What changed in Project Zomboid in 2019

Allows players to continue with old saves and favorite mods.

Allows for more realistic ‘filler’ loot amidst valuable items.

Includes sitting, sneaking, sprinting, jogging, racking, reloading, climbing, fence-jumping, collapsing, and more.

Includes green/red aiming outline, new guns, improved racking and reloading, and increased gun loot spawn.

Includes remedies for floating cars, farming issues, inaudible house alarms, and more.

Garage doors may be opened/closed and shake when hit.

Houses and stores now have loot in expected containers.

Movement and combat visibly hampered when injured, with new lacerations possible.

Includes new difficulty balance.

Includes resizing and appearance tweaks.

Includes visible flow direction.

Existing savegames will NOT be compatible due to extensive changes.

Zombies can feast on recent corpses, loll against walls, and fall over fences.

Different clothing provides varying levels of protection from zombie attacks.

Many new clothing options available both on spawn and as loot.

Zombies discovered in situations where people died.

Shows where you’re aiming in iso space.

Original music still in rotation and accessible through game options.

Progressively bloodies bodies and clothing of survivors and zombies.

Different zombies based on their environment, like cop zombies in police stations.

Players can be dragged down by hordes and feasted upon.

Can be dressed however you like.

MP save system now in a server-side database.

Player controls tightened for better responsiveness without sacrificing realism.

Different body parts now affect walk and run speeds based on injury severity.

Clothing closest to wounds will stain with blood first before affecting other items.

Injuries now have their own bleeding modifiers to prevent unrealistic bleeding from minor wounds.

36 new tracks spanning 2hr:41m have been added to the game.

Improvements made to suggested clothing load-outs and character model idles.

New Survivor Zeds will spawn with a rucksack filled with survival goodies and an annotated map.

New tab in health/skills panel for customizing survivor appearance.

Efforts to improve performance when rendering large quantities of zombies.

Changes made to make one-on-one combat easier and group combat more deadly.

New dev tools for modding will be released, allowing for more customization and features in the game.

Introduced new animations for pouring liquids, sitting to rest, applying bandages, and taking pills.

Idle zombies will be attracted to human corpses and will crouch to feed, allowing players to sneak by or attack more easily.

New animations will allow for zombies to grab players during window escapes, enhancing gameplay dynamics.

Resolved issues with players getting trapped in window frames during escape animations.

Improved body discovery with clearer storytelling through body placements and items.

Vehicles have been resized to match the new character models, improving visual consistency.

Added more poses for feeding zombies, enhancing the realism of their behavior.

Improved water effects to enhance visual comfort during windy conditions.

Players can now open garage doors, with plans to adjust garage sizes on the main map.

Introduced rare survivor zombies that carry loot and can lead players to hidden stashes.

Added new animation variants for players defending against zombie bites.

Fixed various issues with character animation blending, leading to smoother transitions and less jarring movements.

Support added for characters to lower and raise hoods on hooded clothing.

Introduced various new clothing items, including ponchos, hoodies, and swimming outfits.

Added new outfits, including Gigamart employee uniforms, with specific spawn zones.

Introduced a system ensuring specific zombie types spawn in relevant locations, like firefighter zombies in fire stations.

Implemented a system allowing players to wear multiple clothing items on top of each other, improving visual realism.

Added new idle animations based on character moodles and conditions.

Introduced new animations for timed actions like digging graves and cleaning blood.

Players will now be slowed down when running through crowds of zombies, adding a new layer of danger.

Enhanced control over item placement and clutter in houses for a more realistic looting experience.

Introduction of a new South-tinged score to enhance the game's atmosphere.

New zoning system allows specific zombie types to spawn in designated areas, enhancing gameplay variety.

Significant work on the zoom system to improve character detail and rendering performance.

Fixed a bug affecting character lighting and visual fidelity, resulting in better model rendering.

Completion of a new challenge map with ongoing bug fixes.

New tools for animation blending and debugging to assist developers and modders.

Skills will now automatically level up based on XP requirements, removing the manual skill point allocation.

Zombies now spawn covered in blood, with plans for blood to gradually appear on zombies during combat in Version 41.

Development of new map content, including a take on Louisville and new locations for challenges.

Improvements to the animation systems are being integrated into combat and non-combat actions.

Final touches on the puddle system have been made, integrating it with climate effects for improved visuals.

Better internal visuals for buildings are being developed, enhancing the overall aesthetic.

The public controller beta is in the bug fixing and polish stage, with version 14 available for testing.

Plans to visually enhance the fire system and rebalance its behavior for better simulation.

Locks in the render thread have been optimized, resulting in marked improvement in quality.

Implementation of shiny helmet, coats, and leggings shader effects for different clothing items.

An updated Controller Test beta has been released for gamepad improvement testing.

New networking optimization values provided for server operators to improve performance.

Improvements to the rendering of ground surfaces, especially road textures affected by rain.

Work on Sims-style cutaways and removal of circle stencil for better visibility in buildings.

New Challenge Maps, including a fictional map called Kingsmouth, are being developed for the main game.