State of Decay 2

State of Decay 2 is an open world zombie survival video game developed by Undead Labs and published by Xbox Game Studios. It is a sequel to the 2013 video game State of Decay. The game was released on May 22, 2018 for Microsoft Windows and Xbox One. An optimized version was also released for Xbox Series X/S on December 2, 2020. Like its predecessor, players are required to build a community, manage resources and survive against the horde of zombies. The game received mixed reviews from critics, who praised its difficulty, musical score and combat, but criticized the technical issues and the lack of depth in the survival and management mechanics.

State of Decay 2
Developer(s)Undead Labs
Publisher(s)Xbox Game Studios
Producer(s)
  • Jesse Dunne
  • Patrick Hooley
  • Dacey Willoughby
Designer(s)Richard Foge
Programmer(s)
  • Ben Scott
  • Chris Willoughby
  • Jason Hail
Artist(s)Doug Williams
Composer(s)
SeriesState of Decay
EngineUnreal Engine 4
Platform(s)
Release
  • Microsoft Windows, Xbox One
  • May 22, 2018
  • Xbox Series X/S
  • December 2, 2020
Genre(s)Survival
Mode(s)Single-player, multiplayer

A third installment, State of Decay 3 is currently in the works.

Gameplay

State of Decay 2 is a zombie survival game, with an emphasis on scavenging for items, in which gameplay is experienced from a third-person view.[1] The game is set in an open world environment and features cooperative gameplay with up to three other players.[1]

Development and release

State of Decay 2 is developed by Undead Labs and published by Microsoft Studios.[1] The game was developed using Unreal Engine 4.[2] The game was announced on June 13, 2016, at Microsoft's E3 Xbox briefing.[1] The game was scheduled to be released in 2017 for Windows 10 and the Xbox One video game console.[1] At Microsoft's E3 2017 Xbox briefing, it was announced that the game would release in Spring 2018.[3] Additionally, the game will also be available to play at no cost to Xbox Game Pass subscribers at the game's release, as with all forthcoming Microsoft Studios titles. State of Decay will also be sold as an Xbox Play-Anywhere title, as well as cross-play support between Windows 10 and Xbox players.[4]

Downloadable content

On September 12, 2018 the Daybreak DLC pack was released. This DLC added a new game mode in which the objective is to protect an objective whilst facing waves of increasingly difficult enemies. Rewards earned within the Daybreak game mode can be used within the standard game mode allowing access to exclusive gear and characters.[5]

On June 11, 2019, a new expansion pack for the game, Heartland, was released, featuring new missions, characters and new enemy types. The expansion is set in Trumbull Valley, the setting of the first game.[6]

Reception

State of Decay 2 received "mixed or average" reviews, according to video game review aggregator Metacritic.[7][8]

Alessandro Barbosa of GameSpot gave State of Decay 2 a 5/10, enjoying the satisfying combat but taking issue with the lack of depth in its survival systems and the amount of bugs; he felt that "State of Decay 2 sometimes feels like a far-too-real representation of the mundane reality that comes with surviving a zombie apocalypse."[13] Dan Stapleton of IGN also disliked the game's bugs and lack of depth, particularly with the board-game-style management. However, he praised the combat, calling it "simple but satisfying", and the variety of zombies and the persistent fear of permanent death; he awarded it a 7.5/10.[15]

Commercial

On May 25, 2018, Microsoft announced over 1 million players had played the game since its release,[18] and on June 4, 2018 that mark had exceeded 2 million players.[19] In June 2018, it was announced that State of Decay 2 exceeded 3 million players, and by August 2019 it surpassed 5 million.[20][21]

Accolades
YearAwardCategoryResultRef
2018 Gamescom Best Add-on/DLC (Daybreak) Nominated [22]
Golden Joystick Awards Best Co-Operative Game Nominated [23][24]
Xbox Game of the Year Nominated

