In this development log, we will introduce the zombie design rework of The Midnight Walkers.
[Design Concept]
The zombie characters that have been redesigned this time are based on occupations that can be frequently seen in the zombie world, and the goal is to provide a more realistic and intuitive sense of fear.
We are trying to increase the immersion in the game by turning real occupations such as firefighter zombies, police zombies, rider zombies, and high-class zombies into zombies while dealing with zombies.
[External Characteristics and Story]
*The zombie story is not finalized and may change during the development process.*
● Firefighter Costume Zombie
- Appearance:
They wear fire suits and helmets, and have burn marks.
They move clumsily due to their heavy equipment, but are designed to look like they have high defense or health.
- Story:
They were originally under Mr. Nobody. However, they rebelled due to their dissatisfaction with Mr. Nobody, but were eventually subdued and punished by being put in charge of maintenance work for the survival show held at Liberty Grand Center.
While preparing to renovate and reopen the place after the survival show ended, they were infected by zombies that were left behind while artificially introducing zombies into the show or while putting out a fire that had spread with Molotov cocktails.
However, there is no need for sympathy. They are not honorable beings.
Their greed and betrayal caused internal divisions within the Mr. Nobody organization, and their downfall was self-inflicted.
In the zombie world, the scariest thing is not zombies. It is people.
● Front and Military Uniform Zombie
- Appearance:
They have traces of wearing bulletproof vests, helmets, and military gear, and their rotten skin is characteristic.
They are designed to look difficult to deal with because of their job characteristics of military training and combat gear.
- Story:
They made a living as mercenary soldiers or riot squads during their lifetime, and acted as the main military force of Mr. Nobody. After the spread of the virus, they were hired to suppress riots and coups, and played a key role in maintaining order under Mr. Nobody's power.
However, in the process, there were personnel who suffered serious injuries from unexpected accidents or were attacked by zombies, and Mr. Nobody showed cruelty by turning them into zombies instead of killing them and using them for survival shows.
This is because survival shows always need zombies.
As they were once powerful beings who protected Liberty Grand Center, it is said that survival shows became very difficult to survive and escape after they were turned into zombies.
● Rider Costume Zombie
- Appearance:
Designed to look like a fast-moving zombie wearing a bicycle helmet and light sports clothing.
- Story:
They are in charge of light material supply at Liberty Grand Center, and their primary means of transportation is bicycles.
In the world of The Midnight Walkers, electric vehicles are so valuable that they are only used when moving large quantities of materials or high-ranking officials, and general material deliveries are made by bicycle. They are responsible for quickly delivering important resources and information by bicycle.
Success brought great rewards, but failure brought a cruel fate of death or transformation into a zombie.
Before the infection, they were a vital link between survivors, playing a key role in delivering resources and information between other survivor camps and Liberty Grand Center. Success in delivering brought them great fame and rewards, but they paid a harsh price in the form of zombie transformation due to unexpected or intentional accidents.
● High-end Clothing Zombie
- Appearance:
His once clean purple shirt, vest, and suit pants are now torn and dirty, hinting at his pre-infection social status. The glowing red eyes indicate that the infection has progressed, and the large body is designed to feel like a threatening presence capable of making slow but powerful attacks.
- Story:
This zombie is a high-ranking figure who fell victim to a power struggle at Liberty Grand Center.
In life, he played a prominent role in the community due to his resources and power, but he was pushed out of the internal power struggle and became the target of a conspiracy. His rivals deliberately infected him in order to eliminate him, and the person he trusted most was his wife.
For many years, he trusted her as his companion and political partner, but his wife secretly plotted to gain power for him. Eventually, she colluded with his enemies and forcibly threw him into the zombie horde.
He struggled to survive, but was eventually transformed into a zombie, and now he had no choice but to show the survivors his anger toward the wife he once trusted.
[Planning and Development Intention]
The zombies that have been reworked this time have not yet been confirmed in terms of their detailed stats, such as their functions and health.
The zombies' stories are also the same.
Currently, we are focusing only on the external changes to provide a visually new experience.
This is to flexibly develop the zombies' abilities and characteristics by collecting various feedbacks from the upcoming playtests.
In addition, we plan to measure the psychological effect of the zombies' appearances on gameplay through A/B testing of the existing zombies and the zombies with the reworked design. Through this process, we plan to secure basic data for adjusting the game balance and scaling the difficulty.
Currently, the appearance has simply changed, but the roles and stats of each zombie may be specified based on the test results in the future. Through this, we plan to design certain zombies to play a more important tactical role in the game.
[Conclusion and Future Development Plans]
We are currently improving the abilities and visual details of various zombie characters, and testing the challenges and threats each zombie will present to survivors in the game.
We will continue to update the various zombie types to further enhance the abilities and visuals of zombies through additional feedback, and to provide players with new combat strategies.
We would appreciate your participation in the upcoming playtest and various feedback.
https://store.steampowered.com/app/2795540/The_Midnight_Walkers/