Let's Make This Game Evolve: Zombies [FUTURE SPOILERS]

[Zireael]

[quote=“Valpo, post:6, topic:8105”]i am not sure whether it was intended to name the enemies like that… i understood the naming chosen for the process of evolution not the result.

Exactly that. But i agree that it can be misleading, and also, we already have the decayed zombie, that’s weaker than the common zombies, so if the player sees a lot of “decayed” zombies in a city, it will think that they are weaker.[/quote]

Agreed completely.

[TheFlame52]

As a visual indicator of evolution, why not change the background color of the zombie’s tile?

[StopSignal]

As a visual indicator of evolution, why not change the background color of the zombie’s tile?

Yes!

Specially because the user is used to see that some enemies with background are dangerous, like the Soldier. So, psychologically speaking, this may make them more like a threat.

[TheFlame52]

[quote=“StopSignal, post:10, topic:8105”]Yes!

Specially because the user is used to see that some enemies with background are dangerous, like the Soldier. So, psychologically speaking, this may make them more like a threat.[/quote]
I don’t think there are enough colors for all the zombies to have a unique color. So why not have some zombies (like hulk, tough, survivor, etc.) become traits or evolved forms? We might also make bio-operators either a trait of soldiers or an evolution of scientists.

Also, all of this fills me with the horror that at some point, I will run into a spitter hulk. I’m throwing a fucking mininuke at that thing.

[NOMOETOE]

[quote=“TheFlame52, post:11, topic:8105”][quote=“StopSignal, post:10, topic:8105”]Yes!

Specially because the user is used to see that some enemies with background are dangerous, like the Soldier. So, psychologically speaking, this may make them more like a threat.[/quote]
I don’t think there are enough colors for all the zombies to have a unique color. So why not have some zombies (like hulk, tough, survivor, etc.) become traits or evolved forms? We might also make bio-operators either a trait of soldiers or an evolution of scientists.

Also, all of this fills me with the horror that at some point, I will run into a spitter hulk. I’m throwing a fucking mininuke at that thing.[/quote]

Or a jabberwock hulk, that would just be one of those things that you see and say nope, and just walk away run flailing madly

[Wanderer]

[quote=“TheFlame52, post:11, topic:8105”][quote=“StopSignal, post:10, topic:8105”]Yes!

Specially because the user is used to see that some enemies with background are dangerous, like the Soldier. So, psychologically speaking, this may make them more like a threat.[/quote]
I don’t think there are enough colors for all the zombies to have a unique color. So why not have some zombies (like hulk, tough, survivor, etc.) become traits or evolved forms? We might also make bio-operators either a trait of soldiers or an evolution of scientists.

Also, all of this fills me with the horror that at some point, I will run into a spitter hulk. I’m throwing a fucking mininuke at that thing.[/quote]

Background tile color for different tiers? Great idea!

Traits are something that we touched but didn’t discuss properly, but yeah, i would like to see it somehow in game.

As evolution will work, makes sense. The result is that instead of looking to a Zombie Hulk and WHOA, now the player will have a vast range of WHOA zombies to expect. Of course, we can still keep high tier zombies spawning soon, using JSON.

I think Hulks fit well as T2 or even T3, Toughs, maybe, but Survivors are more what our survivors would be after death, not a specific evolution.

Or a jabberwock hulk, that would just be one of those things that you see and say nope, and just walk away run flailing madly

I’m adding the spitter hulk, jaberwock hulk to the Zombie Ideas post .-.

EDIT: Added the Evolved Bloated to the Worked-on Zombies. As it is, is a persistant environmental threat to survivors, since instead of it’s less evolved counter-part, it DOESN’T go with a bang, at once. I was going to add to it an extra weakness: more space travelled by attacks that throw/push things away, but let’s leave it to the T3 version. ^^

EDIT: Added the Bloated Spitter to the Worked-on Zombies. I thought about making it leak acid gas, but NAAAAH… also, to don’t make it OP, gave some problems to it’s movement.

EDIT: Added The Evolved Hazmat. I got inspired by the talk about traits and decided to incorporate it as a unique zombie mechanic(so, yeah, that mutation list can be improved). The justification is that the hazmat clothes would be torn with the time, and it wouldn’t protect against days and days of radiation exposition… i think. I also think that i may work on zombies that are a problem to RANGED attacks, instead of melee ones next time…

[TheFlame52]

Nah, survivor would be a trait.

[KA101]

Ugh.

One thing I see that definitely won’t work: the injector zed. Wounds getting infected is NOT, repeat NOT, some sort of zed virus. It’s just a typical bacterial infection.

[Valpo]

How about we let em work like those rare worms that shoot stuff at you that lets you mutate?

Let the injector zeds activate the blob in you for some FUN mutations.

Let them help you over tresholds for extra FUN hrhrhrhrhr

add bad tresholds for even more FUN /evil laugher

[TheFlame52]

On a third possible note, how about we make them have a poisonous bite, and when they get further evolved they get even more poisonous.

[StopSignal]

[quote=“Valpo, post:16, topic:8105”]How about we let em work like those rare worms that shoot stuff at you that lets you mutate?

Let the injector zeds activate the blob in you for some FUN mutations.

Let them help you over tresholds for extra FUN hrhrhrhrhr

add bad tresholds for even more FUN /evil laugher[/quote]

Even better, they should generally be Nerf mutations unless having Strong Genetics!

[vache]

I vote we leave hulks the way they are, and give them a T2 and T3 variant. Give the player incentive to take them out sooner if they can!

[Wanderer]

[quote=“KA101, post:15, topic:8105”]Ugh.

