Just Survive
Cerberus and Bandit Server Wipe
Thanks for your patience while we complete this transition.
Game Update March 10th
Server Ruleset Changes
The Cerberus and Bandit servers in the US region have been changed to "Restricted Base Building ruleset." Both servers are PvP flagged and will prevent building near POIs.
New Horrors
When society collapsed and zombies became a reality, people believed that their worst nightmares had come true. But that nightmare had just begun, and now, new zombies have arisen to hunt the living. Survivors have spoken of zombies with strange new behaviors and properties, making the already slim possibility of survival that much smaller. New tactics will be needed to confront these emerging threats, and those who cannot adapt quickly will likely meet a terrifying and grisly end.
Zombie Updates
Items
A new type of grenade can now be crafted that will attract the attention of zombies before exploding, killing any zombies within the blast radius.
Quality of Life Improvements:
General
The Wasteland Crate is here!
Shotgun Consistency Improvements
Consistent Helmet Functionality
We’ve had two helmets that function differently for some time now. As we analyzed them, it became apparent that, having both were too weak and neither was accomplishing the gameplay goal we had for them. Instead of continuing with distinct helmets that have clear weaknesses, both Tactical and Motorcycle helmets now function consistently across both helmets. Both have 20,000 durability and will break after one shot. In most cases, helmets will nullify all bonus headshot damage, leaving players fairly healthy after a single shot to the helmet. The one exception to that is the Hunting Rifle; headshots with it are lethal whether or not a helmet is equipped.
Combat Feedback Improvements
Crosshair Hitmarks
Audio Feedback
Vehicle Updates
The visual effects for smoke and fire on vehicle damage states have been updated. There is also a change to the behavior so that once a vehicle starts burning it will take damage over time.
The health/condition resources have been re-calibrated to 3100, so by the time they reach 20% and start taking damage its equivalent to the 2500 points they used to have.
Once the fire starts at 20%, it takes about 45 seconds for the vehicle to expire.
At 10% the damage rate increases and the vehicle drops 80% of its engine torque.
Destructible Objects
Camera Adjustments
Gear Changes:
Misc. Fixes:
Producer's Update March 4th
Hi everyone, and thanks for taking the time to give this a read. I know that many of you have poured countless hours into H1Z1 and all of the developers thank you for that. We are in a phase where we are regrouping and refocusing, so your dedication is really appreciated.
This week’s update will be a little more brief than last. I have decided to split these in half and one week will just talk about Just Survive and then the next week talk about King of the Kill and continue to alternate like that each week.
Before I jump into what’s to come for Just Survive, there is one overall topic that I wanted to address first and that is in regards to trade delays on Steam. We are watching the player feedback on this topic and discussing internally. For context, we instituted trade delays to deal with significant organized fraud being attempted against the marketplace. That fraud is bad for the game, bad for the company, and bad for players. No one wins. That being said, timers for trade lockouts are adjustable, and we will make changes going forward to try and find that balance between convenience and fraud control. No updates to the timers this week, but this is something that we will use data and your feedback to determine in the next several weeks and see what we can learn there.
With that out of the way, let’s take a look at what we changed in Just Survive this last week. All of these changes are now on their way to our Test servers and will be pushed to the live servers on March 9th.
Bug Fixes
Current Focus for Just Survive
For the most part, the team was very reactionary this week. We attempted to push an update that included the new zombies (Screamer, Gasser, and Exploder) and zombie AI last Friday. This update failed internally and as we started to unravel it, we determined that it would be easier to cease that effort and begin getting ready for a full update to our test servers which had not happened in some time. We are in the final stages of testing that update right now. This update will include some cool things, including the stuff that I discussed last week.
Next Planned Release
Tentatively March 9, 2016
Producer's Update February 26th
Hi everyone, and thanks for taking the time to give this a read. I know that many of you have poured countless hours into H1Z1 and all of the developers thank you for that. We are in a phase where we are regrouping and refocusing, so your dedication is really appreciated.
I wanted to start a weekly update to share some visibility into what the team is currently focused on and highlight some of the latest work. I will write this up every week and shoot to post an update each Friday. If I am out of the office then I might not be able to write up an update, but I will try and get the news out when it will not happen.
It will be pretty brief, I am prioritizing speed and timeliness over a beautifully written piece. I just want to get a more regular system in place to provide updates out to all of our players. Each week I will provide a brief update on the current priorities and focuses for the teams, along with updates to the next planned update.
