Zombie Survival Game Online News

Howdy again, survivors!

It’s been crazy times in the background. We are excited to unveil everything we have been working on over the last month. This announcement will glance over the public dedicated server, our transition to Unreal Engine 5.3, and the “Enhancing Core Systems” topic we briefly touched on in our last announcement.

[h2]Dedicated Server Testing[/h2]
We have officially started testing the dedicated servers in preparation for publishing the dedicated server tool to Steam later on in the month! This will allow survivors to host servers on their machines! Beta testing for this tool will begin next week and will be public on May 27th. If you are interested in helping with testing these servers, be sure to opt-in to the beta branch in the ZSGO discord.

[h2]Transition to UE 5.3[/h2]
As you already know from the April Dev Announcement, we have been in the process of swapping over to Unreal Engine 5.3. This is our first time updating the engine, so there have been some major hurdles that we have successfully overcome, along with a few more we are still dealing with. We are confident that this was the move and can’t wait to start using all the new features that this version provides.

[h2]Combat System Overhaul[/h2]
While we don’t want to go into too much detail yet, this is the first step in pursuing the future plans referenced in the title. We all know that the current melee system is a little wonky, and it’s finally time to craft something far more fun and engaging for all the survivors out there.

Later on in the month, there will be a more detailed view of what this new combat system will consist of. This will be more than just making your axe swing look cooler, we can’t wait for y’all to see!

[h2]Funding to Grow the Game[/h2]
For those who made it this far lol - Currently, we're actively seeking another round of funding to propel project ZSGO forward. We're eager to provide survivors with comprehensive updates on the systems we're enhancing and look forward to revealing more. While we are very committed to rolling out these updates, the timeline may extend without extra funding and will just take more time. Despite our first Kickstarter campaign not reaching its goal and being unsuccessful, our team managed to persevere! We are gearing up for a second campaign to continue our progress and deliver an updated roadmap. We have also been applying for other grant opportunities and will keep yall updated on any advancements.

Thank you so much for the support, survivors! These are exciting times, and big things are right around the corner. Creating this dream game is impossible without all the support you guys have given so far.

Howdy survivors!

It’s been a crazy month and we have finally made it to the April Patch (v0.4.9). We were gearing towards a nomad-themed update; however, you’ll see there are some more goodies involved!

[h2]Build Parts for the Nomads[/h2]

• Build parts for taking over houses.
  
• Build parts for camping in the woods.
  
• Giant Stone walls? (not too nomadic, but still cool).
  
• A big bear rug!
  
• Pineapples! Or a sneaky stash? You decide.

[h2]Scavs[/h2]

• Increased shooting speed and damage.
  
• Built upon existing logic to increase their detection IQ.
  
• Several new Scav Strongholds were added!

[h2]Audio[/h2]

• New Backtrack Music!
  
• Assigned more sounds to work with the settings audio sliders.
  
• No Geiger Counter will play when in cover now.

[h2]Traders[/h2]

• Quests now persist after death.
  
• Quests now unlock purchasable items from traders.
  
• Removed vendor items that can be found elsewhere.
  
• Other market changes & economic balances.

[h2]Main Level[/h2]

• New MainLevel road work & street infrastructure.
  
• Infinite trees are fixed (hopefully).
  
• Made nav mesh cover more tiles so zombies don’t lose agro as much.

[h2]New Zombie Types[/h2]

• Fast & Slow Types.
  
• Many other unique types spawn certain items & in specific areas (Police stations will now spawn cops & prisoners with specific loot).
  
• Zeds can now open doors from the back side :o
  
• Added more zombie spawn points.

[h2]Melee[/h2]

• Tiered out melee weapon damage.
  
• Added 2 new melees!

[h2]Fixed Exploits[/h2]

• Ownership box in stairs.
  
• Bagged greens were OP.

[h2]Misc[/h2]

• “No PvE” World Setting now works!
  
• Repair bench now saves what’s in it!
  
• Zombies can no longer spawn within the Ownership sphere (again)!
  
• Build part bag on the ground only spawns if something is in the bench’s inventory.
  
• Crafting Recipes Changes
  
• Radiation Zones Rework (Depending on what zone you’re in)

If you are in the ZSGO Discord, you know many changes are coming over the next month or 2. This includes transitioning to Unreal Engine 5.3, continuing to improve our dedicated servers, and welcoming new members to the ZSGO team! It’s an exciting time, and we can’t wait to see what the future holds!

We also have a limited edition item coming out soon, only 25 are going to be made. :o
More info on that in the Discord ;)

Good luck out there survivors!!!

Howdy survivors!

It’s been about 3 weeks since the March Update (v0.4.8.0), so we just thought we would update the community on what we’ve been cooking up behind the scenes! This update will touch on 3 parts: the upcoming April update, the transition to Unreal Engine 5.3, and talks of enhancements to core systems leading into the future.

