🎉 Celebrating 25 Years of GameDev.net! 🎉
Not many can claim 25 years on the Internet! Join us in celebrating this milestone. Learn more about our history, and thank you for being a part of our community!
zombies
Author
How would you do a perspetive of a zombie-survival game?
Not to rip on Resident Evil, but there are better ways to do it. If I made a game, the terrain would be realistic, the encounters with enemies more random (The entire scenario would be real time, hence zombies move around to new areas), and more original (Less of these B.O.W.''s, making the goal more about survival then eliminating a particular enemy)
A good book to check out is the Zombie Survival Handbook/Guide
Also, what would you do for multiplayer?
p.s. These are not the only things I would like to talk about zombie games. I will be back with more questions when I have the time.
Happy Hunting!
I don''t really know how I''d do it. Different zombie movies, i.e. Night of The Living Dead, Dawn of The Dead, Day of the Dead (there''s a theme here), take place in different areas. One''s in a house in BFE, another''s in an underground science/military lab, another takes place in a shopping mall. Resident Evil takes place in another underground science lab, but one very different from the Dawn of The Dead (I think) lab. (This is partly due to the time periods in which they were made.) Resident Evil: Nemesis is coming out this year. Not sure where it''ll be held.
I like the idea of, in stead of having it be a survival game, be an "extermination" game. For instance, you''re sent to wipe out these zombies so it doesn''t get out. Then, something could go awry and you''re screwed, or you were misinformed and there was something more than what you were told.
In the Night of the Living Dead series, a probe went to Venus, and when it came back, it was radioactive and caused the dead to return to life. In Resident Evil, the T-Virus was created by the lab. It killed people, then resurrected them. In the games, there''s another virus that I think affects people differently. I''m not completely sure. In the movie, someone is deeply scratched by a creature who changed formed every time new DNA was absorbed into his body. This person, who''s name currently escapes me, will be the Nemesis in the next movie. I believe he''s altered in some way. In Resident Evil 3, Nemesis had a "tentacle"-like appendage that turned victims into zombies.
I know I''m mostly going from a movie point of view here, but movies are my thing, especially zombie movies. I love ''em, and I wish there were more.
I liked the "feel" of the Resident Evil games until Veronica X, which had horrible controls. I''d do the control like the earlier versions, with lock-on targeting. I''d set it somewhere where than can be a large range of zombies. For instance, in a town where there''s a zoo and/or a pet store.
I like the idea of, in stead of having it be a survival game, be an "extermination" game. For instance, you''re sent to wipe out these zombies so it doesn''t get out. Then, something could go awry and you''re screwed, or you were misinformed and there was something more than what you were told.
In the Night of the Living Dead series, a probe went to Venus, and when it came back, it was radioactive and caused the dead to return to life. In Resident Evil, the T-Virus was created by the lab. It killed people, then resurrected them. In the games, there''s another virus that I think affects people differently. I''m not completely sure. In the movie, someone is deeply scratched by a creature who changed formed every time new DNA was absorbed into his body. This person, who''s name currently escapes me, will be the Nemesis in the next movie. I believe he''s altered in some way. In Resident Evil 3, Nemesis had a "tentacle"-like appendage that turned victims into zombies.
I know I''m mostly going from a movie point of view here, but movies are my thing, especially zombie movies. I love ''em, and I wish there were more.
I liked the "feel" of the Resident Evil games until Veronica X, which had horrible controls. I''d do the control like the earlier versions, with lock-on targeting. I''d set it somewhere where than can be a large range of zombies. For instance, in a town where there''s a zoo and/or a pet store.
There was an interesting old horror movie on last night called The Crazies. Spoilers. The plot was about a biological weapon that had been accidentaly let loose in a small country town, the horrifying thing was not so much the people infected with the virus, some of whom became violent but others were just lolling around and shouting / talking to themselves (ie. the crazies of the title?). No, the scary thing was the government who wanted to stop the disease spreading at any cost. So there were anti-biohazard-suited soldiers going around forcing people out of their homes at gun-point with no explanations given. For some reason, they took many people to a quarantine centre(maybe because they didn''t demonstrate any symptoms), but they chillingly shot other people in cold blood and torched their bodies.
The film paralleled the escape attempts of a small group of civilians with the search for a cure / the need to make sure it didn''t spread.
This seemed a very interesting and much more plausible twist on the "zombie" style situation.
The film paralleled the escape attempts of a small group of civilians with the search for a cure / the need to make sure it didn''t spread.
This seemed a very interesting and much more plausible twist on the "zombie" style situation.
The Silent hill games had zombie-ish enemies, and a wide variety of them. They were products of evil, twisted and perverted, rather than just re-animated corpses. I have a few criteria for a good fightable zombie:
First, it has to be dead. I don''t want any moral qualms about maybe finding a cure for these poor people. They''re dead, I just have to make them believe it.
