The Walking Dead: Onslaught to be an “immersive single-player experience”
If you’ve been following the development saga on The Walking Dead: Onslaught since its announcement in early 2019, you’ll know that it’s been a bit of a rollercoaster. Originally slated for a Fall 2019 release, The Walking Dead: Onslaught got delayed over a full year and is now on course for release sometime later in 2020. While the details of the delay were a bit muddy for the past several months, developer Survios put out a blog post on Steam to talk about the big changes that have been made since the delay. In a nutshell, Survios is focusing on a cinematic, immersive single-player experience in order to make the world of The Walking Dead feel a bit more real.
Specifically, Survios detailed three points of focus that should help set Onslaught apart from the horde of zombie games on the market. First up, is the removal of the planned co-op feature and, in its place, a more “authentic and immersive” experience from the world of the show. Second is the inclusion of The Alexandria Safe-Zone in the game, where players can truly feel like they’re making a difference in the virtual world of the undead. Players will be able to upgrade The Alexandria over the course of the game, including building construction, arsenal customization, and interaction with characters from the show. Survios dubs it “a meaningful progression system” that’s designed to immerse players in the world of AMC’s The Walking Dead, specifically.
If that’s not enough for you, maybe the enhanced combat and gore system will be. The Walking Dead: Saints & Sinners, released by developer Skydance Interactive on VR platforms earlier this year, heavily relied on a physics system that helped players feel more like they’re in a physical world than a virtual one. Survios seems to be taking this concept further in The Walking Dead: Onslaught, as they’ve developed several systems that not only simulates weapon weight and material resistance but also gore and dismemberment, as well. Survios lists delimbing, carving, impaling, and plenty of other techniques that demonstrate the power of its advanced physics and character mesh systems.
As Survios 7th game built from the ground-up for VR, there are some high expectations for a title of this caliber. With Survios focusing on direct tie-ins with the show, including Norman Reedus’ appearance and more realistic dismemberment and gore, there’s no doubt that the second VR appearance from The Walking Dead franchise is looking to be a satisfying experience. We’ll be getting a gameplay debut in just a few days, so let’s just hope the omission of co-op in favor of a more fleshed-out single-player experience is worth the wait!
