Answering some questions…

Wow! After notch’s tweet about Zombox on the weekend and RockPaperShotgun’s small article on it, the game has been getting a lot of attention! And with that attention…lots of questions from interested gamers. Here I’ll try to answer a few of them:

  • Is multiplayer/co-op planned?

Currently Zombox is a single-player game only. While I realize an open-world sandbox environment is a perfect multiplayer setting, my target devices (iOS smarphones and pads) wouldn’t be able to handle the game along with multiple players in the same world. Not because they can’t do multiplayer, but because the game would require a fair amount of extra processing power to enable such a feature. I’m already squeezing every ounce of processing juice that I can out of the handheld devices to get the game to run…they simply wouldn’t be able to handle the extra players right now.

That being said, I also hope to release on Steam at some point, and since desktop computers will have no problem running the game, multiplayer is a possibility for a future version of the game. But it’s worth noting that I can’t make any promises about that.

  • When is it going to be released?

I don’t have an exact date yet….but I’m making great progress on the development of the game so there’s no need to fear about it being stuck in development hell forever.

  • Will there be a beta?

I’m not totally sure about that either. I hope to have a short-term beta for the game when it’s close to release, but I don’t know if it’ll be a public beta, or a private beta with hand-picked testers.

  • How much will it cost?

I’m leaning towards $2.99.

Also, someone requested a hi-res version of the image at the top of the page, so here it is!

90 Responses to “Answering some questions…”

  1. Guest says:

    “But it’s worth nothing that I can’t make any promises about that.”
    Worth nothing or worth noting?

  2. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ Guest:

    Heh! Thank you. Spelling corrected.

    • hussan says:

      my name is hussan and im not a terrorist.anyways xD can you make a demo for the game? like a normal training? the big deal is the price πŸ™ how about you make it 1.99$?

  3. Jonas says:

    Thank you very much for the image!!!

  4. Hugo says:

    I love the price! the image is my new background! co-op idea to computer is awesome! having it on Steam is awesome! I CANT FREAKING WAIT!!!

  5. Steve says:

    Please bring this to XBOX Live Indie Arcade. I’d pay $5 and more for a game like this!

  6. Big says:

    Game looks amazing. Would fit in right at home on Steam. Once it’s up for sale on Steam i’ll be grabing it.

  7. Mark says:

    Wow, this game looks like LOADS of fun! Great work! ould be happy to pay at least what you’re asking at present.

    I understand why devs don’t always like to release betas, (threads and threads of “This doesn’t work! It broke my PC! My laptop can’t run it!” etc etc.

    However, I’ve been playing the ALPHA of Project Zomboid, which I happily paid for, (on the understanding I was only paying for the Alpha, so it was almost like a donation, although I’ll get the “full” game for free when released), and it is a good way to get a game tested on numerous setups, as well as being good for promoting the title…just a thought!
    πŸ™‚

  8. HaVoK308 says:

    I have an iPad, and iPods in the house, I sure wish this was a PC release first. Then port it over to handhelds. Of course I am not the developer and it’s not my decision. Doesn’t mean I can’t wish it though. πŸ˜‰

  9. Zombloxer says:

    I “AGREE”STRONGLY xbox live indie or XBLA would sell much better than pc or ios i think i also think you should implement co op, Exclusive for pc and xbox(if you decide to make it)

    -Team Zombloxer

  10. GoobeR says:

    Can you PLEASE make more Zombox backgrounds? πŸ˜‰

  11. GoobeR says:

    Will there be Instore purchase?

  12. Jackal says:

    Yeah I saw the post by rock paper shotgun and popped by. Great game, should look at adding to steam when/if you get multiplayer working. I would happily pay $5 for it πŸ˜›

  13. Fadi98 says:

    Good job on the game I can’t wait for it to release

    You could try to make npc missions where you go to an nps
    Do a mission for him and he will give money or clothes or weapons

    Any way great job on the game.

  14. KillerMapper says:

    This game is looking good. Only iOS ? Please release this game on Android devices too πŸ™‚

  15. Forcemaster2000 says:

    I too am hoping this will be released on Android as well, particularly the Amazon appstore, I’d love to get this for the kindle fire!

