Zero Caliber VR News

🧟‍♂️ Who Let the Zombies Out?! 🧟‍♂️

Hey everyone,

Zero Caliber's FREE Zombies DLC is LIVE, adding an extra 1.5-2h worth of content to the base game! You can launch the zombie missions the same way you'd launch regular campaign missions - look for the 'Dark Ops - Zombies' maps! Before going into details, here's everything we packed into this update:

🗺️ Three Brand New Maps
🔫 Limited Ammo
🎰 Randomized Weapons
🤝 Solo & 2-player Co-op Zombie Mode (crossplay included)
🧟 2 regular and 3 special zombie types
🐰 Easter Egg galore

[h2]NEW MAPS[/h2]

You can fight zombies on 3 brand new maps: HQ, Oilrig and Ship. We don't know much about the origins of the zombie outbreak, they just appeared, and are storming the OSA's HQ in great numbers. You'll have to fight them off wave after wave while carrying out small tasks, with one main goal: ESCAPE.

[h2]LIMITED AMMO[/h2]

Opposed to the base game where ammo is unlimited, the new zombie game mode is different. You'll start with one single pistol and 1 mag. Worry not, there are strategically placed ammo boxes all around each map. Simply grab it and place it into your ammo holster. (You can keep count of your ammo on your wrist watch.) If that's not enough, slayed zombies have a chance to drop ammo. If even that's not enough.. well, it's MELEE time! Oh, we've also added two new melee weapons. 😎

[h2]RANDOMIZED WEAPONS[/h2]

Between each zombie wave, additional, but randomized weapons will appear at designated weapon racks. It's up to you if you take them, or stay with a previously obtained gun.

[h2]SOLO & 2-PLAYER CO-OP[/h2]

It can get lonely in the dark.. but don't worry, you can wreak havoc on zombies with your best pal, S.O. or anyone you find online!

[h2]SPECIAL ZOMBIE TYPES[/h2]

Fighting the same enemies can get boring.. so we made sure you'll encounter enough zombie variety to keep you busy. Look out for the big ones! 👀

[h2]EASTER EGGS[/h2]

We've hidden quite a few surprises for those with a sharp eye - we can't tell you what they all mean just yet, so stay tuned for a HUGE announcement coming real soon!



We'd love to hear your feedback and stories, especially about the new game mode and the limited ammo feature!
- Join our Discord server (https://discord.gg/xrealgames) to share your first impressions and suggestions, find Co-op, PvP or Zombie buddies, modding guides or to just hang out
- Follow us on Twitter (https://twitter.com/XREALGames) and Facebook (https://www.facebook.com/XREALGamesVR) to catch future update news and server related info
- If you encounter any technical issues, please send us an email to [email protected]

Thank you all for playing our game, see you on the battlefield! 🫡

-Dan & the whole XREAL Games Team

Hey folks,

We've been working on a fan-service 🧟‍♂️ ZOMBIE 🧟‍♀️ game mode, and we finally have an update date!
Since it's spooky month, we wanted you guys and gals to be able to slaughter zombies over Halloween🎃, so we're dropping the update on OCTOBER 19th! 🥳 🎉

Prepare for:

• Limited ammo (with ammo pickups)
  
• Solo & 2-player co-op mode (crossplay)
  
• 3 brand new maps
  
• 2 regular and 3 special zombie types
  
• 2 new melee weapons
  
• Randomized guns
  
• Secrets👀
  

Due to popular request, ammo will be limited for this game mode, so your aim better be on point! 🎯

You'll be fighting through 3 brand new maps to survive and escape the coming zombie hordes, while encountering 2 types of regular and 3 types of special zombos. 🧟 Between rounds you'll receive random guns with attachments from certain weapon categories, it's up to you which one you keep and which one you ditch. Keep your melee weapons close too, cause if you run out of ammo, your only choice will be to hack off some zombie limbs to survive!

