If there’s one thing the World War Z game franchise is known for, it’s throwing massive hordes of zombies at you. We took this design philosophy to heart as we prepared to launch the long-awaited Horde Mode XL update to World War Z: Aftermath.
Launching tomorrow, Horde Mode XL is a new game mode that harnesses the power of the PlayStation 5 to bring more bloodthirsty zombies to the screen at once than ever before, including the previous Horde Mode Z.
In the new mode, you and your friends will find themselves on a new map where you will have to protect a civilian camp located inside a shopping center.
There are three game zones connected to this mall and each of them is a separate front line under attack from swarms of zombies seeking to reach civilians
- L’Espace Restaurant: The swarm attacks from the temple and the village
- The Riverside Area: The swarm attacks from the city
- The construction zone: the swarm attacks from the factory
The rules are simple: survive as long as possible and prevent the zombies from reaching the civilians.
The main difference in the new mode is that some zombie waves will be “XL waves” with a mind-boggling amount of zombies on screen at once, and they’re all coming for you and your team.
To survive this onslaught, you need to stock up on supplies to launch strong defenses. These are one-time events that trigger at the start of an XL wave if you’ve stocked up enough supplies and they kill a ton of zombies at once.
The more supplies you stockpile, the deadlier your upgraded defenses will be. The upgraded defenses differ in each zone: there are missiles in the Restaurant zone, jet fighters in the Riverside zone, and explosive gases in the construction site.
Horde Mode XL also has other new gameplay features and surprises that we can’t wait for you to experience when you get started.
New weapon progression system
Horde Mode XL isn’t the only feature launching with this update. The rest of the update includes the new weapon progression system and is available for PS4 and PS5 players.
In the new system, skins are not tied to certain weapon stats. While you still need experience points and supplies to upgrade your weapons, upgrading is now done with linear stat progression (and unlocks different bonuses), while being able to apply any skin to a weapon.
One of the biggest new features are the weapon perk slots that become available through progression. Each gun has three slots where a unique set of perks can be slotted. Perks are divided into two categories based on their effectiveness: unique and common. Players can only install one unique perk and two common perks. Perks can affect stats or grant unique gameplay benefits, overall providing some flexibility in customizing your weapons.
We’ve also created a host of new free skins for each weapon that can be unlocked through its weapon progression system!
It’s also important to note for veteran WWZ: Aftermath players that your progress will not be wiped with this update. For example, if you previously unlocked the 3rd version of a weapon, that weapon will now level up to 3rd level in the new weapon progression system; in terms of specifications, they will be identical. All previously unlocked skins will also be available to you.
The Horde Mode XL update is just the start
We’re extremely excited that you’re jumping into the Horde Mode XL update on January 24th. The new Horde Mode XL game mode, an overhauled weapon progression system, new weapons (Sai Knives and Tri-Barrel Shotgun), and new skins make our biggest update yet.
This is just the beginning of World War Z: Aftermath. As you have continued to support this title, we will do the same. Look for more exciting updates in 2023.