  16. RoyTheZombieHunter says:

    made a wiki

  17. Steven "TheMadSpin" Kilpatrick says:

    @ Zombloxer:

    If you look at the sales for games like Super Meat Boy, you’ll actually see that the PC drives more indie game sales than the 360 by a long shot.

    I’m not saying I’m against the game making its way to the 360, PS3 or any other device. I love as much cross-platform as possible.

    Still, with the PC designers often wind up with more visibility, higher sales, and the ability to iterate and patch quickly (just look at Minecraft 360 which lags far behind the PC counterpart).

    As gamers it would help to remember that what’s best for US is not best for the game, the developer or gamers as a whole.

  18. Ninjaman999 says:

    PLEASE release it on Steam. It looks bloody brilliant :DDDDD

  19. XWolfHunter says:

    Hey, Tyson. I ran into an issue that I just can’t figure out. Probably an easy fix.

    My character, a cube, is supposed to stop when it hits another cube. That much is obvious. However, when I just make them both rigibodies unaffected by gravity (Obviously, the cubes are locked it on all axis, and the character is locked in on the y-axis), the character gains permanent momentum in the opposite direction from which they hit, and when the character comes to a wall, he get flung through it and receives buttloads of uncounterable momentum. I’m not sure what the fix is. What do you think would solve this?

  20. XWolfHunter says:

    **Also, when I check “Is Kinematic,” the character just passes straight through like it’s air. I thought about making a script that makes the character stop when a collision is detected, but the obvious problem springing from that is, how are you supposed to move the character from the collision if you can’t move him?

  21. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ XWolfHunter:

    Well, since I can’t visually see the problem it’s hard to diagnose. Here are a few things to check:

    1) if you have a rigidbody that you want to stay still, instead of locking all of its axis, set it to kinematic.

    2) If your rigidbody is flying outward after passing through it, that seems to be a penetration error. If 2 colliders enter each other, Unity will try to push them apart….that’s probably what’s happening.

    3) If you’re setting your object to kinematic and collisions are being ignored, that’s very odd. Are the two objects on layers that are set to collide in the physx collision matrix? Do the objects have colliders? Are your physx settings appropriate for your scene scale?

  22. Fadi98 says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    Hey Tyson Did you read my comment about the npc missions
    That I posted a few. Hours ago

  23. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ Fadi98:

    Ah I just saw it now. Yes there will be NPC missison πŸ™‚ They will be varied and randomly generated in the world you’re in.

  24. James says:

    @ Tyson Ibele

    Will you ever bring it to Xbox With Exclusive Co op.

  25. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ James:

    No, it’s never going to be XBox exclusive.

  26. fadi98 says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    hey tyson when will you upload the next previwe on your youtube channel

  27. fadi98 says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    could you make a wall paper of the image at the top of the page
    so i can make it my iphone wallpaper

  28. James says:

    Awww… I’d love to play that on xbox.

  29. Anthony says:

    @ Tyson Ibele

    Will it ever be on xbox ?

  30. Kurshuk says:

    This looks awesome. I love the idea, but if it’s not a PC release as an actual game client I’d have to pass.

    Best case scenario
    Co-op for at least 2, preferably 4 or more
    On Steam priced around $10 for one copy
    Sold as a 4 pack for the price of 3

    If those conditions ever happen, my money is heading your way. I wish you the best in your awesome endeavors.

  31. Auger says:

    You lost me at iOS. Here’s hoping the PC version comes soon or Droid.

  32. CG_beauty says:

    This is looking like one of the most fantastic indie development games I’ve ever seen from such a small development team, (for what I’m aware at this current moment, it’s only you working on it.)

    As far as the Steam development aspect of it, I wouldn’t mind paying $2.99, or $12.99 for it!

  33. Nathan says:

    Is the PC version going to be steam exclusive or can you play it without steam?

  34. ilikain says:

    Kickstarter for Multiplayer support and quicker PC release!

  35. Jk says:

    Will it come come out for Android, it would be simple to port, you would only have to make minor tweaks

  36. Jk says:

    @ Jk:
    come*

  37. Anonymous says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    how much is the health limit because in the past video your health was 150

  38. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ :

    Different characters have different max HP.

    Also you can increase your total HP with upgrades as you level up…I haven’t shown that system yet…but it will appear in an update soon.

