Zombie Ops

Zombie Ops is an innovative 2D survival game that merges the timeless appeal of classic arcade games like Asteroids with the high-stakes excitement of Call of Duty Zombies. The game challenges players to survive relentless waves of enemies, strategically manage power-ups, and adapt to increasing levels of difficulty. What sets Zombie Ops apart is its immersive design and focus on interaction through both visual and tactile elements.

A key feature of the game is its custom-built controller, which transforms the gaming experience from purely digital to a more physical interaction. The built-in controller includes two joysticks for movement and aiming and a distinct, bright yellow shooting button for responsive combat actions. This tactile interface enhances player engagement by mimicking the physicality of classic arcade games, creating a nostalgic yet modern gaming experience.

The game’s unique twist lies in its layered survival mechanics and intense feedback systems. When health is low, the entire screen flashes red, and accompanying sound effects escalate to heighten the sense of danger. These dynamic audiovisual cues immerse players in the apocalyptic world, making survival feel visceral and immediate. Zombie Ops is not just about surviving rounds; it’s about fully engaging with the game through sight, sound, and touch, offering an arcade-inspired yet distinctly modern survival experience.

Continue in the video game creation space

Asteroids arcade game

Make a survival call of duty zombies type game

Make 2d

Interactive game with difficult rounds of difficulty facing enemies and managing power ups

User has to use a built in controller for this

Shooting down enemies and surviving different rounds

Interaction through visual and tactile gameplay

Sound effects of the game, when health is low the whole screen also turns red to show that life is running out.

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ZOMBIE OPS GAMEPLAY

IX LAB FInal 16.56.14.mp4

Concept

The inspiration for Zombie Ops was driven by the desire to create a highly interactive game that bridges the gap between classic arcade shooters and modern survival strategy games. Starting with the foundation of a 2D asteroid shooter, we wanted to infuse the game with our own twist: survival-based gameplay with strategic elements, such as managing resources and facing specialized enemy types. This approach allowed us to build on a simple, familiar concept while offering a fresh, engaging experience.

Interaction is at the heart of Zombie Ops. Unlike traditional 2D shooters where players only focus on firing at enemies, we designed the game to demand a more multi-dimensional strategy. Players must manage their movement, use power-ups wisely, and adapt to changing enemy behaviors. For example, some enemies are faster and require precision targeting, while others are more resistant, forcing players to prioritize targets carefully. This adds a layer of complexity that keeps the gameplay challenging and rewarding.

Our vision also emphasized the importance of creating a fully immersive experience. By designing the game to work within a self-contained arcade box, players are transported into a focused gaming environment reminiscent of retro arcade setups. The tactile, hands-on controller amplifies the immersion, making the game feel like a physical interaction rather than just a digital one. This design encourages players to fully engage with the game, shutting out distractions and enhancing their sense of presence in the apocalyptic world.

What makes Zombie Ops truly unique is its combination of survival mechanics and sensory feedback. The game’s audiovisual cues—such as escalating sound effects during intense moments and a red-flashing screen when health is low—create a heightened emotional connection. These elements make every decision feel critical and every victory hard-earned, elevating the player’s sense of accomplishment.

Our ultimate goal was to create a game that combines the simplicity and accessibility of a 2D arcade shooter with the depth and intensity of a survival game. By focusing on interaction and blending nostalgia with innovation, Zombie Ops offers players an experience that feels familiar yet refreshingly new.

Design

The design of Zombie Ops reflects its gritty, apocalyptic theme while prioritizing functionality and immersion. The arcade box is crafted from laser-cut wood, featuring a rugged design with dark green and black tones to evoke a post-apocalyptic atmosphere. The title, "Zombie Ops," is spray-painted in graffiti-style lettering, reinforcing the rundown, chaotic aesthetic of a zombie apocalypse. This design choice not only sets the mood but also visually aligns the game with its survival-driven narrative.

The arcade box is both practical and immersive. A tablet slides into the top to serve as the game screen, while the controller protrudes from the front, allowing seamless interaction. All wiring is concealed at the back, ensuring a clean and professional appearance. The controller itself features two joysticks for movement and aiming, accompanied by a bright yellow shooting button that draws attention to its critical function. To reflect the theme of survival and improvisation, the controller is intentionally taped together, echoing the resourcefulness one might rely on in an apocalyptic scenario.

