Double G
Survivor
I'm about 15 or 16 days into an A16 run and I gotta say....it's not that great. It's kinda boring. But there are some things about it that I really like, and it pretty much comes down to aesthetics and overall atmospheric vibes.
I've been saying that I want this game to be more of a simulator, but I think I might end up not liking that.
But as someone that is heavily knowledgeable of the zombie genre, here's what I'd like to see based strictly as someone that watches Day of the Dead and Return of the Living Dead at least twice a year and has watched every single episode of every Walking Dead series.
In the current version of the game, I can get to day 50 before I don't want to play anymore. On day 15 of A16, I'm already thinking of ending it. I would like it if I can play for at least 100 days before I start losing interest.
I've been saying that I want this game to be more of a simulator, but I think I might end up not liking that.
But as someone that is heavily knowledgeable of the zombie genre, here's what I'd like to see based strictly as someone that watches Day of the Dead and Return of the Living Dead at least twice a year and has watched every single episode of every Walking Dead series.
- Most zombies should be very dumb, but some should be smart. If I am standing on a tall concrete wall and there are a bunch of zombies trying to get me, most of them should be at my feet reaching for me and trying to break the wall, while only one or two of them should be finding a more intelligent path to me. Right now, all of them would ignore me to walk over to an area that allows them to get onto the wall with me. Maybe 3 or 4 levels of intelligence are needed. The lowest level would just try to reach for you. The second level would alternate between trying to reach for you and attempting to break the thing you're standing on. The third level would be like the current lowest level. And the forth level would be like the current Utility Worker zombie's intelligence.
- To help with a sense of aesthetic, environmental progression, zombies should look more degraded / decomposed as the weeks advance. That should be very easy to do because all it would require is alternate textures for all existing models.
- I don't understand why some people want the environment to look nice. There are people that mod the game to make the sky in the wasteland look clear and sunny. That's very weird to me. Alpha 16 has a perfect dreadful look to the color palette and atmosphere. If there are enough people that find the dreadful look too depressing, then give us environmental color grading options. Also in A16, there are things like dense fog that almost looks like Silent Hill fog. The Burnt Forest in A16 also feels better and there's something about the A16 Burnt Zombie that feels better. (fun fact: he's just a burnt version of the male corpses lying around in the current version of the game). Something about the feel of the current Burnt Forest seems stale or lacking.
- Gameplay mechanics should make sense on an intuitive level. That might include a combination of learn by doing and learn by reading. A first time player that has no clue how the game works should be able to figure out what's going on with basic intelligence. They shouldn't have to know strangely specific things.
- If there are quests, then they should mean more than just loot and points. Quests right now are an empty experience. There's no real sense of advancement for completing a quest. You clear a house for what? You fetch supplies that do what? If you're fetching supplies, those supplies should lead to something else. I was thinking that you build up to a quest where you have to clear a building to rescue a trapped scientist. That scientist would effectively act as another trader that sends you on more quests to retrieve things needed for them to work on a cure.
- Also with quests, there could be survivor NPCs that move into the houses that you clear. Once you clear a house, zombies don't respawn. But wandering hordes would come through periodically making you have to go back to help the survivors out. And zombies not respawning should be a environment wide thing. Cleared areas should stay cleared until wandering hordes come through.
In the current version of the game, I can get to day 50 before I don't want to play anymore. On day 15 of A16, I'm already thinking of ending it. I would like it if I can play for at least 100 days before I start losing interest.
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