With that out of the way, let’s take a look at what the H1Z1 teams have been focused on over the last week.
Bug Fixes that affect both games
We are increasing our focus on quality of life issues and getting focused on fixing a lot of the lingering bugs in the game. Here are some of the fixes that we made over this last week.
Current Focus for Just Survive
The JS team has been working on introducing new zombie types (3 brand new zombies) and enhancing the AI. In addition they are now able to pull from our full library of wearables so zombies will have way more variety in them. I don’t have an ETA at the moment, but we are working on putting up a couple of servers that will have restricted base building areas around the populated areas of the game to see how that plays out and address issues that we see around base building.
Bug fixing will become a larger focus for the JS team, I have read some quality of life posts on Reddit and other places to help prioritize where the fixes will go, so if you have posted any bugs that you have seen then I probable read it and incorporated it into our plans.
Current Focus for King of the Kill
For KotK we have a new mode prototyped and will get out to our test server in a few weeks for large scale testing. Most of the KotK focus is on gameplay balance and fixing bugs like the ones above. We are paying attention to what you all are telling us and will continue to have bug fixing as a priority.
Next Planned Release
Tentatively March 9, 2016
Server Stability
First, we want to thank each of you for all your patience during the split and appreciate all the feedback you’ve provided. Right now, some of you may be experiencing queues for King of the Kill that are little longer than intended. We currently have folks working on this and have some fixes going in our next update to improve it.
This next update for both games will also include fixes which should improve some of the related issues we’ve seen folks talking about such as loot spawning, falling through the map, and general desync.
The update for these changes are currently in progress. Thanks again for all your patience! Be sure to follow us on Twitter for updates @H1Z1JustSurvive and @H1Z1KotK.
H1Z1: Just Survive is now Live!
- Zombies now randomly pick an animation set upon spawning, allowing for more combinations of clothing and animations.
- Zombies will now move at certain speeds based on their animation set, which should eliminate feet sliding and animation blending issues.
- NPC spawns have been tweaked. Day and night NPC spawns using varying ratios making the night more dangerous
- Day: Higher number of walkers and prey type wild life
- Night: Higher number of runners and predator type wild life
Animation
- Fixed player jumping. The player model and physics capsule are now properly aligned which allows you to successfully jump on or over objects that you couldn't before, even though it looked like you should be able to (those fences!).
- Polish to jump standing One Hand animation (made poses match between Start, Middle, End).
Weapons & Armor
- Lowered AK-47 damage from 32 to 29.
- Increased AK-47 re-fire delay from 125ms to 160ms.
- The amount of damage Explosive Tipped Arrows deal to vehicles has been reduced slightly to prevent them from one-shot exploding full Condition vehicles.
- Kevlar will now break after 2 gunshots instead of 3.
- Motorcycle helmets now absorb slightly more damage, preventing instantaneous death from a single shot to the body following a headshot.
These changes are intended to accomplish a few things:
- Reduce the overall power of the AK-47, because it was far too strong.
- In particular, we felt the AK-47 was too strong at medium-long range versus the AR-15 and too strong at close range versus the Shotgun. The adjustments to its damage and fire-rate are meant to address that imbalance.
- Reduce how often one dies with no recourse.
- 3 AK-47 shots reducing health to 3% with Severe Bleeding, which didn’t allow time for bandaging. The new AK-47 damage gives enough time to get behind cover and apply a bandage or first-aid.
- It should no longer be possible to die in two shots while wearing a motorcycle helmet when at full health.
- Explosive Tipped Arrows will no longer explode full Condition (or even fairly healthy) vehicles, allowing for a chance to react rather than instant death.
- Like the AK-47, we felt Tactical Body Armor was too powerful, so its effectiveness has been reduced.
Vehicles
- Vehicles will no longer take damage from M47 Gas Grenades.
- Vehicles on steep slopes should behave more realistically when their tires start to slip. Particularly on the ATV, in conditions where it used to get bogged down on hills.
- ATV handling adjustments to the center of mass make it less likely to flip unexpectedly. Certainly still possible to flip, but it should be more stable overall.
- Vehicle death explosion effect improvements. When a vehicle does blow up the smoke/fire on the burning chassis looks much better and lasts for longer.
