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Get prepped for State of Decay: Year One on Xbox One in April
State of Decay: Year One Survival Edition fights for more life on Xbox One starting April 28 in North America, with other countries joining the party on May 1. Microsoft confirmed the game's US price is $30, while owners of the Xbox 360 original can get a 33 percent discount off the Xbox One version up until June 30. The 1080p Xbox One edition of Undead Labs' zombified survival horror comes with add-on packs Breakdown and Lifeline, as well as new content. It's also just part of the developer's "multi-year, multi-title" agreement with Microsoft.
State of Decay Xbox One edition hits in 2015, 1080p
And other numbers. State of Decay: Year-One Survival Edition is heading to Xbox One in spring 2015. The game includes the add-on packs Breakdown and Lifeline, plus new content, and all of it running in 1080p. In January, State of Decay developer Undead Labs announced it had signed a "multi-year, multi-title agreement" with Microsoft Studios. [Image: Microsoft]
State of Decay dev unveils mobile, multiplayer RPG Moonrise
Undead Labs' next project departs the open-world, zombie apocalypse of State of Decay in favor of optimistic, dreamy fantasy and Pokemon-style companions. Dubbed "Moonrise," the multiplayer, mobile roleplaying game centers on the titular Moonrise, an event that causes creatures known as Solari to turn from humanity's peaceful pals to murderous beasts known as Lunari. As a Warden, it's your job to defeat the Lunari (which, helpfully, turns them back into Solari and adds a new ally to your cause). If you get bored of beating on computer-controlled critters, you can also use your squad of loyal Solari to battle other Wardens via online multiplayer. Undead Labs plans to launch a Moonrise beta test on iPhone, iPad and Android devices this Fall. Assuming all goes to plan, Moonrise will make its official debut in "early 2015." [Image: Undead Labs]
State of Decay 'Lifeline' DLC surges to life on May 30
State of Decay's "Lifeline" DLC is due out on May 30 for $7, Undead Labs announced this week. The DLC is in certification now, and "if all goes well," it'll hit on May 30 alongside the "Rucks in Trucks" Title Update. Lifeline places a squadron of soldiers on a new, zombie-infested map, where they must take down the undead, protect their base and rescue survivors. The map is a concrete jungle and former city center, complete with skyscrapers, freeway tunnels and overpasses, and helicopter pads. The Rucks in Trucks Title Update lets players throw a sack of things into the back of a vehicle and drive it away. Undead went into the gritty details of Rucks in Trucks back in March. [Image: Undead Labs]
PAX East 2014: State of Decay eyes multiplayer, stays offline
The ground is fairly littered with zombie games of some sort these days. That isn't meant as a mark against Undead Labs' State of Decay, but it does raise questions of focus. How do you make a zombie game more unique? According to the studio's Jeff Strain at this year's PAX East, you focus upon building at the community level rather than individual survival. While games like DayZ focus on the personal, State of Decay is much more focused on the idea of putting society as a whole back together and trying to accumulate resources and structures for survivors as a whole. Of course, most of our readers are more interested in what comes next, specifically Class4. That's the proposed sequel to State of Decay, previously codenamed Class3; it's meant to be a full MMO according to previous statements, a game in which you can worry about rebuilding not just a local community but the world as a whole. And Undead Labs certainly isn't hurting for talent that's familiar with online games, especially with the acquisition of ArenaNet co-founder Patrick Wyatt in January. So what's happening?
