Exo Zombies is a zombies experience that heavily depends on movement. The movement can be feel similar to Black Ops 3 with sliding, as well as Black Ops 2 with strafe jumps. This is overshadowed by the more advanced Exo Suit that evolves the idea of strafes. This understanding can change your perspective on how to approach strategies and zombies. The experience is fast already when entering rounds 30 and above. Wonder weapons are not strong in higher rounds, heavily depending on improving your movement and constantly watching for changes in your strategy. A trap strategy sounds simple on any game, but movement can be a huge part in surviving Exo Zombies. 

Outbreak is the simplest map to begin understanding this mindset. With only four possible zombie types at once, this map is an ideal experience to become proficient in the mode.

Normal Zombies

Normal Zombies do not have exo suit capabilities. These zombies appear in the first three rounds exclusively, make up a majority of rounds until roughly round 20. Without exo movement, once you have an exo suit too, these zombies can struggle to keep up with your movement. When zombies start speeding more and more, their aggression becomes more noticable, as normal zombies can progress to super sprinter movement. While any ledge or mantle can slow them drastically, normal zombies should avoided at all costs. Much like Advanced Warfare's predecessors, zombies will stop your sprinting when moving. Normal zombies will slow you down in a similar manner. Where this becomes detrimental is the exo zombies in the back of a horde will catapult to reach you faster, including in front of you. An exo zombie landing in front of you, while you're getting hit and slowed to a walk, can lead to a quick trap and down.

Exo Zombies

Exo Zombies are zombies that use exo movement. Since they are AI, these zombies are more predictable than at face value. They are still very fast in high rounds, managing to keep similar pace to the player running. Exo Zombies are predictable in the sense of when they can see a way to attack you. This is obvious as zombies are trying to find you, and also, they are looking for an opening to perform ranged attacks. These ranged attacks can be close to you trying to hit you physically. They can perform a long range jump to attack as well. 

Charger Zombies behave like higher round zombies, but have no other benefits.

Electromagnetic Zombies (EMZ)

Electromagnetic Zombies are the most revered in Exo Zombies. The most powerful zombie in the game can shut down your Exo Suit in several multi-functional ways. When your suit is shut down, you experience 5 seconds of non-exo movement. They use Exo movement, so they have a strong range in attacking you. Using your Exo Suit around them will trigger an EMP as well. This can have decent range if you're close, including seconds after you moved. Your thrusters can lag considerably, and these zombies will always be checking for that trigger. Generally, once the suit has stopped using its thrusters, then you are safe again near EMZs. Being near and EMZ is still scary, but you will have to treat them as always nearby. If you know what's in your current horde, keep account of any EMZs and avoiding in even getting close. EMZs will make you understand how to best manipulate zombie pathing, as tricking or slowing down an EMZ is crucial. Learning EMZs will be easier if you learn your spawn points for any trap strategy you run.

Example Description

For Example, a simpler strategy, has a very strong path to follow. EMZs can throw you off the path, but they can only slow down how often you slam. While you can still get hit with EMPs after a slam is complete, this can stun zombies considerably. When moving away from the horde to recover slamming, the strategy calls to move to the pad where Exo Suit Station is. This causes zombies that recover go the platform as well. Zombies splinter and find you, but many can get paused behind others trying to jump up the ledge. This gives you plenty of time to run around a corner (either a staircase or go around the room) and recover with enough time to jump or run further around until you are safe to jump. Last resort is finding a path to the chute, which is easily incorporated into the normal loop. Zombie collision is fairly strong on this game, and they hold each other back too, use it to your advantage. Exo Testing room has 3 major windows and the door from Holding you watch for spawn points. Each window is a pressure point throughout the strategy. To best understand how these spawns are manipulated, you must know the cube platform in the room is low enough where EMZs can trigger below you if close enough, and possibly jump to you from the catwalks anywhere around the room. This can already create issues from chute window, as it is very close and can attract zombies to jump on it quickly if you stay on it too long. The catwalks are close enough for you to strafe jump as well. The other ground level spawn point is trivial in pressure, but can spawn some surprise zombies when recovering slams. The catwalk spawn point creates trouble. The catwalk is thin enough to EMZs detecting exo movement from underneath as they spawn. Not to mention, they can fly off this spot in the catwalk. Keep out of sight and careful jumping whenever near this spawn point. Finally, the staircase spawn point dropdown is only an issue when recovering by going through the staircase. You may be forced to mantle over the railing, then jump and even strafe onto the cube platform. Many zombies coming from the Holding door will path mostly to jump down or towards the stairs closest to the chute. They can be looking to jump and fly onto you, depending if you give them opportunity.

What (I hope) this example shows is movement and understanding what zombies will do is better illustrated. EMZs can do all of these things, and they nearly ruin you in seconds if you are not careful. They are predictable in certain moments, and you can minimize their attacks knowing where they come from and what they might do. That is to say, it is important knowing how to recover when they will get you as well. This is still similar advice, as moving and knowing your non-exo movement strengths as well. No exo movement in high rounds is extremely difficult. Outside of EMZs, it is realistically hard to survive. Remember you can utilize mantling and strafe jumps. While strafe jumps is less common (since zombie attacks can disrupt you moving), mantling gives you higher ground, which zombies have to account for. This lowers zombies ability to find you as many will have to mantle or jump. While some still find you quick, always be moving to get enough distance from your farthest EMZ to finish recovering. If you get your exo movement back, it can be okay to use it immediately again to stay alive. You should not have to every time. You need to look for opportunity to get back on or stay on the original path. My best advice is to learn how to not use exo movement while having exo movement. EMZs are prepared for you to use the movement, but you can outsmart them by giving more time to prepare for doomsday. This small time can give you opportunity to jump away, turn a corner, mantle a ledge, or simply run away. 

Exploder Zombies

Exploder Zombies are exo zombies that can detonate (and self-detonate) to damage the player. These zombies explode anytime they die. When you kill one with weapons, they do not damage you, or when another player does a well. Any other instance of them dying will damage players, if they are nearby, such dying to a trap. Exploders seek players out to try and self-detonate as well, which will not respawn the zombie. With this knowledge, you can slowly pick away at the horde whenever you see an Exploder free to walk past. In higher rounds, you will have to jump away or fly by Exploders to trigger them more easily, as they only can blow up if they player is close enough.

Security Dogs

The first ambush round (either four or five) will have Security Dogs. These dogs are easy to handle, as they are only capable to hit the player every few seconds. Much like Treyarch-style Hellhounds can be walked around in a circle, Security Dogs are shutdown by various failed attacks. As you progress in the game, later dog rounds will add EMZ and Exploder variants. While they can be annoying, they do not pose a threat like regular zombies, and do not surround as easily.

Host Zombies

Host Zombies are much faster non-exo movement zombies that can infect the player. When a player is infected, you have to disinfect at a decontamination station on the map. Host zombies appear on ambush rounds in between dog rounds randomly. While they are slightly longer rounds with regular zombies mixed in (at that round's health too), Hosts are fast pace and fragile as well. They can die from most any damage quickly, but are not be underestimated in groups. Hosts can be killed with the Decontamination Station vapor as well. Depending on the scenario, they can be useful to kill some extra zombies. In co-op, if an infected player reaches 0 seconds, they will die and a Host will spawn in their place, which is condsierably stronger health, depending on what the player died with.

Being Infected

When a player is infected, they have 60 seconds to decontaminate. Being hit by various sources of damage lower the timer. A Host hitting you while infected will reduce by 5 seconds, Exploders exploding and other zombie hits will reduce by 3 seconds, all other damage sources (including fall damage when under EMP effects and traps) will reduce by 1 second.