This design immerses the player entirely in the game, focusing their attention solely on the screen while maintaining the tactile, hands-on feel of a classic arcade experience. The box’s compact and portable build ensures it is easy to transport and durable enough to withstand repeated use. The tactile feedback from the joysticks and shooting button enhances the gameplay, making each action feel deliberate and impactful.

Sound design plays a vital role in the overall experience. Dynamic audio cues, such as the escalating sound of enemies and low-health alarms, heighten tension and urgency. When the player’s health is critically low, the screen flashes red, visually reinforcing the danger and pulling the player deeper into the survival mindset. Together, these elements create a cohesive, engaging, and immersive gaming experience that captures the intensity of a zombie apocalypse.

Interactivity

Interactivity lies at the core of Zombie Ops, making it more than just a game—it's a fully immersive experience that engages players on multiple sensory levels. The game bridges the gap between player and environment through seamless tactile and visual elements, enhancing engagement and connection. The custom-built controller, with its dual joysticks and bright yellow shooting button, transforms the gameplay from a passive experience to an active, hands-on challenge. Every movement and shot feels deliberate, with the tactile feedback reinforcing the player’s sense of control and urgency.

The dynamic gameplay further heightens interactivity by challenging players to adapt to evolving scenarios. As rounds progress, enemies become more aggressive and numerous, requiring players to strategize their movements and shooting techniques. Power-ups add another layer of complexity, as players must decide when and how to use them for maximum impact. This balance between reflexive action and strategic planning ensures that no two playthroughs are ever the same.

Visual and auditory cues amplify the immersive quality of the game. The screen reacts dynamically to the player’s health and actions, such as flashing red during critical moments, making the game’s stakes feel tangible. Sound effects, like the crackling of gunfire or the ominous groans of approaching enemies, build tension and immerse the player further into the apocalyptic world. These elements work together to create a game that feels alive, responding to every decision the player makes.

What sets Zombie Ops apart is its ability to create a focused and uninterrupted gaming environment. The arcade-style setup removes external distractions, allowing players to concentrate entirely on the game. The combination of tactile controls, evolving challenges, and dynamic sensory feedback makes Zombie Ops a truly interactive experience that pushes players to stay engaged, adapt, and survive.

Challenges

The development of Zombie Ops was both rewarding and filled with significant challenges that tested our creativity, technical skills, and problem-solving abilities. One of the first hurdles was merging our individual code components. My initial gameplay designs and logic differed considerably from my partner’s, which created compatibility issues. Integrating these separate elements into a cohesive game took considerable time and effort. Initially, we attempted to manually combine our code, but this approach proved inefficient and error-prone. Eventually, we transitioned to using GitHub and VS Code, which significantly streamlined our workflow. These tools allowed us to collaborate effectively, resolve code conflicts, and maintain version control, enabling smoother development moving forward.

Building the physical structure of the arcade box introduced its own set of challenges. We needed a design that would securely house the tablet while still allowing for easy access and removal. After experimenting with various configurations, we decided on a sliding component with an open box at the top. This design allowed the tablet to slide in and out effortlessly while remaining stable during gameplay. Achieving this balance of functionality and user-friendliness required precise measurements and adjustments.

Another major obstacle was the construction of the game controller. Initially, we planned to embed the buttons inside the controller for a streamlined appearance. However, this setup didn’t work as intended, as the buttons required excessive pressure to function, disrupting gameplay. After multiple iterations, we adjusted the design to ensure the buttons were responsive and comfortable to use. These adjustments highlighted the importance of iterative testing and adaptability in the design process.

Additionally, connecting the display presented an unexpected challenge. We miscalculated the space between the USB port and the display, making it impossible to route the cable internally. To resolve this, we drilled a hole in the side of the wooden box to allow the cable to pass through externally. While this was initially a compromise, it turned out to align with the game’s apocalyptic, makeshift aesthetic, adding an unintentional but fitting element to the design. Each of these challenges taught us valuable lessons in problem-solving and reinforced the importance of flexibility during development.

personal contribution

My contributions to Zombie Ops encompassed both the core gameplay mechanics and the physical design of the arcade setup. On the gameplay side, I was responsible for creating the initial setup of the game states, which served as the foundation for the overall gameplay flow. This included designing how the game transitions between different states, such as starting a new round, managing enemy spawns, and handling the player’s survival status. I also developed the round logic, which determined the increasing difficulty of each round. This logic was later modified and refined as we added more complexity to the game.

