Character Showdown Update | Zombie's Retreat 1 & 2

Hey everyone!

Today I'm super happy to share some of the first details about a new update for not just Zombie's Retreat 2, but also Zombie's Retreat 1!

== Character Showdown Tournaments ==

In case you haven't heard, for the past couple of years, there's been a fan-run 'character showdown' tournament on Discord that pits all of the characters from all of my different games together in a big tournament to determine the fan favorite character.

The first year, two tournaments were held.  Leslie from ZR1 won the first tournament and Meredith from ZR2 won the second.

I wanted to reward the winners by having their own special scene and so I've finally found some extra time to work on that!  The two lovely ladies will be getting a special new themed costume & scene! 👑

The costumes are still being designed so I will reveal those soon once they are finished.

== Zombie's Retreat 1 ==

Yup, this means that Zombie's Retreat 1 will be receiving a new update!  Leslie's new scene will be added in this version.

I've also been meaning to upload a new update for some small bug fixes.  Most notably, the computer terminals in the power plant list some names that were changed a long time ago.  But a bug still shows the original names.  This might be confusing for those looking for useful lore (hint hint, wink wink)

I've had some people ask me, will they have to repurchase a copy of ZR1 on itch?  The answer should be no.  As long as they download the game from the account they purchased ZR1 off of, the website should remember.  This is the first time I'm trying this out so this will be a learning experience for myself as well.  But as far as I'm aware, ZR1 players should not have to re-purchase the game.

(Rachel & Jessie tied for first place in the third character showdown tournament last winter so yes... another ZR1 update will happen in the future!)

== Zombie's Retreat 2 ==

ZR2's update will be a little bulkier.  First, I will be finally adding proper functionality for special events as well as costume support.  This way, the Halloween event and character showdown scene will be properly implemented.  Future seasonal/special events will should use this facility too.

Of course, Meredith's new scene will be added in this update.  Leslie's scene will ALSO be added in this update.  I want players to be able to view her scene in ZR2's size/resolution so it will be a bonus.  (Leslie's scene will still take place from the ZR1 MC's POV.  No sharing shenanigans are going on here).

Leslie and Meredith's scenes are echo scenes, meaning they use the same pose.  However, both scenes have notably different environments, outfits, etc.  This is meant to show the parallels between the two ladies while also highlighting the differences.  I hope you enjoy them!

== Secret Project ==

A while ago I had announced I would possibly take a small break in ZR2's release schedule to sit down and work on a secret project that's slowly been in development for a couple of years now.

I want to try and avoid having to actually take a break from ZR2.  So my plan here is that since the character showdown updates will be pretty easy to develop, I can use this extra time to work on the secret project as well.  This way, ZR2 updates can steadily continue and the secret project should get a huge jump start in completion.

I know some people seemed a little concerned about the 'small break' so I wanted to try and avoid it all together!  Remember, the secret project does take place in the ZR2 universe and shares the same art style so ZR2 players will likely find some enjoyment with this smaller game. 👒

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That's everything for this update!  Stay tuned for reveals of the outfits as well as teasers for the scenes.  I'll have a release date announcement coming up soon as well.

Thank you all so much for playing Zombie's Retreat!  I'll see you soon with more info!