The original Zombie Panic in Wonderland was, despite its faults, one of my favorite WiiWare games to play. You needed to be sharp, relentless, and ready to go all out in the challenges that lay ahead. Not much has changed in that regard with the DX version, making it a tricky game to recommend.

In Zombie Panic in Wonderland DX, you control a group of anime-styled fairytale characters in their quest to liberate the world. The world’s peaceful kingdom is overrun with all sorts of zombies and freakishly looking bosses who will stop at nothing to destroy you. The story is told through sharp imagery, though it is a bit static and not much has been done to make it interactive. The dialogue boxes did get a chuckle out of me once in a while, so it is certainly not all doom and gloom.

Where Zombie Panic DX delivers, though, is in its variety of stages and obstacles the player must deal with. The game is a shooter that puts you in one specific spot as all sorts of creatures slowly crawl your way. By using either the touch or button control scheme, which both work well, you will have to deal with the horde until you reach 100%. Along the way, you can fully gun down the environments if you wish, granting you extra ammo for your four weapons, There are also interactive objects like lantern poles and darumas, which let you destroy creeps in creative and cool ways.

It’s easy enough to understand at the start, but stages will quickly grow complex and difficult. While these are fair and punish you accordingly, the lives and continues could have been handled a whole lot better. You have limited resources during story mode and if you run out of lives a second time, it is all over for you. The worst part is that you have to start over from the beginning, which will happen to you at some point guaranteed. This added frustration is a lot to swallow and does not make for the most entertaining ride. You can freely play the stages without problems in the arcade mode, but that does require you to unlock them first.

Visually, Zombie Panic in Wonderland DX looks absolutely fantastic. It sports beautiful visuals in its transition to the handheld. While the tone is somewhat grim with all of the creatures running about, the environments are creative and look sharp, even with the 3D enabled. The music is not too amazing, however, but it does the job well enough and ties everything together for a fine package.

Zombie Panic in Wonderland DX is a good game. While there are glaring faults with its difficulty, the game itself is super solid and well put together. It has crisp visuals, two functional control schemes, and plenty of variety in the things you interact with. This title won't be everyone's cup of tea, but I can't deny that I had fun while I overcame its many challenges.