State of Decay 'Lifeline' expansion digs up a new map
State of Decay's second expansion pack, Lifeline, is in the internal testing process at Undead Labs. There's no launch date yet, but it includes a new map and the team is currently putting it through its paces on Steam, Community Director Sanya Weathers says on the Undead blog. "We're not yet ready to discuss features or make promises," Weathers says. "All we can tell you is that it will offer you a new way to play your favorite survival game, that we intend to launch on PC and the Xbox 360 at the same time, and that yes, it will broaden your horizons by a few kilometers. Fine, I'll say it straight up: There's a new map, okay?" Undead launched State of Decay's first expansion, Breakdown, in November. In January, Undead extended its relationship with Microsoft Studios in a "multi-year, multi-title" agreement, and it hired ArenaNet founder and MMO developer Patrick Wyatt. [Image: Undead Labs]
Joystiq Tiny Streams: State of Decay and the art of woodsy zombie survival
Welcome back to Joystiq Tiny Streams, our new series of bite-size streams wherein the Joystiq staff takes you on a brief tour of what they're playing. Today's stream comes from one Xav de Matos, who decided to dig into a little State of Decay. Undead Labs' open-world survival game fits right in line with Xav's Four in February horror picks, so it's best to think of his early exploration here as training for the month ahead (as well as training for the zombie apocalypse). If you'd like to check out the full stream, head over to Xav's Twitch channel, and you can watch full Joystiq Streams from our Twitch channel as well. For more Tiny Streams, tune back in every Monday and Friday at 4PM EST right here on Joystiq. [Images: Undead Labs]
State of Decay developer hires MMO veteran Patrick Wyatt
En Masse Entertainment and NCsoft West alumnus Patrick Wyatt has joined up with State of Decay developer Undead Labs to assist the team with upcoming projects. Previously, Wyatt oversaw design and development of TERA's game publishing platform, helping to launch En Masse's MMORPG in 2012. Wyatt additionally developed core server and network platform technology for Guild Wars during his time with ArenaNet, a studio he co-founded before it was purchased by NCsoft West in 2002. Wyatt's role within Undead Labs has not been disclosed, but he may assist in developing Class4, an MMO project that stalled last year during the studio's negotiations with Microsoft. Undead Labs later signed a multi-year contract with Microsoft Studios, suggesting the project may be back on track.
ArenaNet co-founder heads to Undead Labs
Undead Labs announced today that it has hired Patrick Wyatt, co-founder of ArenaNet and co-creator of the original Guild Wars. Wyatt, who left ArenaNet in 2008, joins fellow Guild Wars co-creator Jeff Strain at the State of Decay studio, which has not been shy about its intention to build a zombie-themed MMO. State of Decay, codenamed Class3, launched in 2013 and was confirmed by the studio as a test run for an eventual MMO release, codenamed Class4. Here's Strain on the announcement: Today, I'm very happy to announce that Patrick has joined Undead Labs, and will be working shoulder-to-shoulder with Team Zed as we dive into the development of...well, what's next, and beyond. Undead Labs recently struck a multi-game agreement with Microsoft, paving the way for the studio to continue work on the Class4 project.
State of Decay dev extends relationship with Microsoft Studios
Undead Labs, developer of the runaway zombie hit State of Decay, has signed a "multi-year, multi-title agreement" with Microsoft Studios. "We'll be able to share details later this year, but as with State of Decay, we think it's best if we just keep our heads down and build some prototypes before we talk too much," said company founder Jeff Strain on the Undead Labs blog. "For now, suffice it to say there are big things going on with State of Decay." So, the obvious guess here would be a version of State of Decay for Xbox One à la DayZ. But is that too obvious?
Undead Labs says 'big things are going on with State of Decay'
Is Undead Labs working on its long-rumored State of Decay MMO? Maybe so and maybe no, but the company is working on something big according to founder Jeff Strain's latest blog post. "We'll be able to share details later this year," he writes, "but as with State of Decay, we think it's best if we just keep our heads down and build some prototypes before we talk too much. For now, suffice it to say there are big things going on with State of Decay. Strain also intimates that whatever it is will take quite a while. "It's been a long haul from the original vision to this point, and the road ahead of us will take years to travel. We hope you're up for the trip, because we can't do it without you," he says.
State of Decay: Breakdown feeds November 29
State of Decay's first bite of downloadable content, Breakdown, will be ready to run on November 29. Separate from the expansion, the game's Title Update 4 will also be added the same day. It includes bug fixes and a new loot distribution system. "Our first expansion comes largely from you and your dreams. Less story, more survival. Long-term survival," wrote Undead Labs' Sanya Weathers in the announcement post. "More difficulty. New achievements, survivors, and weapons." For Steam users, the fully remappable keybind feature will be available a few days before the November 29 launch. Breakdown is priced at $6.99.
State of Decay comes to the PC courtesy of Steam
PC gamers feeling left out while watching their Xbox comrades playing State of Decay can wipe those tears away; the zombie survival title has arrived on Steam. State of Decay is available through the digital distribution platform for a straight-up $19.99. If you're curious about Undead Labs' maiden game, then check out our hands-on coverage. The game was a huge hit on the Xbox and hopefully will be followed by an MMO set in the same world. Undead is also preparing the first DLC for State of Decay called Breakdown that will come to both the PC and Xbox. [Thanks to Soren for the tip!]
Steam enters a State of Decay next week
State of Decay is crawling its way onto Steam as a fully-fledged Windows PC game, coming out of Early Access next week on November 5. Going by the Steam page, the Undead Labs concoction will be priced $20. State of Decay proved a breakout hit on Xbox Live Arcade, with a million would-be survivors plunging themselves into its zombified open world. It then came to Steam Early Access as a controller-only build, but don't fret, because Undead Labs eventually patched in keyboard and mouse support for WASD-wanters. The XBLA version gobbled up a very respectable three-and-a-half stars in our review, with our Crazy Dave Hinkle deeming it " a nice vacation away from the societal constraints of your everyday, zombie-free life."
