There has to be an inverse to the game... As zombies grow in numbers, the remaining humans should get better weapons...
If the zombies grow stronger as they grow in numbers, the humans should get a bigger boost to compensate for the fewer numbers...
So the point is to hide from the zombies? What if in each map, there is a door that must be opened and the key location is randomized? The humans would have to find the key before they run out of numbers... Of course this does not have to be key/door, it could be other objectives that are randomized as to give it more replayability just like NS's starting hive locations...
Could it possibly be like the first zombie player is the "leader zombie" or something, and he has special abilities over the rest?
But they won't last long unless they get moving. No ammo = zombie chow. Ammo takes an INCREDIBLY long time to respawn by game standards. Weapons even more so (if at all).
As for the humans getting better weapons, they already get access to great gear whenever they can find it. The shotgun is amazing for close range zombie mulching and is arguably the best weapon available considering.
Yes, the humans can band together and "camp" an area, and sometimes it's even a good idea, but ammo is scarce in ZP. This isn't a guns blazing blast-a-thon. Ammo must be carefully conserved or you will quickly end up in a dead-end with 3 bullets, and 5 zombies closing in.
In some ways there is an advantage to the humans becoming zombies. The remaining humans have that much more ammo to go between them. Of course, there are more zombies to worry about, and less people to watch your back.
In practice, it seems to balance out pretty well. Some rounds see only one or two zombies for a minute or so, and then suddenly most of the Survivors die off rapidly. Other rounds are more paced, with a Survivor dying off here and there. It is very creepy wandering the map and wondering if the other Survivors are hidden, or if you're just the only one left. But there is an amazing sense of relief if ou *do* find another Survivor in that situation, and it's strange, but there's a very strong urge for teamplay. I don't know if it's because you're just glad someone *isn't* out to get you, but it just seems very natural to help other humans out, because, I mean, they're *people*, not hideous things trying to eat you. I guess you'd have to play to fully experience it...
Objective based maps are in, but in their infancy, and currently we only have one demo objective map, just to test the concept. However, this is definitely planned on being developed further. Still, even just the default gameplay of trying to survive is pretty exciting, and much more than a simple DM. You feel like you're fighting for your life!
Twilight
PS And yes, the models will improve, and before the release, not after. Those models in the video are placeholders, and we have better ones we are using right now in our playtests.
PPS Yes, the zombies move fairly fast for zombies (Although slower than unburdened humans. Load up on ammo and weapons, on the other hand...), but again, we focused on gameplay first, and that's a concession we felt needed to be made. Since unless you're exceptionally good you'll be spending at least some of each round as a zombie, we wanted to make sure that playing as a zombie was fun too.
No one wants to walk in a straight line at 2 feet per second, and get killed, over and over and over.
Zombies still need work on being even more fun to play, which is why we're looking into Zombie Grapple, for example (You can grab a survivor and drag them with you. You can't hurt them directly while doing this, but they can only turn and shoot while held, not move. This leaves open fun possibilities like grabbing a survivor and pulling him off a ledge with you, or under the water to drown. Zombies, of course, take no drowning damage.)
We plan on adding much more to the mod, but we figure that it should be released so that people can be enjoying the current version while we work on adding new stuff.
Yeah, right now the only objective map in existence is a little test made by me, called zp_objectivetest.
It basically involves the humans pushing a gas can from a gas station on one side of the map to a truck on the other. And, even though it is extremely open with little or no cover, zombies win as much as humans do. Which was really surprising, when, in a game of about twenty-something players, one zombie managed to kill a good deal of them, and those zombies mutilated the remaining survivors.
If you check out the forums, be sure to check out Retale's comics. Although, you may not get some of them, because most refer to bugs in play-tests, or inside jokes.
LikuI, am the Somberlain.Join Date: 2003-01-10Member: 12128Members
<!--QuoteBegin-N1Rampage+Sep 28 2004, 10:12 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (N1Rampage @ Sep 28 2004, 10:12 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> Ewwww... The zombies run too fast! I want Romano zombies! <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> I don't know about you, but Romero's classic kick-**** zombies would be SO utterly boring to play as, and it'd be impossible to win as them.
LikuI, am the Somberlain.Join Date: 2003-01-10Member: 12128Members
<!--QuoteBegin-RaVe+Sep 28 2004, 11:57 PM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (RaVe @ Sep 28 2004, 11:57 PM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> Which is apparently why I want to play this mod so badly. Sadly, I can't attend much PT meetings so becoming a PT is out of the question XD <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> They're only every Saturday.
