Production schedule — 2026-09-13: PIPE-ROADMAP now defines 32 focused phases (P00–P31). Phase 0/1/2/3 references retained in this document are legacy scope bands, not the new phase numbers. The owner confirmed limited-area core-loop proof before full-map expansion; see the roadmap for dependencies, audited status and remaining work.
Production context
GDD/00-Overview/02-Scope-and-Constraints.mdVerified implementation evidence
- Not verified for this documentation pass.
Relationships
FEAT-WORLD-DESIGN— complete seven-settlement concept, provisional area allocation, and map-scale/phasing TBDs.PIPE-ROADMAP— current phased production sequence.
Document contract coverage
Use these required Game Design areas during review. The HTML content below is authoritative; items not stated explicitly remain unresolved.
- ReviewVision & Player Experience
- ReviewCore Gameplay Loop
- ReviewProgression / Meta Loop
- ReviewMajor Mechanics
- ReviewContent Taxonomy
- ReviewSuccess / Failure States
- ReviewAssumptions & TBDs
Authoritative project content
The honest scope assessment
[RISK] The chosen design — open-world, persistent, server-hosted, raidable PvPvE survival — sits in the most expensive genre to build and operate. Rust and DayZ are made by experienced teams over many years with dedicated server infrastructure and live-ops. For an indie team, the realistic path is a small map, a small player count, a tight feature set, and a phased rollout.
This document defines what is in v1 vs. deferred. The roadmap detail lives in ../07-Production/01-Roadmap-and-Milestones.md.
Hard constraints (fixed)
| Constraint | Value |
|---|---|
| Engine | Unreal Engine 5.8 |
| Primary language | C++ (Blueprint allowed where appropriate — see ../05-Technical/02-CPP-and-Blueprint-Guidelines.md) |
| Client platform | PC / Windows (Win64) |
| Server platform | Linux dedicated server (MetaHuman plugins already enabled for Win64 + Linux) |
| Characters | MetaHuman as the primary character pipeline |
| Networking | Dedicated-server authoritative (not listen-server / P2P) |
| Player count target | ~40–60 concurrent per server |
| Business model | Buy-to-play (no power monetization) |
Phasing strategy
To de-risk, systems are grouped. v1 must be a complete, fun, shippable loop even if small.
Phase 1 — Core vertical slice (must-have)
- Third-person locomotion + camera (MetaHuman player).
- Gun + melee combat, basic ballistics, ADS.
- Firearm attachments (install/remove), Tarkov-like mag/chamber handling, replicated attachment meshes; durability + repair for guns/tools. Rail position and stock slider wait for Phase 2+. No dirt/cleaning system. See ../01-Gameplay/09-Weapon-Customization.md. Blood visuals: ../01-Gameplay/10-Blood-Visual.md. Rain wetness: ../01-Gameplay/11-Wetness-and-Rain.md.
- 2–3 zombie types + 1 boss.
- Full-sim survival stats.
- Inventory + item system.
- Free-form building (a minimal piece set: foundation, wall, floor, doorway, door, ceiling).
- Crafting basics + the boss → component → weapon loop.
- Dedicated server, small map, persistence of player + base state.
- Squad system.
Phase 2 — Depth & social
- Full zombie roster + more bosses + the permanent-buff system.
- Clans.
- Vehicles.
- Weapon workbench depth: scope rail position, adjustable stock length.
- Raiding tools + raid balancing.
- Drop-trade interactions, larger map regions via World Partition Data Layers.
Phase 3 — Live & polish
- Player-hosted server tooling.
- Official server fleet + live-ops, anti-cheat hardening.
- Content cadence (new bosses, regions, gear tiers).
Map size: [PROVISIONAL BASELINE] 100 km² open world via World Partition. The complete concept now contains one large city, two medium cities, four small starter towns, and a 20% island.
TBD-WORLD-001remains open: the 100 km² figure stays unlocked until a measured blockout. [CONFIRMED 2026-09-13 / 2026-09-15] Production proves the core loop in the fictional Kit Proof Town first, then expands to the complete map in P24–P26.
Constraints that shape design
- Full-loot + persistence + raiding require a robust, authoritative save/persistence backend. This is a first-class engineering problem, not an afterthought. See ../04-Multiplayer/01-Network-Architecture.md.
- MetaHuman at scale is expensive (memory, animation, LODs). Players use MetaHuman; zombies should not all be full MetaHumans — see ../06-Art-Audio/01-Art-Direction-and-MetaHuman.md.
- ~40–60 players plus AI hordes on a dedicated server demands disciplined replication and relevancy. See ../04-Multiplayer/01-Network-Architecture.md.
Open decisions ([TBD])
These are not yet decided and must not be assumed during implementation:
TBD-WORLD-001— final map footprint and exact boundaries/area allocations for the seven confirmed environment types.TBD-3244215F— final weapon/item counts and remaining combat, survival, raid, and content tuning values.- Final client hardware, resolution, frame-rate, and dedicated-server performance targets.
HUD & UI scope — [CONFIRMED]
All player-facing screens and HUD states are designed across phases before their gameplay backend is necessarily complete. FEAT-HUD-UI is the presentation/navigation source of truth and targets FHD, 2K, 4K, 16:10, 21:9, and 32:9 using actual viewport-edge anchoring. A custom launcher/patcher is not included.
Agriculture, livestock and vehicle additions
Scope confirmed — 2026-09-13. Add agriculture and livestock systems, and expand vehicle customization with bumpers and protective exterior steel frames. This does not assign either new system to the P00–P20 core-slice gate.
- Agriculture — FEAT-AGRICULTURE: first-increment loop, world rules and persistence are confirmed; delivery is after P16/P17. Exact phase id, numeric tuning and assets remain
TBD-AGRICULTURE-003. - Livestock — FEAT-LIVESTOCK: confirmed system scope; species, care/lifecycle rules and delivery placement remain open.
- Vehicle exterior additions — FEAT-VEHICLES: bumpers and protective steel frames; exact delivery increment remains open within vehicle planning.
Track scheduling in PIPE-ROADMAP; detailed decisions remain in each canonical system specification.