[h2]The April Update[/h2]
This update (v0.4.9.0) will follow the same course as our last two, meaning a beta branch will be released before the public launch. If you are interested in joining the beta branch, head over to the ZSGO Discord and navigate to the “testing-opt-in” channel!

As for the contents of this update, without spoiling too much, we wanted to introduce a more nomadic option to survivors. This includes many alternate build parts which give the player the option to skip building a full base altogether. You will be able to board and lock up a building temporarily and move from area to area with ease (Storage tents, Placeable & upgradable doors, Window Barricades). On top of this nomad option, there will also be a variety of different zombies introduced to the world of ZSGO.

Of course, there is MUCH more coming in this patch, that’s just a bit of a sneak peek for those who are interested! ;)

[h2]Transition to Unreal Engine 5.3.2[/h2]
We have been talking about the transition for some time now, and we have officially begun migrating! We have been on version 5.0.3 since the game’s conception. Transitioning to 5.3.2 will give us access to new tools while also fixing some bugs that have been a real annoyance.

We have been working on blueprinting the transition for a few weeks now and are excited to finally start implementing it!

[h2]Enhancing Core Systems[/h2]
While still in early discussions, we feel that some core systems in the game, such as melee combat, crafting, and zombie interaction, have much to be desired. We plan on experimenting and prototyping with some changes to these core systems behind the scenes, which will hopefully transpire to a healthy improvement to the game as a whole.

Thank you for the support survivors we can’t wait to experience the future of ZSGO with y’all!!!

On Sunday, March 17 at 1PM EST, Dev Gibby and Dev Ear will be live streaming their gameplay on Steam!

Tune in, stream snipe, and hunt the Devs.

Whoever kills a dev wins a 1 of a kind ZSGO mousepad!

Devs will be playing on the NA Dedicated server.

See you out there survivors!

Howdy, survivors!

Welcome to another thrilling update. A huge shoutout to all of you braving the unforgiving wastelands—your feedback has been incredible along our journey. In this update, we're releasing features and enhancements that promise to redefine your survival experience.

Get ready to explore like never before as we spring into action with v0.4.8.0! Oh, and don’t miss out on the Steam Spring Sale!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ugdX7yukCMw

[h2]Highlights[/h2]


• World Settings Manager: Customize your game with settings for loot (W00T W00T!), day/night cycles, PvP (player vs. player), raid settings and more!
  
• Revamped Questline: The questline has been completely overhauled for a new experience.
  
• New Resource - Radium: Discover (the hard way) and utilize radium in your crafting endevours.
  
• AI Behavior Adjustments: The AI now behaves differently and all zeds have been moved over to our new spawning system (see last update or vlogs for more technical information). This will continue to get upgrades with time.
  
• Resource Nodes Restructured: Resources are now biome-specific, adding depth to resource gathering.
  
• Mob-Specific Item Spawns: Certain items will now only drop from specific enemies.
  

• Game Settings Customization: Introduced a widget for in-game customization of settings, with changes saved across sessions.
  World Settings Manager Documentation World Settings Manager Video Walkthrough
• Player Stat Modifiers: Adjustments to player stats like stamina, hunger, thirst, and damage based on settings.
  
• In-Game Settings Adjustment: Players can now change settings mid-game from the pause menu. You may be required to restart the level via MainMenu and back.
  
• Death Loot Settings: Added an option to control whether players keep their loot upon death.
  
• Enhanced AI and Spawn Management: Improved the AI's search behavior and the way enemies spawn, making encounters more dynamic.
  AI Spawn Manager Documentation
  AI Spawn Manager Video
  
• FPS Limit for Zombie Spawns: Introduced a frame rate limit that prevents zombie spawns if the game's performance drops below a certain threshold.
  
• Quest Item Indicator: Items related to quests are now clearly marked in your inventory.
  
• Added Foliage Interactables: There are now 5 new foliage types scattered around MainLevel that can be harvested for various resources (wood, sticks, stone, plasi, and iron).
  

• Various Bug Fixes: Addressed issues with control bindings, zombie spawning, and more to improve gameplay.
  
• UI Improvements: Fixed visual issues with menus and item tooltips for a smoother experience. (added ammo type to item tooltip widget so when you mouse over a gun it shows which ammo it takes fixed an issue with the item tooltip where weapons would display a blank equip slot widget)
  
• Combat and Interaction Fixes: Adjusted combat mechanics and fixed bugs with item interactions, including a fix for zombies not always applying the blood screen effect when hit.
  
• Performance Enhancements: Solved crashes and optimized the game's performance, especially during intense scenes.
  

We can’t wait to see you all back out there survivors! If you are interested in joining the ZSGO Discord community we would love to chat with you and hear your ideas. As always, more to come!



Good luck out there survivors!