  39. Anthony says:

    So there wontbe multiplayer or co op?

  40. Anthony says:

    @ Tyson Ibele

    Will it ever even come to xbox?

  41. GoobeR says:

    @Tyson
    Please don’t make Zombox end up like Gameloft games where you gotta buy In-Store Purachese too do missions..

  42. Anonymous says:

    When is the next update coming

  43. GoobeR says:

    A year or two I say..
    Just joking:D I bet next week or two..

  44. Ryan says:

    I read a comment from his YouTube and he said there might be a zombuck purchase (The in game currency) but it won’t be game changing.
    @Goobers

  45. XWolfHunter says:

    Hey – where’d you find your inventory information? I have no idea how to go about making one. πŸ™‚

    By the way, if you wanted to see the thing, you can go here:

    http://xoraterra.blogspot.com/

    Nothing fancy, but not everybody can make a first game as cool as yours. πŸ™‚

  46. GoobeR says:

    @Tyson
    Please don’t add the Zombuck Purachese to Zombox because it will might ruin the gameplay.
    Unless you add like purachable skills for Zombox(That you don’t need but will be nice too add) such as:
    1. Faster Running
    2. Cheaper items
    3. Faster Building
    Ect

  47. Ryan says:

    If he added zombuck purchases i don’t think it will make a difference… You can Rob the npc’s kill them Etc.

  48. Ryan says:

    -And it would gain him more money for further updates.

  49. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ XWolfHunter:

    I just made my own….it’s all GUITexturs and custom code πŸ™‚ As for your blog, when I click the link it says “blog removed”.

    @ GoobeR:

    The in app purchases will only allow you to collect Zombucks faster. It won’t add anything exclusive to the gameplay that you can’t get by playing normally.

  50. Fadi98 says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    When is the next update coming ?

  51. GoobeR says:

    Okay thanks!

  52. XWolfHunter says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    Yeah, I changed the URL, sorry.

    renaxs.blogspot.com

  53. XWolfHunter says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    You . . . *twitch* . . . made your own . . .

    *Sigh* I know the general gist of it (I could probably manipulate GUITextures something like that), but I couldn’t do something like that. It’s okay, though, since I only have three weeks of learning and five days of development under my belt. πŸ™‚

  54. XWolfHunter says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    (You made your own without help is what I’m twitching about. Not the fact that you made your own)

  55. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ XWolfHunter:

    Well the concept behind how it works is easy to understand.

    You have your inventory items, which are just square GUITextures with a corresponding item index, and your inventory slots, which are GUITextures too with a corresponding slot index.

    From that point it’s just a matter of swapping textures in the various slots as you move items around, and keeping track of which item index goes where. When you drag items around, the item texture that follows your finger is a separate GUITexture that takes on the texture of the slot you started dragging from.

    The theory behind the whole thing is very simple!

  56. XWolfHunter says:

    I agree. The thing that daunts me about it is all the code. I’m still fresh, you might say, so when I see a “professional” script I generally go pale in the face and start having spasmodic attacks. Once I start to learn more Unity-specific commands and more advanced coding techniques, I’ll take a stab at an inventory system, but not until then. πŸ™‚

  57. XWolfHunter says:

    While you’re here, though, I have a problem with changing scenes when my game is built. I have it so that when you press space, it starts Scene 0, and when you hit a cube at the end of the level, it starts Scene 1. Here’s the code:

    #pragma strict

    public var restartLevel : String;

    function Update(){
    if(Input.GetKeyDown(KeyCode.Space)){
    Application.LoadLevel(restartLevel);
    }
    }

    and

    #pragma strict

    public var nextLevel : String;

    function OnCollisionEnter(myCollision : Collision){
    if(myCollision.gameObject.name == “NextLevelCube”){
    Application.LoadLevel(nextLevel);
    }
    }

    Maybe I’m using the wrong command, but every time these scripts are called, the game freezes or crashes. They both work perfectly in Unity itself, but not out.

    Got anything for it? Don’t think too hard, I was just wondering if you’ve ever experienced and consequentially fixed something like it before.