State of Decay hits a million, 'Breakdown' DLC planned for late October
"Run away" hit State of Decay has reached sales of one million units across Xbox Live Arcade and Steam Early Access. The game reached the half-million sales mark within a few weeks of its June 5 launch on XBLA. State of Decay: Breakdown, the first expansion for the zombie survival simulator, has been delivered to Microsoft for "pre-certification testing." The team at Undead Labs hopes to have feedback and officially submit the expansion by the end of next week. "Assuming no catastrophes, we plan on getting Breakdown into your hands by the end of October," wrote Undead Labs' founder, Jeff Strain, on the company's blog. State of Decay is expected to exit early access status on PC by the end of the year.
State of Decay breaks it down on Steam Early Access tomorrow
State of Decay launches on Steam Early Access tomorrow, September 20, for $20. Undead warns that the Early Access version is not final – it may still crash and it doesn't support keyboard and mouse input yet. Players must use an Xbox 360 controller or similarly compatible gamepad for now. Undead will post keyboard interfaces in progress and use player feedback to perfect those before going live. "This process is not for everyone," Undead writes. "Casual players, the easily frustrated, and the short of time should not get the Early Access version. Hey, I am all three of those things, y'all. Those are not criticisms. It's just that we want everyone to have the experience that best suits their needs." The full version of State of Decay will launch later this year, and Early Access players will of course get that for free, with no need to restart. We found State of Decay on Xbox 360 to be technically frustrating, but an enjoyable zombie survival experience – as enjoyable as such grimness can be, anyway.
State of Decay to hit Steam Early Access in 'a couple of weeks'
Early Access to the zombifed landscape of State of Decay is coming in a "couple of weeks." Undead Labs Director of Community Samya Weathers said this week that there's no exact date for the keyboard-only Steam Early Access version, while the full keyboard-and-mouse game is still due for the PC portal later this year. If you're wondering what Undead Labs is planning beyond State of Decay, including its posited MMO sequel Class4, the Seattle-based studio is working that all out right now. "Discussions of future games are ongoing," said Weathers. "As in, going on now. Thank you from the bottom of all our hearts here at the Lab for making SoD a success, or these conversations wouldn't be happening!" State of Decay passed 500,000 sales shortly after hitting Xbox Live Arcade, and it looks like it's nearing the million mark; we see 938,000-plus players registered on the leaderboards. That's why those conversations are happening.
State of Decay patch fixes large survivor community glitch
Undead Labs has issued another patch for State of Decay on Xbox Live, addressing issues related to gathering a large number of survivors. Prior to the patch, the game would crash, freeze up the console or would fail to load altogether for some in-game survivor collectors. While the majority of players will see this issue resolved with the update, Undead Labs warns that some may need to restart their game, "especially if you had a very large community relatively early in the map progression." Complete patch notes are available on the game's official website.
State of Decay PC coming in 2013
State of Decay, XBLA's shambling hit that's sold over a half a million copies since its June 5 launch, will make its way to PC sometime this year. Undead Labs founder Jeff Strain confirmed the detail in a recent livestream, with plans to narrow down that five-month window as soon as possible. The game will launch as part of Steam's Early Access program and will initially only have controller support. The final PC version will "of course" support mouse and keyboard. Strain also teased an upcoming sandbox mode, saying, ""The goal of sandbox is to provide an unbounded experience, one with no victory condition that ends the game. The way we do that is to continue to have a world with finite resources, but find out 'how long can I stay alive.'" Undead Labs plans to detail the sandbox mode sometime in the next week.
State of Decay gets Australian R18+ rating second time around
State of Decay passed its Australian Classification Board re-review with R18+ colors, confirming the ACB says no to drugs but yes-alright-then to vitamins. The XBLA horror was denied entry to Australia after the ACB waggled its finger at the depiction of drug use, so dev Undead Labs changed the game's "stimulants" to "supplements" and re-submitted it. Lo and behold, the game can now be sold in Oz, and in its announcement of the approval Undead said, "Stay tuned for more news tomorrow." State of Decay was the second game to be banned in Australia since the R18+ rating's introduction, the first being none other than Saints Row 4. Developer Volition plans to submit a re-worked version of that game to the ACB, namely a "low violence" one if Steam Australia is anything to go by.
