Showcasing early gameplay footage, built by a single developer
Depending on your point of view, The Day Before is either a huge letdown or exactly what you were hoping for. The early access version, billed as a sprawling, survival-driven MMO, plays more like an extraction shooter and has so far perplexed players due to inaccessible servers, mostly empty maps, and a varietyof technical issues and bugs. The Day Before, despite being one of the worst-reviewed games on Steam, could be one of the most spectacular releases in history, a whirlwind cautionary tale of high hopes versus brutal reality.
In the midst of all the drama, one developer is working on a’remake’ of The Day Before that already includes melee combat, something missing from the original game’s initial release, and offers a sharp parody of Fntastic’s zombie shooter.
Since its initial release on Thursday, December 7, The Day Before Steam reviews have improved slightly. The zombie game clearly has its defenders, and Fntastic has promised that bug fixes, gameplay improvements, and much more will be released in the near future.
Nonetheless, you could be forgiven for thinking that The Day Before isn’t quite what you expected. What was supposed to be an open-world MMO with tough survival mechanics ends up feeling more like an extraction shooter. AI appears to have been used in parts of the game, and even if you can connect to the servers, you’re likely to encounter some game-breaking glitches.
Enter ‘TheCrimsonDev,’ the brains behind Godmode Interactive, the creators of the excellent top down shooter Suit For Hire. For the past month, TheCrimsonDev has been working on a’remake’ of The Day Before to see how easy or difficult it would be to create a zombie survival game. Though it currently lacks environments and locations, the combat footage is very convincing. According to TheCrimsonDev, the project is meant to be a parody.
“This project started when I noticed how different each trailer for The Day Before looked, almost like they were different games from each other,” he says. “It sparked a thought in my head: how easy would it be to create my own gameplay trailer for a zombie survival game? And so I began this project as a parody for a gameplay trailer. The goal of this is not to release a game using Fntastic’s IP or designs – it’s just for a parody video.”
Within 35 days, TheCrimsonDev successfully incorporated melee combat, looting, crafting, a functional UI, and enemies that take different amounts of damage depending on where they are hit. Zombies have a variety of attacks, and despite working entirely alone, TheCrimsonDev has already created a basic online multiplayer system. Unfortunately, the Day Before ‘ Remake’ project will not be made public, but TheCrimsonDev has stated that they may create their own zombie survival game in the future.
“Working on this project has been a lot of fun, and it’s making me realize how much fun a zombie survival game could be to develop,” he explained. “I’ll 100% start with my own IP, designs, etc. (better designed too), and you’ll be the first to know when the project begins and how it develops.”
In other news, four days after The Day Before launched, Fntastic had announced that they were shutting down.