Rebuilding Alexandria and crafting the dream arsenal in The Walking Dead Onslaught

Hi everyone! Last month, we announced the release date and showcased official gameplay for our upcoming PS VR title, The Walking Dead Onslaught. Today we’re back to dive into the Alexandria safe zone and explore how the iconic setting plays a critical role in the story and gameplay of The Walking Dead Onslaught. 

Starting over after the war   

Set in the time skip between Season 8 and 9 of AMC’s The Walking Dead, the game takes place during a period with a lot of uncertainty in the future of our survivors’ communities. The war against Negan and his deadly band of Saviors has finally come to an end, but the damage they inflicted lingers on in the hearts of those left behind. We decided to theme our game around the idea of rebuilding after losing everything, and that started with the place our leading cast calls home: the Alexandria Safe Zone.   

We’ve worked with AMC’s Producers and The Walking Dead writers to craft an original story that sees Daryl Dixon and Rick Grimes butting heads over their visions for the future of the safe zone. Where Rick believes that some personal sacrifices must be made for the greater good of the community, Daryl believes this has put their freedom to do good at risk. Rick represents the collectivist spirit to push society forward through his focus on rebuilding the new world. On the other hand, Daryl represents the individual human struggle in the apocalypse and demonstrates how Rick’s altruistic goals might not always benefit everyone. 

These two different viewpoints are embodied in the very way players will experience the game, swapping between perspectives as Rick tries to rebuild Alexandria and as Daryl reveals the details behind a mysterious disappearance. 

A place to call home: rebuilding Alexandria  

We knew it was important to represent Alexandria in a way that was authentic to the show while adding a layer of interactivity that allows players to lead the efforts to rebuild the community. The player will be at the heart of Alexandria as their decisions and actions help evolve it into a place for new survivors to call home. 

Players will venture out to collect resources for Alexandria, bringing back food and fuel that will support scouting parties and new survivors. As the community grows, players will receive letters and requisition requests from their survivors that send them out to find specific items and provide big bonuses for Alexandria. Players have full agency over how they want to progress the community — crafting materials they’ve earned can be used to upgrade weapons in the Armory or build entirely new structures in Alexandria that can enhance your gameplay experience.

Crafting the dream arsenal  

One of our favorite spots in Alexandria is the Armory, which houses all of the weapons players will discover outside Alexandria. Here, players can explore and experiment with The Walking Dead Onslaught’s robust weapon upgrade system. From Rick’s revolver to the Kingdom’s powerful battle axes, each weapon has multiple unique upgrades to mix and match — of course, players will need to save up enough materials to craft the upgrades first. 

Melee combat upgrades tend to be more fantastical. For example, crafting the Adrenaline upgrade grants players a burst of momentary slo-mo action against a walker herd. When it comes to firearms, upgrades are designed to be a little more tactical. Ranged weapon upgrades affect the weapon’s performance in combat and include visual attachments like vertical grips, holosights and muzzle breaks.

In the end, we want players to have a fun time killing walkers on their own terms, and we accomplished that by providing a toolset of weapons that are constantly evolving and changing the way players take on the walker threat that surrounds them.  

The Walking Dead Onslaught will be available in Standard and Deluxe editions, starting with a digital first release on September 29 followed by a physical disc release in October. Pre-purchases are available today on PS4 and at participating retailers; players who pre-order will get exclusive content, which you can see above. For more information, visit Playstation Store or other participating retailers.  

We hope you’re as excited to play The Walking Dead Onslaught when it launches later this month!. Don’t fret: we still have more news to share, so to stay updated with all the latest The Walking Dead Onslaught news, follow our journey on Twitter @Survios and sign up for our newsletter at TWDOnslaught.com.