Customizable Reticle
You can customize your reticle on the settings page. Select the color and pattern. When you select “Fixed First Person” the reticle will reset to default color and pattern and behavior (White and dot and different reticles per weapon) You can still change the color and pattern afterwards but in first person each weapon will retain its reticle pattern. Unselect “Fixed First Person” and all reticles are the custom one.
Additional Fixes
- Fixed an invulnerable base design that used the “door within a wall” object.
- Multiple changes to resolve threaded physics bugs on the zone.
- Fixed an issue that caused a higher than normal amount of wolves to spawn
- Fixed an issue that caused some areas to spawn little or no loot
- Fixed an exploit that made it possible to shoot through vehicles in third-person if the player’s weapon model clipped through the vehicle model. If a player’s weapon model is clipping through another model, projectiles will correctly strike the surface of that model even if the player’s aim reticle is above that model.
Temporary hold on Trading
H1Z1 Becomes Two Games, Two Development Teams
The more we developed this game with you, our community, the more we realized that in order to fully support both aspects of H1Z1, and their respective players, we needed to make them their own stand-alone games supported by their own dedicated development teams. Many players in the community have been discussing splitting the game and we’ve heard you loud and clear. We want to make sure we give both titles the support they need and deserve to truly flourish.
So, we’ve decided to do just that – we’re excited to announce that the survival game will now be called H1Z1: Just Survive, with a renewed focus on truly delivering a persistent, open-world zombie survival experience where scavenging, crafting, and base building are the difference between life and death.
We’re also excited to announce that the fast-paced shooter comprised of multiple, fight-to-the-death game modes, including Battle Royale, will be called H1Z1: King of the Kill (KotK).
Through in-game feedback, as well as discussions on Reddit, Steam, and Twitter, our community has been influential to us in arriving at this decision. The H1Z1 family is growing, and we can’t wait to see what is in store for the H1Z1 franchise in the future.
Additionally, we are happy to tell you that we'll be bringing H1Z1: King of the Kill out of Early Access on the PC and to Xbox One and PlayStation® 4 this summer. We’re working on our plans for bringing H1Z1: Just Survive out of Early Access and to console as well, and we’ll share more details about that in the future.
H1Z1: Just Survive and H1Z1: King of the Kill will each have their own dedicated development resources. You can expect to get to know the newest additions to the teams as we continue our behind-the-scenes look with Dev Blogs, Livestreams, and more. They will also have separate social channels so it’ll be easier for you to keep track of the game you care most about.
Anyone who already owns H1Z1 will be granted both versions and will see it listed in your Steam games inventory on February 17th (the official day of the split). Additionally, existing crates, keys, and items will be duplicated across both games. As originally intended, Airdrop tickets will be useable in H1Z1: Just Survive and Event tickets will be usable in H1Z1: King of the Kill.
If you have items on the Steam Market, they will be returned to your player inventory, and post-split you can relist them for sale under the correct game title.
Don't have H1Z1 yet? We are offering new customers a chance to get in on the action before the split. If you purchase H1Z1anytime on or before February 16th PST, you will be granted both H1Z1: Just Survive and H1Z1: King of the Kill at the time of the split. Starting today, H1Z1 is participating in the Steam Lunar Sale, so you can pick it up for a discounted price for a limited time!
Starting February 17th, both games will be available as separate Early Access titles for $19.99 each.
For more information, read our in-depth FAQ below.
Thank you for you continued support of H1Z1, and Daybreak Games.
Have Questions? We’ve Got Answers. (FAQ)
Q: So, wait… what’s going on with H1Z1?
A: H1Z1 is spinning off into two separate titles – H1Z1: Just Survive (an open-world zombie survival game) and H1Z1: King of the Kill (a fight-to-the-death shooter spectacle).
Q: How much will each game cost?
A: Starting February 17, 2016, H1Z1: Just Survive and H1Z1: King of the Kill will be available on Steam Early Access for $19.99 USD each.
Q: What if I already bought H1Z1?
A: All players who have purchased H1Z1 on Steam Early Access on or before February 16, 2016 (Pacific Time) will be granted access to both games at the time they separate.
Q: What happens to my existing crates, keys, items, etc.?
A: If you’re a current H1Z1 player, all of your existing crates, keys, and items will be duplicated and available to you in both H1Z1: Just Survive and H1Z1: King of the Kill. Air Drop tickets will be found and can only be used in H1Z1: Just Survive, and Event Tickets can only be used in H1Z1: King of the Kill.
