Highlights

  • Rockstar Games almost released a zombie game called Z, set in a depressing post-apocalyptic world but canceled due to its dark themes.
  • Z was ahead of its time with a unique setting on a foggy Scottish island, showcasing Rockstar's innovative approach to game development.
  • Despite Z's cancelation, the team went on to create San Andreas, highlighting Rockstar's ability to adapt and create hit games.

Rockstar Games has quickly become one of the biggest developers in modern gaming. With major franchises under its belt, like Red Dead Redemption and Grand Theft Auto, Rockstar Games has cemented itself as a developer that brings huge worlds to life. Action adventure games with an open world setting are Rockstar's bread and butter. The majority of the studio's biggest franchises have been inspired by the real world, but the developer once dipped its toes into zombie-filled waters.

At one point, Rockstar was working on a zombie game, only known as Z. This now-canceled game was revealed by Rockstar's former technical director, Obbe Vermeij, which could have changed the fabric of the studio's long list of games. Rockstar games are known for long development cycles, but Z unfortunately was stopped in the middle of production. Many great game concepts have failed to make it through production, like the scrapped Damian Wayne Batman game and Star Wars 1313, and Z is yet another intriguing concept that failed to become a finished product.

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Rockstar's Scrapped Zombie Game Promised a Bleak Adventure

Stepping Away From the GTA Franchise

After Vice City, the team at Rockstar North wanted to step away from the Grand Theft Auto franchise and venture into new territory. The team still wanted to make an open-world action-adventure game, but with a completely different theme. This is how the idea for Z came to life. The plan was for the game to use Vice City's code but be its own unique world that stood on its own. This development began sometime in the early 2000s, but the game didn't seem to make it that far into production, and that's for a fascinating reason.

Z Was Reportedly Too Depressing

The main reason Z was canceled was that many of the developers working on the project found its themes and story far too depressing. Z was supposed to take place in a desolate, post-apocalyptic world that tasked players with surviving by collecting fuel and items while evading the constant presence of zombies. Now, a bleak zombie game seems like the norm, thanks to titles like The Last of Us and Days Gone, but Z's production began at a time when there weren't many games embracing the hopelessness of a zombie apocalypse.

It's interesting to see that Z was already well ahead of its time, which makes it more upsetting that the game never got to become a finished product. The game's cancelation isn't all bad, though. After the idea for Z was scrapped, the same team went on to develop San Andreas, which is still a favorite for many who have followed the GTA franchise.

Rockstar canceled another game in the early 2000s called Agent , which would have been the studio's take on a James Bond type of character.

A Setting With Great Potential

Z's initial concept being ahead of its time is compelling enough, but the setting was something that truly would have made it stick out in the horror genre. The game was going to take place on a foggy and dreary Scottish island. When it comes to the zombie genre, the majority of titles under this umbrella have taken place in America, so it would have been fascinating to see how surviving a zombie outbreak could have looked in such a beautiful, but gloomy setting. A zombie game set in the Scottish countryside would have really set a dark mood, so it's understandable as to why the developers found the game's idea so bleak.

Now that dark stories with real-world themes have become so synonymous with the zombie genre, it's interesting to know that Rockstar wanted to turn away from that early on. Of course, Rockstar revisited the zombie genre with Red Dead Redemption's Undead Nightmare DLC, but the overall tone of this expansion is definitely not the bleak, hopeless vibe that Z seemed to harness. It makes one wonder just how different Rockstar would look now if the studio stuck with Z's production.