Author's Note

This project holds a special place in my portfolio, as it represents the beginning of my professional journey into game development. Several years ago, while developing and publishing this mod for Project Zomboid on Steam Workshop, I discovered my passion for creating gameplay systems and interactive experiences.

Although relatively small in scope compared to my later projects, this mod provided valuable hands-on experience with software architecture, game systems design, and problem solving within an existing production environment. Many of the skills and principles that continue to shape my work today were first developed during the creation of this project.

Project Summary

This mod was developed for Project Zomboid using Lua and required extensive research into the game's existing architecture and modding framework. A significant part of the development process involved analyzing and understanding a large third-party codebase in order to extend existing systems while maintaining compatibility with the base game.

The project required working with multiplayer synchronization and networked gameplay concepts, ensuring that gameplay features behaved consistently across clients in multiplayer environments. In addition, I created and modified animations, integrated new gameplay functionality, and adapted systems to operate within the technical limitations and APIs exposed by the game.

Through this project, I gained practical experience in reverse engineering existing gameplay systems, working within established software architectures, implementing network-aware features, and developing production-ready gameplay functionality using Lua. The mod was successfully published on Steam Workshop and became the foundation of my transition into professional game development.

Check out all of my mods at my Steam Workshop: https://steamcommunity.com/id/ilusionbrxgames/myworkshopfiles/