Q: Will both H1Z1: Just Survive and H1Z1: King of the Kill still be Early Access titles?
A: Yes, both games will still be Early Access.
Q: When will H1Z1: Just Survive and H1Z1: King of the Kill come out of Early Access?
A: H1Z1: King of the Kill will be coming out of Early Access and will launch on PC, the PlayStation® 4, and Xbox One in summer 2016. We do not have an official release date for when H1Z1: Just Survive will be coming out of Early Access; stay tuned for updates!
Q: I plan to play both H1Z1: Just Survive and H1Z1: King of the Kill. Will I access them from the same menu?
A: Each game will have its own separate launcher that you will need to load in order to play the game. If you’re playing one game and wish to switch, you’ll need to exit the game and load the other.
Q: Will I still need Daybreak Cash?
A: Yes, both games on PC will still require Daybreak Cash for optional in-game transactions. There will be a similar currency available when the games come to console; stay tuned for more information.
Q: Will H1Z1: Just Survive and H1Z1: King of the Kill become Free-to-Play games after they come out of Early Access?
A: At this time, we do not have any plans to make either H1Z1: Just Survive or H1Z1: King of the Kill Free-to-Play titles.
Q: Where should I look for updates and news?
A: You can find information on www.H1Z1.com. We will soon be launching separate social media channels for each game, so you can choose to follow the game you’re most interested in, or keep following along with both! Stay tuned for more details on the new social media channels coming on February 17, 2016.
The Scream Heard Round the Wasteland
You’re making your way through a rundown hospital on a moonlit night. The desperation for supplies drove you into such a horrible place. As you round a corner you notice a figure standing at the end of the hallway. It doesn’t look like the other zombies you encountered before. As it turns its head you notice it’s bound in a straitjacket and is missing its lower jaw. It can’t be too much of a threat right? Wrong. The strange zombie throws its head back and emits a blood chilling scream. From all corners of the hospital a new sound emerges, the shuffling of hundreds of feet… every zombie is now headed straight for you.
The new screamer zombie is being created with some new techniques in mind. H1Z1 Game Developers Matt Case and David Carter are here to give you a look behind the scenes at what it took to bring this unique zombie to life.
Art Design - Matt Case
So, for the visual look on this thing, Salim Grant (Lead Designer) had requested that it be something with very different silhouette and feel than the other zombies in game. It also needed to be something that appeared to be bound up, with no threat of biting a player, but would only scream and signal other zombies.
We had one of our talented interns, Cherylynn Lima, working on the base design. While tossing some ideas around (influenced by the addition of the hospital to the game) we thought a zombified asylum patient that would broadcast some very creepy imagery and feelings. She found some old, black & white, disturbing images from an insane asylum. (I think we warped both our young interns with the research they had to do online for this game).
We knew we wanted to use a straitjacket to bind the character in to change its locomotion from other zombies. Cher found some disturbing head restraint images, and wanted to incorporate that into her design. She removed the lower jaw, so the zombie clearly can’t attack the player, but is still able to scream a haunting, wailing noise. For extra creepiness, she left the zombie’s tongue hanging out of its gaping maw.
I think her change in silhouette coupled with her unique animations will allow her to stand out against the hordes of zombies in the game. The Screamer model was brought to life by Senior Character Artist, Cory Rohlfs, who sculpted her in Zbrush, and textured her in Maya and Photoshop. Once the screamer zombie makes its way into the game you will truely be able to appreciate all the gory and gruesome details with the proper lighting and tinting.
Animation – David Carter
We wanted to try something a little different with the Screamer animation. There’s a method employed in some horror films to achieve a “creepy” look when a ghoul of some sort is standing around in the background or moving eerily toward the viewer. The technique involves filming an actor as they attempt to move in very slow motion, with the occasional random twitch of a body part. The film is then sped up to three or four times the original rate, so that the actor appears to be moving at a more natural speed, and a few frames are dropped here and there to gain some subtle popping. The end result is that your ghoul feels quite unnatural, even though they seem to be moving at a somewhat normal speed.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xeRDdTJ3JhE
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7ZTFHROJJT8
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w5JOTJ9STv8
Connectivity issues
Thank you for your reports and patience.