Following the significantly resounding success of the first Fortune Zombie, TaDa Gaming returns to the series and launches the Fortune Zombie 2 follow-up. This sequel, aimed at the American market, builds on this success and brings improvements and innovative solutions.
Wesley Yang, TaDa’s US-Market COO, breaks down these new additions and the release process of the game in an exclusive discussion with SlotsCalendar.
In one sentence, what’s the “feel” of Fortune Zombie 2 compared to the original?
Boss led, thrilling and retro narrative that drives striking features with generous bonuses through new characters and powerful weapons for upskilling and challenging play.
What specific player comments or stats from Fortune Zombie most influenced Fortune Zombie 2’s redesign?
We had a lot of feedback on the strong American feel of the original release. Keeping the locations familiar to U.S. players whilst adding high impact was a key driver to get the feel right for FZ2.
The ‘Haunted House by the graveyard’ is a familiar sight from TV/films. Green-Wood Cemetery, the home of Lunaria the Ghost Bride, was designed to create that instant recognition and expectation and is an entertaining beginning to the game.
Other new locations such as the Golden Gate Bridge and Alcatraz Prison are also globally recognisable. However, the post-apocalyptic design of these environments, alongside the more frightening Bosses, indicates that more challenging gameplay for bigger rewards will occur here.
Name the two biggest changes returning players will notice in the first 60 seconds.
First, that the new Bosses enter the game earlier and stay longer, increasing their share of total playtime. This gives greater reward cycles and more emotive encounters for better engagement.
And second, to add extra gamification to the new weapons, we included an avatar survivors’ group that players release through shooting zombies. This is a completely new feature.
These avatars have unique skills: so the nurse delivers an increased fire rate; the mailman has a powerful Axe; and the cop can access the Plasma Turret which sends electrified arcs to zap multiple zombies simultaneously.
How did you evolve the “learnable skills” arc so that returning players feel a higher ceiling without scaring off newcomers?
Fortune Zombie 2 incorporates more immersive Boss power-ups, new weapons, interacting features and bonuses to give returning players new challenges to overcome and skills to pick up which all increase the replay value. We also added more random bonuses to keep anticipation levels high for these players.
New players can work their way through the layers and locations, returning to the demo/tutorial and paytable as they need but still feeling a sense of achievement as the widen their game knowledge.
Which boss in FZ2 best shows off the new mechanics?
For me, it’s Grimbadge, the Warden of Alcatraz. We designed him to look more realistic rather than comic book: so visually he instantly indicates a sense of power. This is also reinforced with his multiplier bonus values of 40x to 3,750x.
He delivers visually symbolic and tiered rewards which are achieved by successfully opening the Liberation Gate and include a medal, a survival kit and key. Visually they create both immersive connections and engaging play, but they are also inter-triggering rewards that extend the round and anticipation for personal success against Grimbadge.
What tuning choices (e.g., room difficulty, weapon progression, reward cadence) changed most from FZ1 to FZ2 and what outcome were you chasing?
We increased the size and variety for weapon progression and power-ups so Fortune Zombie 2 offers players more impactful weapons with the Axe and the Plasma Turret. Simultaneously access to these weapons is through releasing the Mailman and the Cop to give players escalating firepower as they progress.
Through progressing, players go from the whimsical Ghost Bride, Lunaria, to face the tougher Mechanical Kong, Meckong, and The Warden, Grimbadge. This deliberately shifts the difficulty curve toward more meaningful, high-reward boss encounters.
Room or hall choice for volatility and bonus availability is a TaDa signature in all our shooting games along with multiplayer options for enhanced competitivity. As the Fortune Zombie series is designed for an American audience, resonance, engagement and retention with U.S players is the critical outcome.
Tutorials and assistive UX were praised in FZ1. What’s new in onboarding or optional assists to help first-timers feel competent by minute two?
The key is to get players to access the demo and tutorial first. Everybody feels that everything today is intuitive so instructions are just slowing down the experience. So, the onboarding demo has to appeal to both new and returning players and be rewarding in itself.
Both onboarding demos in FZ1 and 2 are designed as an integral part of the game and use avatars to create a sense of familiarity and belonging for players – as well as being crucial for genuine enjoyment and success in play.
Another significant evolution for Fortune Zombie 2 was to ensure both sets of players experienced the same excitement and engagement but for different reasons. New players don’t need to know the advanced skills at the beginning of the game, they need to understand the rules.
The nuances come from extended play, hence our emphasis on demo first and why we made the tutorial as exciting and immersive as the game.
Can you tease one feature or locale you’re exploring for the zombie universe (without breaking NDAs)?
We have a few variations in production, including a Zombie Plinko version. We also released our new game, Fortune Zombie Lightning, where the storyline is in line with the original FZ1 release and includes Bosses Infernodrac, Skelebeat, Doomtrain and Mechzomb. There is also a fantastic tutorial, in game bonuses and up to 2,000x max win depending on Hall choice.
Designed for non-U.S. audiences, Fortune Zombie Lightning also offers a more linear approach to make the game quicker to grasp and it is aimed particularly at players new to shooting games.
Anything else and I would be breaking NDAs! For operators, we showcase our zombie games at industry tradeshows and exhibitions. Next date is G2E, Las Vegas.
