Game News Urban Strife private alpha released, now on Steam and coming to Early Access in Q4 2020

[Infinitron]

Tags: Urban Strife; White Pond Games

The private alpha for White Pond Games' promising zombie survival RPG Urban Strife was supposed to have started on May 14th. In practice the Steam keys were only sent out today, which means the crowdfunded backer build that was scheduled for this month is delayed. The good news is that White Pond have finally launched the game's Steam page, including its first proper trailer in quite some time. Check it out:

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Urban Strife will be released on Steam Early Access later this year in Q4, presumably after it's been sufficiently tested by the alpha and backer build players. According to the FAQ, White Pond plan to keep the game in Early Access for six months, so I guess that means we're looking at a tentative final release date in Q2 2021.

 

[luj1]

I dunno, the mechanical combat layer looks good. Wish this game had more style, a proper ST would do wonders.

 

[a cut of domestic sheep prime]

Who needs a game when you have it in real life?

 

[Jrpgfan]

Are those piñata zombies stuffed with party confetti?

 

[tindrli]

any codexers tried it=?

 

[TalesfromtheCrypt]

Looks great!

 

[commie]

Thought it was a game about the BLM Boogaloo......came away disappointed....

 

[General Disarray]

The visual style reminds me of ATOM RPG.

 

[Humanophage]

Thought it was a game about the BLM Boogaloo......came away disappointed....

Indeed, it's more like Suburban Strife by the looks of it.

That said, the setting is southern while all the zombies are conspicuously white, which seems facetious given that the running zombie behaviour is to a large degree inspired by urban rioting (and we know who does that). The protagonist has a huge sunwheel on his chest where a swastika or a kolovrat might be (6 rays instead of 4 or 8). He is an armed "redneck" European-American with "British" hair (White Pond's description). Southern police and the sheriff seem like the good guys, even though they are the arch-villains of BLM. The team also includes Dmitry and Miguel, which is an obvious reference to JA2 (Dmitry even looks racially ambiguous like the original), and they were fighting for monarchy in Latin America - obviously right-wing contras. They're called "urban militia", and we know what's that in the southern context. The protagonist militiaman is even wearing a red shirt, although that's stretching it a bit. So it ticks all the right boxes without actually stating anything openly.

Admittedly, the visuals are a little generic compared to ATOM RPG, although I can see some distinctiveness in the writing. What's so southern about it? Could be the Midwest, or really anything - just random abandoned buildings. I'm not sure they are allowed to make it less generic though. E.g., they'd probably get attacked for even using the confederate flag. They could play it right for some free publicity as in the case of Rimworld and the gays, but the BLM lobby seems more extreme even if even less interested in gaming.

 

[Clockwork Knight]

The zombies shuffling in unison like they're in the Thriller video looks mega goofy, hopefully they implement more animations.

Once you will start exploring, you'll find a world populated with living, busy NPCs, with their own life and convictions. Among these you're to find those willing to help you - provided you help them first. And as long as you serve their interests. Because in Urban everyone has an agenda.

 

[Iluvcheezcake]

Zombies moving at the same time is a good thing, it will shorten the duration of enemy turns - however, IF additional movement animations could be made then they would look like a proper shuffling, shambling horde and THAT would be fucking A