You can go in solo if you're up for a challenge🪖 , or you can bring a friend for backup 🤼‍♂️ (2 player co-op), more eyes are always helpful as you look for secrets while progressing through the maps.👀
Also you can opt to stay on the map forever instead of escaping if you want to endlessly slaughter hordes of Zs! 🔥

We hope you're ready, it's gonna be sp00ky!

See you on the 19th! 🫡
Cheers,
XREAL Games Team

Hey everyone,

I pressed it. I pressed the update button!!! Modding, cross-play PvP and tons of QoL stuff. Buckle up, we have a lot to go through!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

[h2]MODDING[/h2]

Ever dreamt of building your own single player/Co-op missions and PvP maps? Now you can build anything you want in Zero Caliber through mod.io (and Unreal Engine)!
Full guide here: https://mod.io/g/zero-caliber/r + on our Discord server: https://discord.gg/xrealgames
Worry not, you can also sit back (or stand up), and enjoy the work of other community members through the ingame mod browser. You can find it near the dressing room in the lobby!
Hint: download modded maps through the mod browser, then launch them through the Solo- or Squad Operations panel.

We can't wait to see all the crazy maps and missions you'll come up with! In the meantime, you can enjoy a few genre-defining classics in the mod browser already. ;)

[h2]PVP | CROSS-PLAY[/h2]

PvP game modes are finally available, with cross-play enabled between the standalone and PCVR versions! You can find the 'Squad Operations' panel near the Armory entrance in the lobby.
We took extreme care to build platform-agnostic maps to avoid unbalanced matches between the two versions.
Disclaimer: cross-play is enabled only for PvP in the base game, but modded Co-op maps could be cross-play if the creator chooses to build them so.

We’ve added 4 new PvP game modes:

• Deathmatch (up to 8 players)
• Team deathmatch (up to 4v4)
• Siege (up to 4v4)
• Gungame (up to 8 players)

And 9 new PvP maps:

• Bunkers
  
• Cargo
  
• Dust
  
• North Assault
  
• Swimming Pool
  
• Hangar
  
• Raid
  
• Wharf
  
• Train (prepare for some crazy fast action on Train!)

[h2]QoL IMPROVEMENTS AND FIXES[/h2]

We've honestly lost count of how many fixes and improvements we squeezed into this update, but here are the ones worth mentioning:

[h3]AI | MISSIONS[/h3]

• Improved AI behaviour and pathfinding
  
• Improved combat behaviour on several maps
  
• Fixed and rearranged enemy spawn locations on several maps
  
• Fixed a rendering issue that affected enemy visuals
  
• Countless gameplay and combat improvements on the majority of missions
  
• Fixed a few POI related issues
  
• Improved collision settings on countless objects and environment elements
  
• Fixed quite a few checkpoints to avoid y'all getting stuck
  

[h3]GAMEPLAY | CONTROLS[/h3]

• Full body can now be turned on/off in settings
  
• Settings extended with customizable controller mapping (Touch controllers only)
• Audio input can now be customized (and reset) in the settings
  
• Fixed snap turning for Index controllers in left-handed mode
  
• Improved friend invite and friend request systems
  
• Improved benchmark scene
  
• Fixed melee holster position
  
• Improved controls all around
  
• Improved voice-chat stability and fixed a few connection issues
  
• Fixed an issue with shotgun shells
  
• Sock 18 and M249 rebalance
  
• BAR handling improvements
  
• Fixed quite a few skin system related issues
  
• Fixed missing and faulty sound effects
  
• Fixed a few controller binding related issues
  

[h3]VISUALS | PERFORMANCE[/h3]

• Overhauled lighting on several maps
  
• Improved color balance and contrast ratios throughout the game
  
• Improved foliage all around
  
• Fixed several LOD related issues
  
• Fixed countless assets popping out of thin air
  
• Fixed shadows for several weapons
  
• Improved UI
  
• Fixed quite a few hand poses on smaller items
  
• Improved loading times between missions/multiplayer sessions
  
• Optimized several maps for smoother gameplay
  

[h3]SERVERS[/h3]

