Oz Apocalypse
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Oz Apocalypse

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Punters can play Lazarus on weekends and Battle Apocalypse during the week. What are the main differences between the two? “If you have ever played Call of Duty in zombie mode, Resident Evil, Dead Island or The Last of Us, then Lazarus, the zombie apocalypse survival game will appeal to you,” explains Allan. “It’s a game of survival against the ‘undead’ who have overrun our underground medical facility. The aim is to work with your team on your fully scored mission to reach the other side with the most kills and the least zombie bites. If you are a Call of Duty fan, or you have a military or services background, or if you’re a gamer who just loves to shoot stuff, then Battle Apocalypse is your absolute destination that puts you into the game with our military simulation tactical laser weaponry on a fully scored network to survive. We open up the labyrinths of the arena within the facility, there are re-spawn points designated within the game, and two teams fight head to head until the end.”

Which game does Allan prefer? “The zombie apocalypse survival game appeals to me more because no game ever feels the same, no matter how many times you go through the gameplay. The experience morphs depending on which zombies you encounter at which points in the game;  I love being taken out of my comfort zone and letting the mind plays tricks on me where I believe I really am in the apocalypse fighting off those brain hungry zombies. I had my first taste of the combat field in Wisconsin, USA, with the battle version, and it was hard not to reach out to the inner Lara Croft and stir up that superhero.”

Chess is a woman of many parts who clearly loves her work. “I love the passion of our players, and it is their enthusiasm that makes the hard times worth it. Last weekend we had a huge group of beta tester players join us to ‘pressure test’ some of the components of the game, and they walked away with the biggest smiles on their faces after shooting with the laser simulation weapons on our firing range and playing in parts of the arena with ‘live test zombies’. As corny as this might sound, the absolute reward is in the excitement and smiles we see.” 

Does Allan expect to see this sort of event taking off in Australia? “Absolutely. A lot of people have ‘shot zombies’ before, so it’s not a new concept, but it’s never been done specifically like this in Australia. It takes a huge team of professionals to get this show on the road; the careful composite of the people and the technology (hardware and software) and haunted house techniques utilised in the design and build of the set makes this an experience worth having.  We’ve built the whole set literally from the first stick of wood right up to our apocalypse arena, so we don’t intend to let this lie still for long.”

Are there as many women into fighting zombies here in Australia as there are in the USA? “The States have huge numbers of women attending Apocalypse events – around the 43 to 48% mark depending which state you’re in.  It’s a bit of a different shooting culture there, but the entertainment side offers the outlet with a fantasy factor without the actual dangers, just like any video game. A lot of the women are girlfriends on date nights with their guys, but there are groups of girls who get out there in their posse and harness their adrenaline for a mega fight-off. I’m a mother of twin little bubs, so I find it’s a great way to fling off some of the frustration of the weekly routine then return home to domestic bliss with a ‘balanced’ inner headspace. Beats the heck out of any pilates class.”


What does Allan reckon accounts for the zombie phenomenon? “All you have to do is look at the state of the world right now and it seems to makes perfect sense. Every year we go through the doomsday reckonings and face another ‘end of the world’ day somewhere. If it’s not a Nostradamus quatrain then its Harold Camping with his evangelistic predictions (though I think his predictions were actually for his own transition the next phase of life). The other side of the zombie phenomenon that fascinates me is its prevalence in nature itself. There are so many insects, for example, that are perfect hosts to other creatures, and therefore become zombified in the metamorphosis of the life (and death) cycle for a parasitic animal who takes over their body and then their brains. I’m fascinated when it’s featured in mags like National Geographic because of the perfect ‘host’ phenomenon which alters the actual behaviour and thought patterns of the brain of the poor innocent host creature. The zombie phenomenon is around us much more than we realise, and it may in fact be living inside that pretty little ladybird that just landed on the flower outside your window.”

Does Allan enjoy zombie movies and TV shows? “My first fascination came after watching 28 Days Later.  I’m not sure if I should admit that I actually felt all warm and gushy about the movie Warm Bodies? But my favourite zombie movie laugh has got to be Zombieland. It’s hard not to love Woody Harrelson, and Bill Murray’s guest appearance kills me every time.”

BY LIZA DEZFOULI