And then I think there’s an element below that, which is: what facilities do I put into the space? What strategy do we have? And again, that could be a co-pursuit of our collective goals or my individual goals. For example, all our food and water incomes. We want to get those solidified. Or maybe I just want to go beat stuff up. Let’s optimize with an Ammo Press, an Explosives Shop, and let’s get all the guns we can and let’s make everything that we can blow stuff up with.
Again, there’s different play styles and different goals for different players. And I think those can coexist together in this world. Now that you have more options with multiple settlements, you can have these multiple perspectives and gameplay styles.
How will that shared world work in State of Decay 3?
Kevin Patzelt – The shared world is another huge investment on this title. When we looked at what State of Decay 2 players wanted, what they are really asking for, it was two things: better multiplayer — a true online experience with their friends — and they wanted that shared space. That’s what we’re delivering.
In a shared world, any one of us can make changes to the world. You can come in, asynchronously of me, playing the same save at different times. You can move the story forward, you could build facilities, you can get a second or even third settlement — players can now have up to three bases that they can then grow and expand into over time
And then there’s even an extension beyond that, which is there’s other groups in this world, other groups of NPCs that have, again, their own desires. We call these Enclaves. We’re expanding the Enclave system from State of Decay 2, where they have their own wants, desires and perspectives on how to live in this apocalypse. And you can work with them, you can build trust with them, have an alliance with them, and eventually recruit them.
All those community elements together build out this kind of settlement network. You’re extending your space in the game and working with others to try to get that foothold into the world.
I saw a machete covered in blades in the new trailer – please tell me I can make that too.
Kevin Patzelt – Maker culture is a concept we’ve held in our hearts for several years now. This concept impacts many facets of our art and our perspectives on what players will remake, reuse, upcycle, and renew in the world. In State of Decay 2, one of the common weapons was the golf club, letting players get that fun head kill finisher. To support our new timeline, I told the team early on that all the golf clubs are bent [in State of Decay 3] — what are you going to do now? What are you actually sourcing from? What are you building? I really love this idea of the DIY culture but our fans really love that as well.
So, you can see in the trailer, you’ve got a machete that’s now got a serrated blade on it. Like the golf club example, all of the machetes you can get from a hardware store are shattered. Now you can find altered weapons in the world that embody this maker culture concept. Some machetes are homemade with a serrated edge, others have rebar welded on the back of the blade, some have both! One of my favorite early concepts was the slicing weapon, but you might think, “Boy would I like a little more weight for better dismemberment.”
All these visual elements, these fun looking things, apply to the systems and how the gameplay functions. So, while the rebar-backed one might have better dismemberment, it causes a little more stamina usage, but that’s a choice a player can opt into.
As you upgrade your facilities, the visual fidelity, these maker culture moments add together and then it just fits into all the fun. It’s exciting to look at art pieces that we have that show up as items you can use.