Second, I want it to shamble. 28 Days later had running zombies. Also, they were still technically alive. That sucked. I want my living dead to be slow and relentless.
Third, a handful of center-of mass shots, or one to the CNS (central nervous system) should put it down. Decapitation is fine, but I want zombies that can be killed by bullets.
Fourth, they must be stupid. No setting traps, no figuring out keypad codes, no finding keys and opening doors, no barricades, no construction, no strategy. They shamble, and eat brains.
Fifth, they should only very rarely get up when i think they''re dead. Maybe once or twice, when I miss major organs or hit three of them with a truck. Playing dead is too smart for zombies, and they can''t be knocked out, since they''re unconscious to begin with.
Sixth, by God keep their clothes on. Nothing is worse than naked zombies. Urgh.
Seventh, if they come up out of the ground, their hands absolutely must punch out first.
Eighth, I can''t get turned into a zombie by coming in contact with them. Only a bizarre event can make zombies, and zombie-bites don''t do it. I can chop, and shoot, and smash zombies all day long without zombifying. You''ve got to be dead to be a zombie, and that means having your brains eaten.
All these things are important. Some are less important than others, but as a rule, Resident Evil zombies are my zombies of choice.
First, it has to be dead. I don''t want any moral qualms about maybe finding a cure for these poor people. They''re dead, I just have to make them believe it.
Second, I want it to shamble. 28 Days later had running zombies. Also, they were still technically alive. That sucked. I want my living dead to be slow and relentless.
Third, a handful of center-of mass shots, or one to the CNS (central nervous system) should put it down. Decapitation is fine, but I want zombies that can be killed by bullets.
Fourth, they must be stupid. No setting traps, no figuring out keypad codes, no finding keys and opening doors, no barricades, no construction, no strategy. They shamble, and eat brains.
Fifth, they should only very rarely get up when i think they''re dead. Maybe once or twice, when I miss major organs or hit three of them with a truck. Playing dead is too smart for zombies, and they can''t be knocked out, since they''re unconscious to begin with.
Sixth, by God keep their clothes on. Nothing is worse than naked zombies. Urgh.
Seventh, if they come up out of the ground, their hands absolutely must punch out first.
Eighth, I can''t get turned into a zombie by coming in contact with them. Only a bizarre event can make zombies, and zombie-bites don''t do it. I can chop, and shoot, and smash zombies all day long without zombifying. You''ve got to be dead to be a zombie, and that means having your brains eaten.
All these things are important. Some are less important than others, but as a rule, Resident Evil zombies are my zombies of choice.
quote: Original post by Iron Chef Carnage
Third, a handful of center-of mass shots, or one to the CNS (central nervous system) should put it down. Decapitation is fine, but I want zombies that can be killed by bullets.
If you shoot it in the spine from the back, or the bullet goes all the way through and hits the spine, I could understand if the zombie was paralyzed from there down. Not killed though, unless the brain is severed from the cerebral cortex or something like that, I think.
quote:
Sixth, by God keep their clothes on. Nothing is worse than naked zombies. Urgh.
Agreed.
quote:
Eighth, I can''t get turned into a zombie by coming in contact with them. Only a bizarre event can make zombies, and zombie-bites don''t do it. I can chop, and shoot, and smash zombies all day long without zombifying. You''ve got to be dead to be a zombie, and that means having your brains eaten.
Say the zombies have gangrenous appendages and the dead are being resurrected by a virus. If you''re scratched, you will have gangrene skin. If it goes to your brain or throughout too much of your body, your dead. Then, you''re resurrected as a zombie.
why must zombies always eat brains? It doesn''t make any sense, why not the liver or intestines etc? I get the impression that people just like it when they say "brrraiiinnns".
Yes....we DO just like it because they say "Braaaaaaiiinns". Cause you see, "Liiiivvveerr" isn''t nearly as satisfying.
To touch upon your question about a multiplayer game:
Option 1) Two teams of normal humans fighting each other AMONG the infestation of the living-dead. So, 3 teams, zombies would be AI driven. The game could be team deathmatch, or capture the flag or capture and hold.
Option 2) [and the option I''d be playing] ... Everyone starts as a human, and on the same team. But there''s AI zombies around. When a human dies, he repawns as a zombie on the zombie team. His goal? ... to eat brains, of course! The longer you stay alive as a human, the more points you gain. But as your entire team slowly becomes zombies, you''re doomed to an inevitable death. It''s just a matter of time.
The 2nd choice is really Aliens vs. Predator 2''s "Survivor" gametype. Just with zombies instead of aliens. But it''s incredibly fun to play.
To touch upon your question about a multiplayer game:
Option 1) Two teams of normal humans fighting each other AMONG the infestation of the living-dead. So, 3 teams, zombies would be AI driven. The game could be team deathmatch, or capture the flag or capture and hold.