One thing I see that definitely won’t work: the injector zed. Wounds getting infected is NOT, repeat NOT, some sort of zed virus. It’s just a typical bacterial infection.[/quote]

[quote=“StopSignal, post:18, topic:8105”][quote=“Valpo, post:16, topic:8105”]How about we let em work like those rare worms that shoot stuff at you that lets you mutate?

Let the injector zeds activate the blob in you for some FUN mutations.

Let them help you over tresholds for extra FUN hrhrhrhrhr

add bad tresholds for even more FUN /evil laugher[/quote]
Even better, they should generally be Nerf mutations unless having Strong Genetics![/quote]

On a third possible note, how about we make them have a poisonous bite, and when they get further evolved they get even more poisonous.

Alucinogenous, morale-decreasing poison through bite attacks? Sort of how schizofrenic works, but for less time. And it’s meat could be part of some recipe to create drugs and mutations. Or the bite itself could be the goo trying to spread further in things that doesn’t have it, and the bite effects are the result of the internal war between the external goo and wherever you have inside already.

I vote we leave hulks the way they are, and give them a T2 and T3 variant. Give the player incentive to take them out sooner if they can!

If there’s a good T2 and T3 variant for them, no problem. Warning, if i’m the one to give an idea for them, i’m seriously taking inspiration of the Marvel Hulk himself.

[Logrin]

If you’re going to give a zombie a poisonous sting please PLEASE call it a Zombee.

That said, I agree that shocker, hulk, spitter, boomer etc should be evolved traits. If something like this goes in imagine going from day one ((Crawling zombies, vanilla zeds, fat, brute, dogs, cops etc)) to month one to year one of increasing powerful undead.

Other ideas: Converting certain player mutations into zombie mutations as the zeds slowly go full crawling chaos.

Zombie Pygmy

Evolves From: Zombie Child
Idea From: Logrin
Description: What was once a grim reminder of a life snipped in the bud has festered into something altogether more dreadful. It’s staunch, rot mottled physique clashing with the child-like expression frozen on its face.
Abilities:Pygmy-back ride: Pygmies latch onto players when they attack, dropping his/her speed. This means they can’t be outrun and must be beaten off or killed after taking hold of a character.
Aerodynamic: Pygmies synergize great with brutes and hulks. They fly further, faster and more accurately when lobbed and don’t suffer damage from landing.

[Wanderer]

If you’re going to give a zombie a poisonous sting please PLEASE call it a Zombee.

Right! Since it’s a bite, perhaps a ‘Komodo’ Zombie? But yeah, maybe instead of a bite, it could have a prolonged bone, from which it makes the poison/goo/nasty stuff enter its victim. If it’s gonna work like that, Zombee will be. v_v

That said, I agree that shocker, hulk, spitter, boomer etc should be evolved traits. If something like this goes in imagine going from day one ((Crawling zombies, vanilla zeds, fat, brute, dogs, cops etc)) to month one to year one of increasing powerful undead.

So unpowered zombies would be Tier 1, the mutated, with abilities would be Tier 2, and the even more mutated and evolved would be Tier 3… can work, and sort of gives a tutorial for starting players: let them work out how to fight against zombies that have more common abilities and then slowly introduce the weird ones.

Other ideas: Converting certain player mutations into zombie mutations as the zeds slowly go full crawling chaos.

I fear smart zombies. I REALLY fear smart zombies.

[quote=“Logrin, post:21, topic:8105”]Zombie Pygmy

Evolves From: Zombie Child
Idea From: Logrin
Description: What was once a grim reminder of a life snipped in the bud has festered into something altogether more dreadful. It’s staunch, rot mottled physique clashing with the child-like expression frozen on its face.
Abilities:Pygmy-back ride: Pygmies latch onto players when they attack, dropping his/her speed. This means they can’t be outrun and must be beaten off or killed after taking hold of a character.
Aerodynamic: Pygmies synergize great with brutes and hulks. They fly further, faster and more accurately when lobbed and don’t suffer damage from landing.[/quote]

Added already

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Ok, monster traits and mutations are a good idea, but how they would work?

Spitter, shocker and boomer abilities would become traits/mutations and could be applied to other zombies? As a T1 Common Zombie that by luck can spit, shock and also slime others? Or traits are gained as a possibility while going to a higher tier(so, instead of a T2 Shocker becoming a T3 Zombie, it gains spitter instead)? Also, players would be able to check which traits monsters have, looking at them?

So far, zombie evolution will work by time passed in game(days, weeks) and they will evolve to higher tiers possible to them, kind of a tree of possibilities.

[Datanazush]

This means they can’t be outrun and must be beaten off

That said, I like the idea of a zombie type that forces a fight to happen. Right now if you’re in a city and there’s enough of a cleared area at your back, you can pick and choose fights easily.

[KA101]

[quote=“Logrin, post:21, topic:8105”]This means they can’t be outrun and must be beaten off

That said, I like the idea of a zombie type that forces a fight to happen. Right now if you’re in a city and there’s enough of a cleared area at your back, you can pick and choose fights easily.[/quote]

That role is kinda filled by the zed dogs, about which folks rarely express appreciation. It’s a nice one but I’m not sure folks’d appreciate it.

[Valpo]

Well as a difficulty curve:

Maybe theres no zdogs/wolves in the first days.

The others that hinder your movemént come even later as in evolution.

I hear complaints mostly from early deaths.

So maybe if its later its okay? (Or worse cause they got further ingame but then die from new stuff)

Dunno just asuming … I don t understand people.

[StopSignal]

But that would need dynamic spawn, it would not work.

[Valpo]

But that would need dynamic spawn, it would not work.

A future feature depandant on the functionality of another feature? I don t see a problem just get the order right.

Fix dynamic spawns then add the other stuff that needs it.