A significant portion of my coding work focused on creating unique player power-ups, which added a layer of strategy and excitement to the gameplay. These power-ups allowed players to gain temporary advantages, such as increased firepower or faster movement, making the game more dynamic and rewarding. Most power ups were included in the final design of the game, although thoroughly enhanced through the process. Additionally, I worked on a potential shooting enemy class, which added variety to the enemy types and required players to adapt their strategies to different threats. In the end we did not end up including the shooting back enemy class due to difficulties in the integration and gameplay.

On the design side, I took the lead in conceptualizing and assembling the arcade box. Starting from scratch, I designed the setup to ensure it was both functional and visually aligned with the game’s apocalyptic theme. The driving motion for this design was an arcade like unit built around the display. The open top allowed for the display to be easily inserted and removed. It stands on its own base and the dimensions needed for the screen size are dedicated to how big the whole arcade would be. I assembled the laser-cut wooden pieces, ensuring they fit together seamlessly and could withstand repeated use. Once the structure was complete, I collaborated on painting the box in dark green and black tones, using graffiti-style lettering for the title to enhance the post-apocalyptic aesthetic. This hands-on work allowed me to ensure that every element of the design contributed to the immersive experience we aimed to create.

User testing

User testing was a crucial part of refining Zombie Ops, providing valuable insights into both the gameplay and physical design. Early feedback focused on how the game stood out from other projects by incorporating our own twist on the classic Asteroids concept. At the initial stages, the game’s visuals were simplistic, and the arcade box wasn’t ready. Despite this, testers appreciated our effort to go beyond basic shapes and mechanics by introducing elements like rounds, unique enemy types, and power-ups. This feedback validated our approach and encouraged us to continue innovating.

Players also provided constructive suggestions to enhance the interactivity and immersion of the game. Many recommended adding more dynamic visual effects, such as flashing lights and responsive screen changes, to heighten the intensity of the gameplay. Based on this feedback, we implemented features like the red-flashing screen when the player’s health is low, as well as improved sound effects to create a more immersive experience.

The controller design was another area where user testing proved invaluable. Early testers found the buttons difficult to use due to their incomplete design and placement. This feedback prompted us to revisit the controller setup, making adjustments to the button placement and pressure sensitivity to ensure smoother and more responsive gameplay. These iterative improvements, guided by user input, played a key role in shaping the final version of Zombie Ops. By incorporating this feedback, we were able to create a game that was not only engaging but also intuitive and enjoyable for players.

Good feedback on giving the project our own twist,

Not only doing asteroids, as in this stage all the shapes were very simplistic and no arcade box was ready

Also encouraged to add more flashing or changing lights and music as well as making buttons easier to play with since the controller was not finalized

Conclusion

The primary goals of the Zombie Ops project were to create an interactive, immersive, and engaging 2D survival game that combined the nostalgic feel of classic arcade games with modern survival mechanics. We aimed to design a game that would fully immerse players through tactile controls, dynamic audiovisual feedback, and challenging gameplay. Additionally, the project sought to replicate the physical and focused experience of arcade gaming by crafting a functional and aesthetically aligned arcade box.

Our audience interacted with the project in ways that aligned closely with our expectations. Testers were engaged by the gameplay’s increasing difficulty and appreciated the unique power-ups and strategic elements we introduced. The immersive design of the arcade box, coupled with the responsive tactile controls, was particularly well-received, drawing players into the post-apocalyptic world we sought to create. Feedback highlighted the game’s ability to capture the essence of a survival experience, with testers often commenting on the intense moments when health was low, and the screen flashed red—a feature that perfectly embodied our definition of interaction. Players were not only reacting to the game but also fully immersed in making critical decisions that impacted their survival.

If I had more time, I would focus on refining the hardware aspects of the project. For example, I would work on designing a more robust and integrated controller that eliminated external cabling and improved the durability of the button mechanisms. On the software side, I would enhance the variety of enemy types and add more dynamic environments to increase replayability. Incorporating more advanced visual effects and responsive lighting could further elevate the immersive experience.

The setbacks we encountered during the development process taught me invaluable lessons about adaptability and collaboration. Challenges such as merging code, resolving controller design issues, and reconfiguring the arcade box’s structure pushed me to think creatively and work effectively with my team. These obstacles reinforced the importance of iterative testing, clear communication, and embracing flexibility when things don’t go as planned. From these experiences, I learned how to turn failures into opportunities for improvement, an essential skill that will benefit me in future projects.

Zombie Ops, represents an engaging end to a great semester of Interaction Lab. I highly enjoyed working with Nawaf to put this together and felt we both complemented each other quite nicely in order to see this project flourish in a timley and efficient fashion.

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