ABSTRACT
Zombie video games are more than just a global commodity of distraction and amusement; they communicate political statements through the medium of popular culture, contributing to a global discourse. However, zombies in literature, film, television and video games do not always represent the same cultural or political statement; they are not one signifier relating to one concrete meaning (the signified) in the logic of semiotics. Instead, they function as a ‘language’, allowing a multitude of different statements to be made. To analyse zombie video games as a translational moment of a political discourse first requires a thorough understanding of how to speak Zombie Video Game. To work out its grammar and syntax we have—in a way—to consciously learn a new language. We have to reconstruct its functions based on our knowledge of other similar languages. Through a comparison with other related ‘languages’ such as post-apocalyptic fiction, Christian iconography and action video games, this essay argues that zombie games, their recreational function aside, are particularly adept at translating collective anxieties into popular culture.
