Zombies, since their inception in the 1930 have changed drastically in their concept over the years. Initially the entire concept was loosely based on Haitian mythology, where zombification was mostly seen in white wives.
They were corpses like creature that have no control over their actions, having been turned into Zombies even while alive by mind power. The making of the first Zombie movie was credited to directors Victor and Edward Harperin, starring the infamous Bela Lugosi in the year 1932. And the earliest instance of appearance of a Zombie in a video game can be traced back to Ghosts ‘n Goblins in the year 1985.