Zombie Attack! Retrospective Template

Your team just faced a sprint-threatening zombie horde—and somehow made it through alive. Or did everyone survive unscathed? This zombie-themed retrospective helps teams reflect on recent challenges, celebrate victories, and prepare for the next wave of work using a survival horror metaphor that keeps things engaging.

What Is the Zombie Attack Retrospective?

The Zombie Attack retrospective uses a post-apocalyptic survival scenario to help teams process challenging sprints or projects. Instead of traditional retrospective language, teams discuss issues as "zombies" that attacked them, solutions as "barricades" that held them back, team members who stepped up as "survivors" worthy of kudos, and resources as "supply caches" for future use.

This template transforms potentially dry reflection into an immersive storytelling session where the team collaboratively recounts their recent sprint as a survival tale. The metaphor works particularly well after difficult sprints, crisis situations, or when team morale needs a boost through creative engagement.

Benefits & When to Use

Use the Zombie Attack retrospective when you need to:

  • Add energy to retrospective fatigue: Break the monotony when standard retro formats start feeling stale
  • Process difficult sprints: Help teams discuss serious challenges through a lighter, more approachable lens
  • Engage distributed teams: The creative theme helps remote participants feel more connected and invested
  • Build psychological safety: The metaphor provides emotional distance that makes it easier to discuss sensitive topics
  • Encourage storytelling: Turn sprint events into a shared narrative that strengthens team bonds

This template works best after sprints with significant challenges, technical incidents, or periods of high stress. The survival theme validates that the work was genuinely difficult while creating space for both serious reflection and levity.

Understanding the Metaphor Components

Zombies - Bad: Issues, blockers, and problems that "attacked" the team during the sprint. These could be technical debt, scope creep, production incidents, communication breakdowns, or any challenge that threatened progress.

Barricade - Good: The defensive measures, solutions, and practices that protected the team. This includes problem-solving approaches, collaborative efforts, processes that worked well, and quick responses that prevented issues from escalating.

Survivors - Kudos: Team members who demonstrated exceptional effort, leadership, or support. These are your heroes who went above and beyond, helped others through challenges, or showed resilience under pressure.

Supply Cache - Next Time: Tools, resources, knowledge, or practices the team should gather for future sprints. This focuses on preparation and continuous improvement—what equipment do you need in your arsenal?

How to Run a Zombie Attack Retrospective Session

Total Time: 60-75 minutes

1. Set the Scene (5 minutes)

Start by explaining the survival scenario to your team. Frame the previous sprint as a zombie attack that everyone just survived. Use the included Jukebox to play dramatic background music and set an immersive atmosphere.

Share the metaphor components and what each section represents. Emphasize that while the theme is playful, the reflections should be genuine and constructive.

2. Pulse Check (5-10 minutes)

Before diving into reflection, run the included Pulse Check to gauge how team members are feeling. The zombie-themed poll options range from "Lost my appetite for brains" to "Re-invigorated. BRRR-AI-NS!"

This quick temperature check helps you understand team morale and adjust facilitation accordingly. If most zombies are crawling along, you'll know to spend extra time on solutions and positive aspects.

3. Individual Reflection (10-12 minutes)

Give team members time to add sticky notes to each of the four sections:

  • Zombies: What problems attacked us this sprint?
  • Barricade: How did we defend ourselves and solve issues?
  • Survivors: Who deserves recognition?
  • Supply Cache: What tools or resources should we have ready?

Use the built-in timer (set to 5 minutes per section or 10-12 minutes total) to keep reflection focused. Encourage specific examples rather than vague statements.

4. Share and Group (15-20 minutes)

Have team members take turns sharing their notes in each section. As similar themes emerge, group related items together. Start with the Zombies section to acknowledge challenges, then move through Barricade, Survivors, and Supply Cache.

The facilitator should watch for patterns—are the same zombies appearing repeatedly? Are certain barricades mentioned multiple times? These patterns reveal systemic issues and effective practices.

5. Discussion and Voting (15-20 minutes)

Once all items are grouped, have the team vote on which topics deserve deeper discussion. Focus on:

  • The most threatening zombies that need addressing
  • Barricades worth documenting and repeating
  • Supply cache items that would genuinely improve future sprints

Discuss the top 3-4 voted items. For zombie problems, explore root causes and potential solutions. For successful barricades, identify what made them effective and how to replicate them.

6. Action Planning (10-15 minutes)

Move to the Action Tracker section and convert discussion insights into concrete follow-up actions. Each action should have:

  • A clear description of what will be done
  • An owner responsible for completion
  • A target date or sprint for completion

Aim for 2-4 meaningful actions rather than a long list that won't get addressed. Make sure actions directly relate to surviving the next "zombie attack" better.

7. Kudos and Close (3-5 minutes)

End by highlighting the Survivors section. Have team members expand on their kudos, explaining specifically why they're recognizing each person. This positive conclusion ensures the team leaves energized rather than focused solely on problems.

Tips for a Successful Session

Embrace the metaphor but stay genuine: While the zombie theme adds fun, ensure real issues get serious attention. The metaphor should make discussion easier, not trivialize problems.

Balance problem and solution time: Don't spend the entire session on zombies. Dedicate equal or more time to barricades and supply caches—what worked and what's needed moving forward.

Make kudos specific: Generic praise like "great job" doesn't have the same impact as "Sarah jumped in to help debug the production issue at midnight, which prevented customer impact."

Use the music strategically: The dramatic soundtrack works great during reflection and discussion, but consider pausing it during the pulse check and final kudos to let voices be clearly heard.

Keep remote participants engaged: In virtual sessions, use Ludi's collaborative features to ensure everyone contributes. Call on quieter team members by name to share their perspectives during the discussion phase.

Document patterns: If certain types of zombies keep appearing sprint after sprint, this signals a systemic issue that needs attention beyond individual retrospective actions.

Time-box rigorously: Use the included timer widget to prevent over-analysis. Zombies (like retrospectives) can consume all available time if you let them. Keep the session moving to maintain energy.

Use this template