Evening all, it’s starting to feel like we’re on the exit trajectory in terms of getting Build 33 out for public consumption – so let’s make that the first order of the Mondoid.

IWBUMS 33.8

Build 33.8 has just been released, and if you want to give it a whirl then you can join in on the IWBUMS beta channel (details here), and submit any issues you discover on the bug tracker.

As you can see in the patch notes, it’s bug fix central – but the biggest change is that to finally defeat the snaps and crackles that people were hearing we’re now running everything through FMOD Studio rather than only the key ones we wanted to play around with.

This means we have more control and management overall, while also killing off the pops. It also means there might be a smidge more balancing required before we release properly, so please provide feedback in the thread if needs be. In other news, the helicopter is now a bit less ‘Eye of Sauron’ too.

MP IMPROVEMENT WORK

While we concentrate on the particulars of the main game we’ve got the gallant chaps at General Arcade working with us to improve the MP experience, because we’re aware that launching a Steam server is a much more involved process than many would like.

Now that they’re in the cut and thrust of development, and good progress is being made, we’re comfortable enough to report that Serge and Gennadii are working on a co-op mode that’s launchable in-game, and that other players can join directly. While it’s unclear what practical player limit there may be, the plan is that a manual server launch and set-up will no longer be necessary for small co-op groups.

They’re also working on (and if you’re of a technical mind then here comes the science bit) UPNP / NAT Punchthrough to get rid of the need for port forwarding. Ports are also being simplified, so server/client/coop will only use one port and map data will be transmitted through Steam/Raknet directly instead of a separate data transfer port.

This means that, outside of disconnects, we’re also aiming for a positive impact on issues like map streaming breaking down. We’ll see how we go with it, and it’s all work in progress stuff, but it’s all really exciting and we’d like to thank our favourite code ninjas for all their hard work so far.

THUMPY ZOMBIES

Up until now roaming zombies have generally felt the urge to thump on any doors and windows they walk into, even when they haven’t seen or heard the player. This activity is a regular talking point, and although we see it as a part of the hardcore Survival experience in 33.8 we’re experimenting with it a little and as such in Initial Infection and The First Week zeds will only get thumpy when they’ve been alerted.

There’s also the new ‘Environmental Aggression’ zombie lore option in Sandbox for those who prefer to set their own world/zed state. Beyond this, we’ve also got a few other ideas that we hope will maintain the awesome feeling of roaming zombies barrelling past your house while you hold your breath inside, while not actually nerfing the game too much. All feedback appreciated on the forums!

This week’s featured image from Ragnar over on Steam. The Block of Italicised Text, would like to direct your attention to the PZ Wiki should you feel like editing or amending something, and the PZ Mailing List that can send blogs like this and patch notes direct to your mailbox.