Zombies, Run! returns from the dead with new content
▼ Summary
– A new eight-part story for the fitness app *Zombies, Run!* becomes available for download starting tomorrow.
– The app originally succeeded in 2012 by combining a couch-to-5K plan with immersive zombie apocalypse audio storytelling.
– Six to Start, the company behind the game, was sold to OliveX, a company dealing in crypto and NFT products.
– After the acquisition, the app suffered the same decline as many indie apps, with all but two staffers laid off over a year ago.
Starting tomorrow, Zombies, Run! fans can download a brand-new eight-part story for the beloved fitness app. For a community that feared the game was permanently dead, this feels like a genuine miracle.
Back in 2012, Zombies, Run! became one of the first fitness apps to cultivate a truly devoted following. Its secret was a brilliant fusion: a couch-to-5K training plan wrapped in an immersive audio drama set during a zombie apocalypse. Players weren’t just jogging; they were Runner 5, on a mission to save humanity. The company behind it, Six to Start, was eventually acquired by OliveX, a firm that pivoted toward questionable crypto and NFT ventures. Predictably, the app fell into the all-too-familiar trap of indie games post-acquisition. Just over a year ago, all but two Six to Start employees had been laid off, leaving the app in a near-comatose state.
But now, against all odds, new content is arriving. The new story arc promises to bring back the gripping narrative that made the game a phenomenon. For longtime players, this return is a testament to the power of community and the enduring appeal of a good story, even when the world around it collapses.
(Source: The Verge)