Review | Sker Ritual - Reviving The Zombie Survival Genre
Being a fan of Call of Duty Zombies is difficult. You’re the middle child. Warzone is the shiny new moneymaker, while multiplayer is the respected veteran, the backbone of the franchise’s success. The multidimensional PvE chaos of Zombies is a niche mode that is a lower priority for publisher Activision despite its cult following. Fans of the hordemode are crying out for more Zombies as the Call of Duty machine continues to steamroll towards live service bedlam, whatever the cost.
As a result of the growing frustrations, a small team of developers at Wales Interactive, comprised of only five members, decided to take matters into their own hands by creating their own game inspired by the hordemode – Sker Ritual. A spin-off of Wales Interactive’s 2020 release, survival horror Maid of Sker, Sker Ritual aims to help players relive the nostalgia of classic Call of Duty Zombies-like hordemode gameplay while also building on the legend of the titular Sker Island, which is inspired by a Welsh novel from 1872. The game launched in early access in 2022 and is now celebrating its 1.0 version alongside a release on consoles.
For the uninitiated, a hordemode tasks up to four players to fight off wave after wave of enemies, earning points to open up the map, purchase new weaponry, and boost their firepower through perks and upgrades. Survive at all costs.
At least, that’s how it started. As support for Call of Duty Zombies grew, so did the mode's complexity. Developers' hidden easter eggs quickly became full-blown questlines with cinematics that can be unlocked by completing specific objectives throughout the game.
After playing only a few games of Sker, it was clear that the developers had played their fair share of Call of Duty. All the hallmarks of the mode that you’d expect are there, with some clever twists, like the addition of Miracles, which adds rogue-like gameplay into the fray to enhance replayability further. Every few successful rounds, the player is rewarded with the choice of one of three miracles – a minor upgrade used to buff the player's loadout through the power of various Celtic deities. This neatly ties lore and gameplay together, with the collectable documents further fleshing out the Gods and the myths surrounding them. Miracles are one of the most impressive features of Sker Ritual, surpassing Call of Duty’s attempt at incorporating a similar Hades-eques mechanic in Call of Duty Vanguard Zombies.
Sker Ritual has four maps, each with a main quest incorporating a good balance of straightforward objectives and puzzling steps that make you stop and think for a second. Even when playing with (the optional) objective markers turned on, there were a few moments where I had to put my brain to work. The game also has hardcore easter eggs (Zombies diehards rejoice!) that can be completed after the main quest. These were active in the build I played, and while I found what I thought were a few interesting leads, I didn’t make any real progress in solving them. I’ll likely be waiting on a YouTube guide before tackling them again.
The game has several progression tracks featuring hundreds of customisable items, including masks, voice taunts, and emblems. While several cosmetic DLC packs are available, thankfully, none of the progression tracks are tied to microtransactions, meaning there are substantial rewards for simply playing the game. For the masochists, there’s a special mask for completing every map on Nightmare difficulty.
As expected when comparing an indie game to a behemoth like Call of Duty, Sker Ritual falters in some areas. The gunplay, while competent, isn’t close to Call of Duty’s best-in-class shooting that has been refined over the best part of two decades, and the variety of weapons is relatively limited (though there are still some fun wonder weapons in each map).
When the going gets tough in the higher rounds, it can be quite tricky to tell what enemy is hitting you and for how much damage. Getting downed can also occasionally feel cheap, thanks to a slight delay between being hit and the game registering it. Sker Ritual also shares a few of its inspiration's bad habits, with special enemy spam sometimes getting out of control and failable objectives appearing too frequently.
Every so often, I’d experience performance issues too, but these were limited to later rounds and boss fights, when the number of enemies attacking me really got up there, and only lasted a few seconds. These faults aren’t particularly impactful and are easy to forgive, given the game's scope and small team. Sker Ritual has been updated constantly since its Early Access launch, and with any luck, the team at Wales Interactive will continue to update the game long past launch.
Sker Ritual is a must-buy for Call of Duty Zombies fans, especially those craving more round-based zombie experiences. At a launch price of £19.99, it's hard not to recommend the game to anyone who has ever enjoyed a horde mode before or is just looking for a cheap game for game night with friends. Wales Interactive has delivered its very own interpretation of a cult classic. Between Sker Ritual and Maid of Sker, it is quickly becoming one of the top independent horror developers to watch out for. The future of Call of Duty Zombies may be in limbo, but thanks to a new generation of developers who are directly inspired by the series, this middle child is feeling optimistic.