And people play on the servers during the week in a lot of pick-up games. We played one last night, as a matter of fact. 6-8 players on ZP_thelabs. Good stuff. Anyway, we are always looking for new maps, so feel free to grab the .fgd from the forums and go from there!
so you said before that it should be out in about 4-6 weeks do you have an exact rough date???.. even though having an exact rough date doesn't make any sense but a rough date for halo 2 comin out in the uk is about 11 of november... even though you probably guessed what i ment and i'm just blabbing so yes do you have a rough date?
I attened a PT pick up game of sorts last night (just recently got PT status) and the mod is a lot of fun even though I suck at it. You really have to keep track of your ammo and don't go off wasting lots of shots because ammo is very, very valuable. The zombie team still probally needs a bit of tweeking since whoever starts off as zombie can often have a difficult time getting his first kill but once the survivors start dropping the game picks up intensity as the survivors try to watch each other's back as they get chased by the ever increasing zombie hoard. I also think this game is a lot more scarry than D3 at certain times b/c you never know when a zombie might drop down on your head (happened to me 2 or 3 times last night) and is definatly a lot more fun IMO.
I once pretended to be an AFK zombie. They all gathered around me, and were quite suprised when I suddenly killed one of their friends who thought it was a great idea to attack me with a crowbar. <!--emo&:p--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/tounge.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='tounge.gif' /><!--endemo-->
<!--QuoteBegin-Ice-Phoenix+Sep 29 2004, 07:28 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (Ice-Phoenix @ Sep 29 2004, 07:28 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> so you said before that it should be out in about 4-6 weeks do you have an exact rough date???.. even though having an exact rough date doesn't make any sense but a rough date for halo 2 comin out in the uk is about 11 of november... even though you probably guessed what i ment and i'm just blabbing so yes do you have a rough date? <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> Well, the 4-6 weeks *is* our rough release date. We don't know exactly but that is our best guess currently. We could release in about a week, if we had too, although it would be rough around the edges. To be honest, we're pressed for time since HL2's release seems to be imminent...
well if it sounds as good as you say it is, and the anticipatrion is quite high then you should take your time to smooth out the roughness that would be there if you released this week, so take your time and i dont know what you can do to make it better but do what you gotta do
Well, sadly, the problem is that with HL2 releasing potentially in just a few weeks, we'd like to release Zombie Panic a week or two before HL2, so that people actually bother to play it, etc.
Yes, we're porting it over to HL2 when it comes out, but we'd like to get feedback from the gameplay, etc, from the HL1 version. Plus, it's fun to play regardless!
I'd love to spend another couple of months on making it better, and we'll be making it better continually, no matter when we release it, but I just feel that we're running out of time. It looks like we'll be one of the last HL1 mods to release...
NEO_PhyteWe need shirtgons!Join Date: 2003-12-16Member: 24453Members, Constellation
<!--QuoteBegin-version91x+Sep 30 2004, 09:26 AM--></div><table border='0' align='center' width='95%' cellpadding='3' cellspacing='1'><tr><td><b>QUOTE</b> (version91x @ Sep 30 2004, 09:26 AM)</td></tr><tr><td id='QUOTE'><!--QuoteEBegin--> So when's Zombie Panic going gold then? How many RCs have you guys sent in? <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd--> is this supposed to be funny?
See, now I could probably just let people use those Alien Fade hands that I've tweaked up since Daphisto first made em.
A new model, or new skin, and they'd be decent enough zombie hands. I should really have applied for the beta, just to get access to the models and see how/when they play their anims.
Ah well, regrets. I'll go buck crazy when its released, hehe. ALIENS for zombies!!
Comments
I know I have to download a codec, I just don't know which one.
Twilight
There has to be an inverse to the game... As zombies grow in numbers, the remaining humans should get better weapons...
If the zombies grow stronger as they grow in numbers, the humans should get a bigger boost to compensate for the fewer numbers...
So the point is to hide from the zombies? What if in each map, there is a door that must be opened and the key location is randomized? The humans would have to find the key before they run out of numbers... Of course this does not have to be key/door, it could be other objectives that are randomized as to give it more replayability just like NS's starting hive locations...
Could it possibly be like the first zombie player is the "leader zombie" or something, and he has special abilities over the rest?
I am looking forward to this mod.
<!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
But they won't last long unless they get moving. No ammo = zombie chow. Ammo takes an INCREDIBLY long time to respawn by game standards. Weapons even more so (if at all).
As for the humans getting better weapons, they already get access to great gear whenever they can find it. The shotgun is amazing for close range zombie mulching and is arguably the best weapon available considering.
