Sunshine 2. There are still visual glitches with gameplay crashing and players getting stuck on environmental objects. Another disappointment is the use of reprojection. Arizona Sunshine 2 runs at 60 FPS which reprojects at 120 FPS. This produces a blurry effect when you hand over the game. The lack of a native 90 FPS mode is disappointing. However, overall, players consider the Arizona Sunshine 2 experience positive.

The change in Arizona Sunshine Remake's graphics is surprising if you played the original. Everything is much clearer and more detailed, especially the aforementioned zombie models. Once you get into the game, it's easy to see, however, that this remake doesn't go much beyond a graphical facelift.

Game engine limitations are still at play here. The popup object is still present. So is the lack of control. Reaching a specific object in a group remains an unpredictable task. So is opening and closing drawers and doors. I thought the lack of precision with these interactions was due to the light-based tracking of the Playstation Move controllers, so it's disappointing that some of the clumsiness remains in the remake.

When you boot up Arizona Sunshine Remake, the first thing that stands out is that the game no longer opens in a mobile home. In the original game, the trailer acted as the hub of the game where you could load saves, change options, or choose which campaign to load. Arizona Sunshine Remake traditionally opens with a menu from which you start the game or change options.

Arizona Sunshine remake includes all content

The developers originally released the game with the campaign only. The developers released the two DLCs, The Damned and Dead Man, later. A Horde mode was also added later. Arizona Sunshine Remake includes all of this. Additionally, a cooperative player mode is also available. If you own the original version of the game, a $10 upgrade will get you the remake.

Is the remake worth the $40 price tag if you don't have the original? That's up to you. If you're looking for a zombie shooter that focuses on fast-paced action with minimal crafting, then this is your game. If you want something more deliberate with a deep crafting system, The Walking Dead – Saints & Sinners games are a better choice.

Arizona Sunshine Remake is a very welcome remaster in a world full of game remasters. Virtual reality technology has improved tremendously in the years since the original game was released. This is especially true on the PlayStation side, where the PSVR 2's inside-out tracking has replaced the PSVR 1's light-based tracking.

If you have fond memories of Arizona Sunshine, purchasing this remake for $10 is a no-brainer. Wait! Did I say brains? Mmmmmm.

***The publisher provided a PSVR 2 key***