Hi!

2D topdown rpg/survival-game in a zombie-apoc world. It has both arcade and semi-realistic features.

I want 3 meters (except HP) that the player needs to keep from dropping to zero - food, water and "resistance" or something. This would be the level of vaccin/antibiotics in the body. So that:

- increase: use items (syringes? pills?) Maybe also by "treatment" by visiting some npc "doctor".

- it drops over time

- drops when being hit by zombies.

- it drops due to contaminated food/drink/vading in sewage (similar to how radiation increases from some food/environment in fallout)

What would make most sense? Virus is the typical agent of zombie spread but it's not necessarily what suits my gameplay best. Bacteria or fungus better for applying the effects outlined above?

Thanks for your input/ideas!
Erik

Call the bar "immunity", as this shows resistance to infection.

Go with the classic virus. The only reason to change it is if you want it as part of game play, to explain how zombies can stay around so long even if they are decaying a body.

Look up: the zombie survival guide.

Remember zombies come with a lot of background covered, making it easy topic for games, however there are also things people expect from zombies and these can limit a developer. That is why the other types of zombies are invented, to get around rules and to explain new contamination method.

maybe rather than a vaccine, it's an anti-retroviral, like what's used to manage HIV? basically, you're already infected, you're just staving off turning for as long as you can. Possibly, if you don't want an "everybody's infected" situation, work it into the story that the player character is infected at the beginning of the game - maybe the use of ARVs to manage the infection was already in practice before the player character got infected. Maybe being infected is what makes the player character "expendable" enough for his group to send him out on the dangerous jobs to begin with.

If i go with "immunity" or "resistance" to a virus and that you are already infected and you just try to stay away from turning, would these make sence:

- immunity go down when exposed to tained food/water such or vading in tainted water/ breathing tainted dust

- immunity go down when slashed by zombie claws / bitten by zombies

It doesnt have to be 100% scintifically sound, just make some sense. But if you are already infected by a virus, you cannot become "more infected" right?