Walkin / Development journal
MAR — SEP 2026Six months of building, testing and refining a new kind of mobile runner.
Follow the journey
The last survivors of Brooklyn
Somewhere ahead, the next safe haven is waiting.
A semi-casual survivors-like roguelite runner set in a zombie-infested Brooklyn. Lane-based movement meets rail-shooter aiming: run, aim with one thumb, fight or evade, and build a stronger loadout.
Each run asks for a different build. Resources and permanent progression give you a reason to come back.
The development story
A month-by-month account, March–September 2026. Dates describe development phases; the supplied gameplay recordings illustrate the systems, not archived monthly builds.
The foundation
Before there was a complete run, there had to be a world worth surviving. We built an ECS-based enemy simulation and brought the crowd to life with Rukhanka animation.
High-volume simulation lives in DOTS. Game flow stays flexible in a hybrid Unity architecture.
Player progression
Surviving became a series of choices. Upgrade cards gave each run a direction: change your weapon, strengthen an ability, or build around the next encounter.
Data-driven upgrades leave room for new combinations. Blender, Figma and Photoshop support the visual iteration behind each choice.
The UI foundation
Menus, loadouts and gameplay information needed to speak the same language. We connected them through a responsive interface built around clear actions and readable states.
The actual game UI, not a wireframe: character selection, equipment and progression brought into one place.
Content systems
Characters, weapons and upgrade cards became parts of the same progression framework. The aim was to add content without rebuilding the systems underneath it.
ScriptableObject definitions describe the content; Addressables handle its delivery. The framework supports both run choices and progression between runs.
Items & survival tools
Combat became more than shooting. Medkits, bombs and usable items expanded the choices available when the road became crowded.
Fight, evade, or spend a resource. The goal is pressure that asks for a decision, not just a faster road.
Connecting the experience
Movement, aiming, combat and upgrades began to work as one experience. A run now had a rhythm: face the pressure, make a choice, and go again with a different build.
The important step was not another isolated feature. It was making the hand-off between systems feel like one continuous game.
Where Walkin is today
A playable foundation for the last survivors of Brooklyn: continuous movement, one-thumb aiming, zombie combat, upgrade choices and progression that carries beyond a single run.
Still in development. The foundation is playable; the wider world of enemies, hazards and bosses is the direction ahead, not a claim of finished content.
Next chapter / Not a release schedule
The foundation is in place. Now it is about depth, variety and the details that make another run worth taking.
Future direction. No unannounced dates, no promise of finished content.
The story continues
Explore Walkin and the systems behind the game.
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