Sequel

A sequel, State of Decay 3, was announced live at Xbox's July 2020 Games Showcase with no official release date or window.[25]

References
  1. Reynolds, Matthew (June 13, 2016). "State of Decay 2 is coming to Xbox One and Windows 10 in 2017". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  2. Newhouse, Alex; Fillari, Alessandro (June 11, 2017). "E3 2017: State Of Decay 2 Release Date Announced; Xbox One And Windows 10 Exclusive". GameSpot. CBS Interactive. Retrieved December 16, 2017.
  3. McCaffrey, Ryan (June 13, 2016). "E3 2016: State of Decay 2 Is 4-Player Co-op, Isn't an MMO". IGN. Ziff Davis. Retrieved June 15, 2016.
  4. Phil Spencer (January 23, 2018). "Xbox Game Pass Expands To Include New Releases From Microsoft Studios". news.xbox.com. Microsoft Corporation. Retrieved January 23, 2018.
  5. Ponder, Stacie (September 14, 2018). "State of Decay 2's Daybreak DLC Is Fun But Fleeting". Kotaku. Retrieved July 28, 2019.
  6. Marshall, Cass (June 10, 2019). "State of Decay 2's Heartland is harder, but serves up a stronger narrative". Polygon. Retrieved July 28, 2019.
  7. "State of Decay 2 for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved May 19, 2018.
  8. "State of Decay 2 for Xbox One Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved March 1, 2019.
  9. Porreca, Ray (May 17, 2018). "Review: State of Decay 2". Destructoid. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  10. Patterson, Mollie L. (May 17, 2018). "State of Decay 2 review". EGMNow. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  11. Cork, Jeff (May 17, 2018). "A Plague On Multiple Fronts - State of Decay 2 - Xbox One". Game Informer. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  12. Faulkner, Jason (May 17, 2018). "State of Decay 2 Review – Rigor Mortis". Game Revolution. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  13. Barbosa, Alessandro (May 17, 2018). "State Of Decay 2 Review: The Limping Dead". GameSpot. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  14. Avard, Alex (May 17, 2018). "State of Decay 2 review: "A potent reminder of why the undead continue to be such a rich source for interactive entertainment"". GamesRadar+. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  15. Stapleton, Dan (May 17, 2018). "State of Decay 2 Review". IGN. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  16. Hatfield, Tom (May 17, 2018). "State of Decay 2 review". PC Gamer. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  17. Bell, Alice (May 17, 2018). "State of Decay 2 review". VideoGamer.com. Retrieved May 17, 2018.
  18. Greenberg, Aaron; Manager, General; Marketing, Xbox Games (May 25, 2018). "State of Decay 2 Breaks Record with Over 1 Million Players in First Two Days of Global Release". Xbox Wire.
  19. Greenberg, Aaron; Manager, General; Marketing, Xbox Games (June 4, 2018). "State of Decay 2 Exceeds 2 Million Players in Less Than Two Weeks". Xbox Wire.
  20. "State of Decay 2 Celebrates 3 Million Players with Today's Release of the Independence Pack". Xbox Wire. June 28, 2018.
  21. Madan, Asher (August 12, 2019). "State of Decay 2 is at its highest player count ever, new content coming". Windows Central. Windows Central. Archived from the original on August 13, 2019. Retrieved October 25, 2019.
  22. Keane, Sean (August 22, 2018). "Gamescom 2018 award winners include Marvel's Spider-Man, Super Smash Bros. Ultimate". CNET. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  23. Hoggins, Tom (September 24, 2018). "Golden Joysticks 2018 nominees announced, voting open now". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  24. Sheridan, Connor (November 16, 2018). "Golden Joystick Awards 2018 winners: God of War wins big but Fortnite gets Victory Royale". GamesRadar+. Retrieved November 20, 2018.
  25. Phillips, Tom (July 23, 2020). "State of Decay 3 Announced". Eurogamer. Retrieved July 23, 2020.
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