Infected | 2005

Infected 

 Infected puts players in the role of a police officer in New York City, three weeks before Christmas, while the entire city is being rapidly infected by a virus that turns people into bloodthirsty zombies. The player's blood contains the cure, which less than 1% of the population possesses. The objective is to destroy the infected while trying to reach someone who can create a cure using the blood.

The gameplay revolves around the player's two weapons: a primary weapon and a viral gun. Players must damage enemies until their energy level drops to zero, allowing the player to use the viral gun to kill them. Missions include clearing areas and rescuing civilians. There is a gauge called the "Infected" bar, which has three sections: one for the zombie level, one for the area threat, and one for the civilian level. If the civilian level drops too low, the zombie threat increases, causing a rush of enemies to the player's vicinity. These enemies are much harder to dispatch. In the game, players can use different avatars, including members of the band Slipknot, as well as Rayne from BloodRayne and Mark Hunter from Chimaira.

When starting a mission, players begin with the lowest available weapon. As more kills are performed, a gauge on the right side of the display fills up. Once it reaches certain levels, the next weapon is offered. However, players need to maintain their kill rate, as the gauge will slowly decrease if no kills are made, forcing the player to use lower-tier weapons again. Weapons can be upgraded up to level 3. At the same time, sub-weapons become available for purchase, which then appear as random drops during missions, rather than being equipped from the start.

The game received "average" reviews according to the Metacritic score of 74/100. 1Up.com gave it an A-, Edge rated it 5/10, and Game Informer gave it 8.25/10. GameSpot gave it 7.2/10, IGN 7.6/10, and GameZone 8.2/10. In his December 11, 2004, review, Jim Schaefer from the Detroit Free Press initially gave the game three out of four stars, stating, "In these days of bird flu and fears of a real-world pandemic, a game called Infected makes me a little uneasy." However, a week later, he raised the rating to four stars, saying that the innovative online ability to spread an infection to other players made the game deserving of the top award, even if it wasn't perfect in other areas.