In some ways there is an advantage to the humans becoming zombies. The remaining humans have that much more ammo to go between them. Of course, there are more zombies to worry about, and less people to watch your back.
In practice, it seems to balance out pretty well. Some rounds see only one or two zombies for a minute or so, and then suddenly most of the Survivors die off rapidly. Other rounds are more paced, with a Survivor dying off here and there. It is very creepy wandering the map and wondering if the other Survivors are hidden, or if you're just the only one left. But there is an amazing sense of relief if ou *do* find another Survivor in that situation, and it's strange, but there's a very strong urge for teamplay. I don't know if it's because you're just glad someone *isn't* out to get you, but it just seems very natural to help other humans out, because, I mean, they're *people*, not hideous things trying to eat you. I guess you'd have to play to fully experience it...
Objective based maps are in, but in their infancy, and currently we only have one demo objective map, just to test the concept. However, this is definitely planned on being developed further. Still, even just the default gameplay of trying to survive is pretty exciting, and much more than a simple DM. You feel like you're fighting for your life!
Twilight
PS And yes, the models will improve, and before the release, not after. Those models in the video are placeholders, and we have better ones we are using right now in our playtests.
PPS Yes, the zombies move fairly fast for zombies (Although slower than unburdened humans. Load up on ammo and weapons, on the other hand...), but again, we focused on gameplay first, and that's a concession we felt needed to be made. Since unless you're exceptionally good you'll be spending at least some of each round as a zombie, we wanted to make sure that playing as a zombie was fun too.
No one wants to walk in a straight line at 2 feet per second, and get killed, over and over and over.
Zombies still need work on being even more fun to play, which is why we're looking into Zombie Grapple, for example (You can grab a survivor and drag them with you. You can't hurt them directly while doing this, but they can only turn and shoot while held, not move. This leaves open fun possibilities like grabbing a survivor and pulling him off a ledge with you, or under the water to drown. Zombies, of course, take no drowning damage.)
We plan on adding much more to the mod, but we figure that it should be released so that people can be enjoying the current version while we work on adding new stuff.
It basically involves the humans pushing a gas can from a gas station on one side of the map to a truck on the other. And, even though it is extremely open with little or no cover, zombies win as much as humans do. Which was really surprising, when, in a game of about twenty-something players, one zombie managed to kill a good deal of them, and those zombies mutilated the remaining survivors.
If you check out the forums, be sure to check out Retale's comics. Although, you may not get some of them, because most refer to bugs in play-tests, or inside jokes.
I don't know about you, but Romero's classic kick-**** zombies would be SO utterly boring to play as, and it'd be impossible to win as them.
It's about time we turned that around! No more boring zombies!
ZOMBIES ON SPEED! XD
Which is apparently why I want to play this mod so badly. Sadly, I can't attend much PT meetings so becoming a PT is out of the question XD
EDIT : The good thing is that this mod might give me the incentive to map again.
They're only every Saturday.
Twilight
Well, the 4-6 weeks *is* our rough release date. We don't know exactly but that is our best guess currently. We could release in about a week, if we had too, although it would be rough around the edges. To be honest, we're pressed for time since HL2's release seems to be imminent...
Twilight
Yes, we're porting it over to HL2 when it comes out, but we'd like to get feedback from the gameplay, etc, from the HL1 version. Plus, it's fun to play regardless!
I'd love to spend another couple of months on making it better, and we'll be making it better continually, no matter when we release it, but I just feel that we're running out of time. It looks like we'll be one of the last HL1 mods to release...
Twilight
When it's released i'll try and get a server running.
One question though; will there be a linux server version?
is this supposed to be funny?
A new model, or new skin, and they'd be decent enough zombie hands. I should really have applied for the beta, just to get access to the models and see how/when they play their anims.
Ah well, regrets. I'll go buck crazy when its released, hehe. ALIENS for zombies!!
is this supposed to be funny? <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Look Below <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo-->
is this supposed to be funny? <!--QuoteEnd--></td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'><!--QuoteEEnd-->
Look Below <!--emo&:D--><img src='http://www.unknownworlds.com/forums/html//emoticons/biggrin-fix.gif' border='0' style='vertical-align:middle' alt='biggrin-fix.gif' /><!--endemo--> <!--QuoteEnd--> </td></tr></table><div class='postcolor'> <!--QuoteEEnd-->
its better in the flash i stole it from
<a href='http://albinoblacksheep.com/flash/end.php' target='_blank'>This Flash, to be specific</a>
Twilight