5. Earth has been reduced to a crumbling, hellish
wasteland overrun by zombies. In this new world,
four survivors - Samuel J. Stuhlinger, Abigail "Misty"
Briarton, Marlton Johnson, and Russman - have
banded together to survive in Washington with the
help of a bus driven by a robotic driver. The four are
contacted by Maxis, now an digitally-rendered A.I.,
who is seeking humanity's aid against Richtofen.
Maxis implores them to power up a tower in a
cornfield using an electricity-based zombie.
However, Richtofen contacts Samuel, who is able to
hear voices from the Aether, and commands him to
convince his friends to power up the tower in his
favor. The player may choose to follow either Maxis
or Richtofen's orders. It is revealed in audio
transmissions that survivors from all over the world
have been contacted by both Maxis and Richtofen,
though there is widespread conflict between the
followers of both Germans; particularly in a
settlement known as Jackass Flats, which was
initially a safe haven, only to fall to the zombies
when the Maxis-Richtofen
6. Regardless of who they choose to aid,
the four are teleported to a crumbling
skyline in Shanghai, China. Here,
Richtofen commands Samuel to "mend
the rift" and accept his fate as a
follower of Richtofen, threatening to
expose his past as a member of a
cannibalistic cult known as The Flesh,
who eat zombie flesh to survive.
Richtofen continuously revives the
group whenever they fall to the
zombies until they follow his orders.
Maxis, who is no longer hampered by
electric devices, contacts the group
again for aid. The four learn through
televisions scattered across the area of
the Flesh, as well as the beginnings of
a new airborne plague of Element 115,
the element that reanimates dead cells
and causes zombies.
7. Following their battles in Shanghai, Russman leads the
group across the continents to a large hole in the ground
known as "the Rift" in Africa, hoping to find answers about
the unseen forces commanding them. Maxis and Richtofen
contact them once again, more desperate than ever to
achieve their goals. Both of them ask the group to power up
the third and final tower in their favor. Maxis promises to heal
the Earth, and Richtofen promises to save them from Maxis.
The four gain a new ally in the form of a mute, unnamed
giant in a western town built underground, and are hampered
by a ghostly woman in a massive mansion. Depending on
who the player has aided in the story, there are two possible
endings. If the player has aided Richtofen, he will gain
unlimited power over the Aether and the Earth, kill Maxis and
condemn Samantha Maxis' soul to eternal damnation. He will
then enter the body of Samuel as a reward for his aid, but
finds he cannot exit it, and is at the mercy of the zombies as
he was before. If the player has aided Maxis, he uses the
power from the towers to enter the Aether and assume
ultimate control, trapping Richtofen in a zombie's body.
However, the Earth begins shaking, and Maxis explains to
the four that he is beginning the process of the destruction of
the Earth and humanity to reach Agartha, where he believes
Samantha is.
8. Unbeknownst to all, Samantha is indeed in Agartha
(which her father ultimately fails to enter) but
reaches out to her father in 1918 France during
World War I. Maxis is a leader of Group 935, who
operate to secure Germany's victory in the war. To
this end, they have created towering mechanical
robots, suits of armor, and staffs that control the
powers of the elements. Group 935 also stumbles
upon an ancient tomb believed to be of Vrill origin,
but this unleashes the first known zombie outbreak
in history. Aiming to stop Germany, Japan, Russia
and the United States of America send Takeo,
Nikolai and Dempsey to capture Richtofen, the
mastermind behind the advanced technology. By this
time, Group 935's operatives have been wiped out,
and Maxis himself was lobotomized when he began
to turn into a zombie. The group put aside their
nationalities to fight the undead, and are contacted
by Samantha, begging to be freed from Agartha.
Richtofen puts Maxis' brain in a flying drone, and he
joins the fight against the zombies and to free
Samantha. The group is eventually successful, and
while Maxis meets his daughter, they enter Agartha
to be rewarded.
9. A cutscene is played of
Samantha with a boy named
Eddie, playing with toys of the
characters who have appeared
in the Zombies game mode
throughout all three games. Air
raid sirens are heard and the two
children retreat to the basement
with Maxis, with Samantha
noting her father has a plan to
make their games real. It is
ambiguous as to whether the
events of the game mode have
actually occurred or has all along
been simply in Samantha's
imagination.