Just a few short moments ago at the Xbox E3 2016 Briefing in Los Angeles, we announced State of Decay 2 to the world.

It’s been a few years since we announced our partnership with Microsoft Studios to start building the future of State of Decay, and we’re thrilled (and a little relieved) to finally be able to talk about it. As a full sequel with much higher ambitions, we had to wait until development was far enough along to speak confidently about what the game will be when it gets into your hands (or maybe, on your hard drive). We’re a development team that enjoys direct, regular interaction with fans of our games, so it’s been hard for us to stay silent about something we’re so excited about, but as of today we can finally tell you that it’s coming.

During that time we’ve had the opportunity to see and hear what millions of you enjoyed about State of Decay. Through Twitch streams, to Twitter, the always-passionate Steam forums, in our own community forums, and — perhaps most of all — through meeting so many of you in person at game conventions and fan events, we’ve heard you clearly. We’ve considered many paths for State of Decay over the past few years, but the overwhelming majority of you said you wanted a bigger, badder, bolder, smoother State of Decay that you could play with your friends.

And so that’s exactly what we’re making.

State of Decay 2 builds upon the unique blend of open-world exploration, third-person action, and survival-fantasy role playing we pioneered in the original State of Decay, and then adds drop-in cooperative multiplayer. The world of State of Decay 2 is larger, more dangerous, and more unpredictable than ever, so if you choose, you can put your survival plan to the test with up to three other players.

As with the original State of Decay, the world will remember the choices you make and form a unique experience every time you play. Alone or with friends, dynamic game systems for character progression, base building, leadership promotion, and consequence-driven storytelling will result in a dramatic experience that tests your will to survive.

While it’s an honor to be on the big stage at E3 with the big kids today, we wouldn’t have been here without you. To those of you who took a chance on a brand new Xbox Live Arcade game back in the summer of 2013; and those of you who joined our fan community and spent your time sharing your hopes for where the game could go; and those of you who gave us both love and constructive criticism in every other corner of the internet; and those of you who streamed State of Decay for hundreds of hours; and most of all for those of you who have patiently waited out the silence hoping for a big new State of Decay game — this is for you!

State of Decay 2 is coming to Xbox One and Windows 10 PC in 2017. We’ll be releasing more details as soon as we can, so keep an eye out for future editions of this newsletter and announcements at stateofdecay.com.

Jeff