  58. Fadi98 says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    Could you make something like a cabinet or a chest to store
    Items that you don’t need to take with you
    Where ever you go

  59. Steve says:

    +1 for an Android version! There are less decent games available for Android and it’s a much less saturated market than iOs. Look at “Rebuild” (an indie simcity/zombie apocalypse type game). Barely noticed on iOs then released on Android and was number 1 game on the Google play store for a while.

  60. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ XWolfHunter:

    Hey X,

    Unfortunately I don’t have much experience switching levels. Everything in Zombox happens in a single level file.

    @ Fadi98:

    Funny you should ask…I literally *just* got done creating the ‘storage chest’ constructable object today πŸ™‚

    @ Steve:

    I’ve been putting a lot more thought into a day-0 Android release lately. I don’t know for sure yet, but it just might happen!

  61. Jan Gross says:

    Which program you used for the items?

  62. SpiderSlayer says:

    If possible, could you tell us how big the game world is at this time? How much room for exploration?

  63. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ Jan Gross:

    The item icons were designed using 3dsmax and After Effects (for batch compositing + export)

    @ SpiderSlayer:

    The game is about a kilometer squared. There are three large islands to explore, and many different sewer systems filled with other survivors and zombies.

  64. Momo says:

    hi, could you possibly tell us your progress on the game like if it’s 90% done or something like that and possibly the release date. I would really appreciate it. P.S, no matter what the price is, I will definitely get Zombox πŸ™‚

  65. Momo says:

    Hi, I was wondering if melee weapons like knifes would break if you use them a lot like minecraft.

  66. Anonymous says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    Thanks for answer.

  67. SpiderSlayer says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:

    Thanks for answering πŸ™‚ It’s really nice when you can directly speak to a developer like this. Can’t wait for the game!

  68. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ Momo:

    It’s hard to give a specific number with regards to what percentage of the game is done….I’d like to say 60-70%-ish? Really the only main thing left to implement is the questing system and some minor gameplay elements. There should be another update this Friday.

    @ Momo:

    Currently weapons do not break or get damaged over time, although some weapons that you find will be in worse condition than others (and their stats will be affected by their starting condition)

    @ SpiderSlayer:

    I love all the feedback I’ve gotten from people who are interested in the game…so I’m happy to respond when I can!

  69. Jan Gross says:

    I have the same opinion like SpiderSlayer: You are a good developer.

  70. Jan Gross says:

    In which country you live?

  71. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ Jan Gross:

    Vancouver, Canada.

  72. Anonymous says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    hey Tyson
    i just want to ask you how many modes will you make in the game
    like survival mode or endless mode

    oh and thank you for the answer

  73. fadi98 says:

    @ Tyson Ibele:
    hey Tyson
    i just want to ask you how many modes will you make in the game
    like survival mode or endless mode

    oh and thank you for the answer

  74. Tyson Ibele says:

    @ fadi98:

    It’s just a survival game right now.

  75. Jan Gross says:

    I check every 5 minutes this site for updates…I…LOVE…ZOOMBOX! πŸ˜€

  76. Mike says:

    Can’t wait for the game!

  77. SpiderSlayer says:

    @ Jan Gross:

    Haha same here

  78. Jere says:

    Make an ANDROID VERSION!

  79. Anonymous says:

    this looks AWSOME!!! cant wait to play it!

  80. Anonymous says:

    I thought this would cost ten dollars XD

  81. Anonymous says:

    I was wondering is there already a alpha testing release and if not, are you close to releasing one???

  82. YUMYUMGIMME says:

    I AM BEGGING YOU HERE, MAKE AN NORWEGIAN APP STORE RELEASE, I AM BEGGING ON MY KNEES, WE GET NONE OF THE HOOD APSS, PLEASE MAN, I BEG YOU!

  83. Krizzaa says:

    I think we have waited long enough for this game
    The longer you make us wait the less interested we get..

  84. IGN says:

    This game looks epic and has a great cartoon style.
    Can’t wait untill it comes out
    Keep up the good work
    -IGN

  85. Mika says:

    Game is worth more than 2.99$ … It looks incredibly interesting and the gameplay looks hellishly fun . Id say think about it and make it 5$ or even 10$ .

  86. Krizzaa says:

    Been waiting a long LONG time and starting to lose interest -.-
    Wasn’t this promised around the start of 2013?

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