In the survival MMO H1Z1, weapon expert Jimmy Whisenhunt speaks up in a dev blog. He explains how a weapon from our real world makes it into the zombie apocalypse of H1Z1, what steps it goes through, and what it will feel like for the player to hold that much firepower in their hands.
Jimmy Whisenhunt is a former Counter-Strike pro gamer, and if he knows something, it’s weapons. At Sony Online Entertainment, that’s exactly his specialty: weapons and the combat system. He is also the weapons master for H1Z1. In a blog post, he explains the process of how a weapon from our real world ends up in the zombie apocalypse of H1Z1.
Artists, animators, and the weapons master collaborate
In the first step, 3D artists provide a model based on references from the real world – that is, images or physical objects. This model then goes to the animators, who are responsible for the movements in the game. Now, it’s important to get the moving parts right.
Whisenhunt comes into play at the end of these phases to take a look and provide initial feedback. Thus, Whisenhunt works closely with the animators at the end of the second phase.
In the third phase, he takes the designed and movable model, which is still in a relatively rough state, and brings it into the world of H1Z1 for the first time. Now the third step begins. Very soon, one can see in the game whether the grip position is correct and the angle is okay. It’s also crucial that the weapon responds correctly to all the player’s movements and that there are no issues here.
Real weapons wouldn’t fit H1Z1
In the fourth step, Whisenhunt dives into the details: Excel sheets, trajectories, and ballistics. He almost always starts by ensuring that the weapon’s ballistics behave exactly like in the real world. But that’s never how it goes into the game. Because real weapons and their trajectories wouldn’t work in a game, Whisenhunt emphasizes. And that’s ultimately the most important thing. One does not want to create something just because that’s how it is in reality; rather, the weapons need to feel good and be fun in the zombie world of H1Z1.
The various weapons in H1Z1 will have individual recoil. The combat system is designed so that a weapon doesn’t return to its original position before the shot after firing and recoil. But they are still working on these details of the combat system; players will have ample opportunity to explore it during Early Access.
For the enthusiasts who understand such things, Whisenhunt also brings some technical jargon: In H1Z1, players will opt for a Cylinder of Fire model with high recoil instead of a Cone of Fire model.
More about the zombie MMO H1Z1 can be found on our topic page.