• Added a brand new dedicated Aussie server for those down under
  
• Improved server stability
  
• Enabled cross-play between standalone and PCVR versions (PvP and mod only)

[h2]KNOWN ISSUES[/h2]

No update is perfect, and and this is no exception. :(

[h3]CUSTOM STEAMVR BINDINGS[/h3]

Anyone who used custom SteamVR controller bindings for Zero Cal will be reverted to default - this is necessary to fix an issue that would result in players getting stuck with faulty/broken controls. If you still experience broken controls, dig into Zero Cal's file system and delete the 'input.ini' file.
Join our Discord if you need help!

[h3]VIRTUAL DESKTOP[/h3]

Yeah, so.. this is a bit awkward. We broke something last-minute and as a result, the game has a high chance of crashing when launched through Virtual Desktop.
BUT!
You should be able to switch to an experimental public beta build, aptly named "VirtualDesktopHotfix". We've made a few last-last-minute changes that might fix the crashing issue. This build is 100% compatible with the rest, meaning cross-play works all the same. We didn't have time to test the whole build, but in theory nothing else changed so it should work.

We're really sorry for this.. we could've postponed the update once again while we properly fix it, but I don't think I would've survived another delay. :')

-------------

Alrighty, I think that's all for now. This is a huge update with a lot of changes and additions, we'll be on the lookout for your feedback. Please channel ALL your suggestions, ideas and feedback into this dedicated thread:
https://steamcommunity.com/app/877200/discussions/0/3811784760599130247/

Or hop on our Discord and let us know directly in the appropriate channels.

Have fun y'all, happy building and see you on the virtual battlefield! o7
Cheers,
-Dan & the whole XREAL team

Hey folks,

WE HAVE A DATE! Zero Caliber's modding and cross-play PvP update is dropping at 10am PST, July 20!
It took a bit longer than 2 weeks, sorry for that. This date is now 140% set in stone, I will press that big green update button no matter what.

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

☒ Mod support (single/Co-op missions and PvP maps), ingame mod downloader
☒ PvP with cross-play support
☒ Tons of QoL and aesthetic improvements
☒ Dedicated Aussie server
☒ & more

That's all for now, see y'all on the 20th!

Cheers,
- Dan & the XREAL Games Team

P.S: sorry for the news thumbnail, felt like a YTer today

Hey VR friends,

UPDATE (22/06/2023): We unfortunately had to delay the update due to a last-minute issue our QA team discovered today. After a lot of guilt-filled internal debates, we decided that we'd rather work a few more days on the build than to risk it for the biscuit.

The fix doesn't seem to be deterministic, though currently it looks like we can get to the bottom of it in 1 week, 2 weeks tops. I'll write up a new Steam news as soon as I know more.

Sorry guys and gals. :(
Cheers,
A Sad Dan

--- ORIGINAL NEWS ---

We finally have a date for the upcoming PvP/mod support update: June 22!

[previewyoutube][/previewyoutube]

We're nearing the end of our pre-RC tests, meaning we'll be able to make an RC (release candidate) build early next week.
We still have a few hoops to go through, but so far so good!

Early headsup though, don't expect a top of the line modkit at first - since it's a new area for us, and since we're hacking it into a game that didn't have modding planned at the beginning, we're moving slowly with this one, which means that only PvP maps and basic single player/Co-op missions will be moddable.
Speaking of which, PvP is finally coming, we can't wait to get our arses kicked by y'all!



That said, modding will happen in Unreal Engine and through mod.io, so grab your wildest map ideas and get ready to mod the sh*t out of our beloved Zero Cal!

Cheers,
- XREAL Games Team

P.S: the update will contain many many fixes and improvements as always, mostly based on y'all's feedback. Much love!