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Endzone 2 News

New Screenshots arrived

Fellow Survivors!

As promised yesterday, we've released a bunch of new screenshots for Endzone 2, showing the current state of the game. From flourishing nature shots to grey and drab rainy seasons to dusty sandstorms; and we don't want to keep you away from those lovely sunsets, of course.

We hope you'll enjoy them! Here's a small selection - the full batch is available on the game's store page:



Thank you! Stay safe, everyone.



https://store.steampowered.com/app/2144640/Endzone_2/

We just hit 175k Wishlists

Survivors,

The recently aired Triple-i Initiative showcase has been a blast, and the additional exposure draw some new survivors to this place. Ultimately boosting our wishlists to more than 175k in like no time. We're baffled and more than thankful.

In the meantime, we prepared some new screenshots since the latest internal build made some big steps forward. Here's a sneak peek at two of them, the rest will follow very soon:

A beautiful settlement at an idyllic sea scenery:


A settlement at night during a rainy season (perfect with a cup of hot chocolate):


Thanks survivors for all your support, we're going strong.

Stay safe, everyone.

Earth Appreciation Festival is on

Fellow Survivors,

Earth Appreciation Festival is live, and here's what it's about:

In recognition of World Earth Day on April 22, 2024, we’re dedicating this week to celebrating the beauty of our green planet, and the marvelous diversity of life as we see it and as we imagine it. This year’s selection of nature-themed games shows off the Earth at its best, and inspires us to protect the environment that we all depend upon.

On the other hand, with climate change, pollution, overpopulation, and conflict, the future of our planet’s delicately balanced ecosystems is far from guaranteed. Just take a look at the games we collected offering a glimpse of the dire possibilities that show how much we'd miss our natural world if we lost it forever.




Here's an excerpt of an interview with Gentlymad Studios' co-founder Mathias Guntrum about the close connection between Endzone and climate change:

What significance do games and the gaming industry have for climate change/climate protection?
We think that the immersive nature of games sets them apart, enabling them to address societal or global issues, such as climate change, in a profound and direct manner that surpasses other forms of media. Unlike passively consuming information from films, clips, or news, games engage our senses actively, fostering a deeper connection with players and provoking thoughtful reflections.

However, there lies a delicate challenge in handling such topics. Striking the right balance is essential, as games primarily need to be enjoyable to captivate audiences. "Serious Games" or "Edu Games" have sometimes faced criticism for prioritizing educational goals or themes over the overall fun and game quality. Nonetheless, there are successful counterexamples that prove it is possible to integrate meaningful content seamlessly into the gaming experience.

What inspired you to create your city-building game "Endzone – A World Apart" and "Endzone 2"?
We generate ideas for our games through a collaborative process. It was similar for Endzone, where we noticed that the theme of climate change, the societal debate surrounding it, and the overall topic of the post-apocalypse resonated strongly within the team. From there, the idea emerged to develop a survival city-building game that poses the thought experiment: "How bad can it get when everything goes wrong?" The premise of the game, therefore, becomes a thought experiment and a warning at the same time.

How do you see it: What changes are needed in the gaming industry, or what could be done to bring the topic of climate change/climate protection more into the spotlight?
Every action counts! Whether it's addressing the issue through games, direct involvement, or donations, anything is better than nothing in the battle against climate change and the perceived societal powerlessness against it. As part of the entertainment industry, we must be aware of the significant opportunity we have to contribute to the change, which we cannot afford to let slip away.

Take care and stay safe.

Developer Blog Post - Settlement Branches and Building Placement



- "I wouldn't have imagined seeing a settlement like this just a few miles from here. And you're supplying yourself with just wells in that swamp? It's amazing to see how we all develop our very own strategies to survive out here." -



[h2]Research[/h2]
Endzone 2 allows you to claim, create, and manage multiple settlements. Settlements or Zones can only be built on plateaus. Each settlement has a certain progression for each specialization or "Settlement Branch" that essentially provides feedback about which buildings of which category are most prominent there. While this can naturally vary, the more you progress in the game, the more specialized certain zones may become. Some advanced buildings are only available after at least one zone reaches a certain progression level for the relevant branch. Each building is always categorized in one of the available Settlement Branches and provides progression points, once built.
To make things clearer, here is a breakdown. Here are the 3 different settlement branches:

Disclaimer: The graphics showing the UI are in German, as this is our mother language. We naturally prioritize creating localization for German first, as we can add new text on the fly and ensure that everything new is localized correctly. This is needed for testing purposes.



When you reach a value of 10, you unlock your first available research. In this example, that would be Advanced Housing. These buildings allow for a higher settler capacity and also provide a buff to nearby buildings of the economy type. At a value of 15, the Upgraded Material Storage can be researched and so forth. You can observe how advancing in multiple branches at a time is possible.


Every building is assigned into one of these three categories. However, it's crucial to note that each progression only allows for researching the new buildings but doesn't unlock them automatically.



In addition to resource costs, some technologies require Knowledge points, which can be obtained through expeditions. These points cannot be generated by a building but need to be manually collected. To do so, you will need to send your explorers to an expedition and progress until you reach a certain threshold.



It's important to plan ahead for your settlements, both in terms of space to build on the zone and the availability of certain resources and ground types to determine, which buildings need to be prioritized in research. Some zones are better suited to ecological use, while others profit from economic specialization.



[h2]Building Placement[/h2]
The simplest way to boost production of a branch is to place the correct housing type near a production building of said type. In addition, it is helpful to place the right type of housing near certain production buildings to avoid any negative effects. In this example, you can see how the housing below the selected coal maker is marked in red. Since the housing is of the ecological type and the coal maker creates a lot of filth in its production, the inhabitants are unhappy.



Production chains are not only important on paper. This means that in order to maximize your production efficiency you need to plan where to construct your buildings. This is important in relation to the resources it needs, as well as which resources it is providing. Further below, you can see how the Tool Maker has the Scrapyard, which produces scrap, and the Woodcutter, which produces wood, both in the direct vicinity of itself. This is beneficial because it requires both resources to craft tools. It is also connected to a storage, in this case, the Town Center, and a Road that connects both with each other. This, along with housing of the economy type in proximity, provides the maximum production value this building can possibly have.



Here are 2 more examples of complex production chains in Endzone 2. It's important to note, that buildings can only provide a boost to a higher graded building in the chain. This means, that a Wood Cutter does boost a Coal Maker, if they are in proximity, but not the other way round.

Production Chain of Coal Mask and Production Chain of Lead



https://store.steampowered.com/app/2144640/Endzone_2/

[h3]As Discord is our main platform for feedback and discussion within the community, we highly recommend joining us and sharing your feedback there.[/h3]



Endzone @ triple-i initiative: First Gameplay Trailer

Fellow survivors,

The Triple-i Initiative is LIVE and running - and we are part of it. Check out the awesome event full of reveals, announcements & trailers!

And not to keep you on pins and needles any longer, here's what the brand-new gameplay trailer for Endzone 2 that premiered during the event:

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

You can follow the showcase here:



We hope you'll enjoy the survivors' journey through the post-apocalyptic world of Endzone 2. Only with your help they'll manage to rekindle humanity.

Thank you for your ongoing support throughout this journey, we can't wait to share more stuff from the world of Endzone 2.

Stay safe.