Option 2) [and the option I''d be playing] ... Everyone starts as a human, and on the same team. But there''s AI zombies around. When a human dies, he repawns as a zombie on the zombie team. His goal? ... to eat brains, of course! The longer you stay alive as a human, the more points you gain. But as your entire team slowly becomes zombies, you''re doomed to an inevitable death. It''s just a matter of time.
The 2nd choice is really Aliens vs. Predator 2''s "Survivor" gametype. Just with zombies instead of aliens. But it''s incredibly fun to play.
I like the "respawn as a zombie" idea, but I''d rather not have zombies from the get-go. I think it would be a good compromise between games that put the dead into spectator mode and games with respawn. You start out with two teams in deathmatch (or something), and everyone who dies gets to respawn as a zombie. So it''s 16 vs. 16 and then after a few minutes it''s 5 vs. 8 with... umm... (32-(5+8)=32-13=22-3=19) nineteen zombies running around. As a zombie, you can either try to keep your team going by eating only enemy brains, or flip out and eat as many brains as you can get.
Start it out with a semi-realistic damage system, so if you get capped in the ten-ring you get dead, but as a zombie perhaps you have a better chance of surviving injury, so you''re slower, but more robust. Then you get "zombie points" for eating brains, and you can distnguish yourself either as a human warrior, a zombie-slayer, or a brain-eater. Could be neat. Some weapons would be better against the shambling dead, like shotguns, but less effective against human targets at long range. So you get a team with five guys with rifles, five guys with shotties, and five guys with dual-purpose SMGs. The shotgunners are largely useless in the beginning, except as defense, but as the zombies multiply, they become invaluable. I want to play this game.
Start it out with a semi-realistic damage system, so if you get capped in the ten-ring you get dead, but as a zombie perhaps you have a better chance of surviving injury, so you''re slower, but more robust. Then you get "zombie points" for eating brains, and you can distnguish yourself either as a human warrior, a zombie-slayer, or a brain-eater. Could be neat. Some weapons would be better against the shambling dead, like shotguns, but less effective against human targets at long range. So you get a team with five guys with rifles, five guys with shotties, and five guys with dual-purpose SMGs. The shotgunners are largely useless in the beginning, except as defense, but as the zombies multiply, they become invaluable. I want to play this game.
I do agree with all stated.
And I should clarify that in the "Survivor" gametype for AvP2, there are no AI aliens at all. At the very start of the game, it''s human vs human. But as soon as the first person dies (and becomes an alien) then it switches over to human vs alien.
But I know from experience that if you''re the 1st alien, it can be really hard to get that 2nd kill ... but once you do, it spreads uncontrollably like a plague. I realized that the zombies would have an even harder time than the aliens, because while they both rely on melee kills, zombies would be much slower. So...they would sort of depend on numbers to back them up.
Yes, I want to play this too. Oh, and I want a flamethrower. Roast those dried up corpses!
And I should clarify that in the "Survivor" gametype for AvP2, there are no AI aliens at all. At the very start of the game, it''s human vs human. But as soon as the first person dies (and becomes an alien) then it switches over to human vs alien.
But I know from experience that if you''re the 1st alien, it can be really hard to get that 2nd kill ... but once you do, it spreads uncontrollably like a plague. I realized that the zombies would have an even harder time than the aliens, because while they both rely on melee kills, zombies would be much slower. So...they would sort of depend on numbers to back them up.
Yes, I want to play this too. Oh, and I want a flamethrower. Roast those dried up corpses!
Yes! Flamethrower!
It would definietely suck to be the only zombie. I guess you''d have to let the zombies respawn, or maybe give them a limited "down time" when they get whacked. After all, if you just kill the zombies as they are created, you''d never really see more than one at a time.
I guess a handful of AI zombies would be nice. Maybe with limited respawn (kill a zombie, it gets up thirty seconds later, but after the fifth time you drop it, it stays dropped), a few AI zombies could be enough trouble to help out the first few player zombies.
That''s a little in-depth. What other zombie systems are out there?
how about a single-player game with a team of AI "buddies"? I think it would be neat if the Marines in Halo could get converted into Flood while you were there. If you do a good job and protect them, then you''ll have more guns and fewer enemies, but if they get Flooded, you have to kill them.
It would definietely suck to be the only zombie. I guess you''d have to let the zombies respawn, or maybe give them a limited "down time" when they get whacked. After all, if you just kill the zombies as they are created, you''d never really see more than one at a time.
I guess a handful of AI zombies would be nice. Maybe with limited respawn (kill a zombie, it gets up thirty seconds later, but after the fifth time you drop it, it stays dropped), a few AI zombies could be enough trouble to help out the first few player zombies.
That''s a little in-depth. What other zombie systems are out there?
how about a single-player game with a team of AI "buddies"? I think it would be neat if the Marines in Halo could get converted into Flood while you were there. If you do a good job and protect them, then you''ll have more guns and fewer enemies, but if they get Flooded, you have to kill them.
This topic is closed to new replies.
Advertisement
Popular Topics
Advertisement
