In August of last year, Microsoft announced that a remastered port of State of Decay was in development for the Xbox One. The current-gen console release is finally getting ready to come out. So should you buy State of Decay Year-One Survival Edition? Let’s explore a few factors before you can make up your mind.
Original Version
State of Decay was originally released for the Xbox 360 on June 5, 2013. An early build would then be released for the PC, via Steam Early Access, on September 20, 2013. The game would officially come out for the computer platform on November 5, 2013. Despite being a new intellectual property, State of Decay ended up being one of the fastest selling Xbox Live Arcade games.
For the uninformed, the videogame is basically an open-world survival-horror experience that takes place during a zombie apocalypse. In order to survive, you have to fight off the undead, recruit non-playable characters into your group, scavenge for useful materials in addition to building and fortifying a base.
State of Decay gives you complete freedom as to what action to take, allowing you to make crucial choices that determine the survivability of your group. Not to mention that the in-game world is dynamic and some elements will change even if you are not playing it. So no two players will have the same exact experiences.
With that said, the original was plagued by some technical issues, including an inconsistent frame rate and pop-in textures, on the Xbox 360. So a remastered release on a more powerful console will do wonders to the overall experience.
Year-One Survival Edition Visual Upgrades
With State of Decay Year-One Survival Edition, the development team at Undead Labs increased the native resolution to 1080p on the Xbox One. Furthermore, they also added new textures, changed the lighting and increase the draw distance. Last but not least are the new animations, which make both the human and zombie characters move more smoothly and realistically. Thus, the Year-One Survival Edition is easily the best version, at least on consoles, to play State of Decay.
DLC Packs
Of course, State of Decay Year-One Survival Edition also contains more than just the base game. The remastered release comes with the Breakdown and Lifeline DLC packs as well.
The first expansion, Breakdown, removes any sort of story. Instead, you are tasked with repairing a RV and then finding a way to escape. Each level grows increasingly harder, which makes it perfect for those who already beaten the campaign from the main game multiple times and are looking for a new challenge.
The second pack, Lifeline, also adds an interesting take as you will be controlling a group of soldiers trying to rescue important citizens during the early onset of the zombie outbreak. You are tasked with defending you base from frequent raids in order to airlift the VIPs to safety.
Both of these DLC releases add interesting twists to the main game. Thankfully, they are bundled with the Year-One Survival Edition, so you don’t have to pay anything extra.
New Content
The development team is also adding some new features that can’t be found in the original version as well. One of which is the ability to use a knife while the other will allow the characters from the Lifeline to be playable in the Breakdown DLC pack.
Bonuses for Returning Players
Undead Labs is also including several special bonuses for those who purchased the original Xbox 360 version if they are planning to upgrade to State of Decay Year-One Survival Edition. These dedicated fans will get a 33 percent discount although Microsoft has not yet revealed any specific details as to how this will work. Another bonus is having access to Gurubani, an exclusive character of Indian-American descent who is capable of using swords.
Day One Edition Extras
Microsoft is also providing some extra incentives to preorder or buy the videogame early. The Day One Edition of State of Decay Year-One Survival Edition comes with Prepper’s Pack, which includes the Folding Axe, Prepper SUV and SKS Survivor Firearm.
Recap
State of Decay Year-One Survival Edition is shaping up to be the definitive with the improved visuals (which should address a majority of the issues that players were having with the original) as well as new content. There are also incentives for returning players with the discount and exclusive character.
If you haven’t played it yet, you should definitely check out Year-One Survival Edition. If you have played the original, you may want to wait for a price drop if the improvements and extras don’t intrigue you enough to purchase at full price.
State of Decay Year-One Survival Edition is releasing on April 28 for the Xbox One. You can preorder the remastered version of the open-world survival-horror game on Amazon with this link.
