Infestation: Survivor Stories is an open-world zombie survival game from Hammerpoint Interactive and OP Productions. It came out on Steam in December 2012 under its original name, The War Z, and was renamed in June 2013. The formula is simple and harsh: scavenge for food, water, weapons and ammo, keep your character fed and hydrated, avoid or fight the zombies, and remember that every other survivor you meet can take everything you are carrying.

The official servers shut down on December 15, 2016, and a reboot, Infestation: The New Z, followed from another studio. Fan-run private servers keep the original's formula going today with rules of their own - fitting for a game that already let players rent their own private servers back when it was official.

Scavenge, Survive, Lose It All

Survival comes first. Hunger and thirst drain constantly, so every trip out of safety is partly a supply run. Safe zones give you somewhere to breathe, with a shared Global Inventory for stashing what you have found and a General Store. Beyond them, zombies are only half the threat.

Death is expensive. When your character dies, other players can recover the items you were carrying, and a respawn timer keeps that character out of play for a while - one hour at launch, raised to four hours at one point, then returned to one. Progression is split between survival and reputation: zombie kills earn XP for a skill tree, while killing other players changes your reputation, so the community can see who has been shooting first. The official shop sold cosmetic and convenience items such as ammo.

What to Look For in an Infestation Private Server

PvP and Reputation Rules

This is the main thing that separates one Infestation server from another. Some lean into full PvP, others protect new players or reward cooperation. Check how reputation works, whether killing near safe zones is punished, and whether the rules are actually enforced.

Death Penalty and Respawn

Find out how long the respawn timer is and what you lose on death. A long timer makes every encounter tense; a short one makes the game faster and more forgiving. Neither is wrong, but you should know which one you are signing up for before your first supply run.

Loot Economy and Shop

Loot spawn rates decide how quickly you can rebuild after a death. Very generous loot makes losing gear meaningless; very scarce loot can make starting over feel hopeless. Also read the shop list: if weapons, armor or ammo can be bought for money, the survival economy stops being about survival.

Cheating in a Full-Loot Game

A survival shooter where you can lose everything is a magnet for cheaters. Look for an active anti-cheat, visible bans and admins who respond to reports. One cheater in a populated area can ruin an evening for dozens of players.

Wipes and Population

Ask whether the server wipes characters and stashes, and how often. Then check the population at your hours - an empty map is a quiet game, and an overcrowded safe zone is a different kind of problem. The right size depends on whether you like tense encounters or long solo scavenging trips.

Surviving Your First Day

Read the server's PvP and death rules before you leave the safe zone, carry only what you can afford to lose, and keep a stash in the Global Inventory to rebuild from. Find a group if you can, because survival is easier with someone watching your back. Vote for the server you play on; rankings here start again every month, so the list below follows where players are now.