Games by JimD Newsletter: Issue #97

Welcome to my 97th newsletter! Welcome to my new patrons, and thank you for following the progress on my games.

This has been a very busy month for me, since I’m still updating Zombie Exodus: Safe Haven, Part 4, while continuing to work on Stronghold. I will provide a brief update on my progress with Safe Haven below, but please note that the release date remains on track for February 5, 2026.

This newsletter will discuss Stronghold in more detail, as I want everyone to be excited about some of the new directions I’m taking. Sometimes I feel very bogged down in writing Safe Haven. It’s not the story but the code. There are lots of things that I would do differently if I were starting over. With Stronghold, I’m using everything I learned to make the story and code more streamlined. I will discuss this further later and hope you enjoy some of the new things I have planned.

In this newsletter, I will review my development plans, as I do every month. Let's get started.

Zombie Exodus: Safe Haven, Part 4

Part 4 is 1,020,000 words. There has been a closed beta, where dedicated testers are thoroughly reviewing everything to ensure fewer bugs and continuity errors. With a game of this size, it’s challenging to identify all those issues, but we are trying. This is being done in parallel with the entire document being copyedited. I’ve been told that the process will take until January. At that point, we will merge the files and produce the game.

I’m already considering additions to make for the free update. I’m planning on starting on it in March or April, depending on how things go with Stronghold.

Zombie Exodus: Stronghold

Over the past month, I’ve been deep in the world of Zombie Exodus: Stronghold, and the project has taken a huge leap forward. Last month’s demo covered only Chapter 1. This month, I’ll be releasing Chapters 1 through 5, giving you a much bigger and more intense portion of the story to explore.

I have rewritten a significant portion of the content because I felt it did not meet my standards. When I originally wrote the story for another publisher, I was on extremely tight deadlines. This made me rush to release weekly content. Now that I have more time, I’m rewriting and expanding every chapter.

Before I go any further, a quick note:
Mild spoiler ahead for an event that happens in the first chapter.

Stronghold opens with a moment that changes everything. While investigating a disturbance in the sub-level tunnels on your birthday night, the main character is bitten. That revelation shapes the entire trajectory of the story. From that point on, the narrative becomes a race against the infection itself. Your decisions, your alliances, and your chances of survival all unfold under the shadow of that bite. It sets Stronghold apart from Safe Haven with a more urgent, high-pressure pace right from the beginning.

These first five chapters take you far beyond the initial breach. You’ll see Stronghold unravel from the inside, encounter corruption that helped bring the fortress down, and meet the people who will become your closest allies.

• Harmony’s search for her missing mentor.

• Siena’s buried anger at the commander who wronged her.

• Alex’s need for redemption.

• Julian’s guilt and hope for a second chance.

• Jasmine’s determination to keep the community together.

• Aldor’s quiet devotion to the vulnerable.

Each carries their own story, and your infection forces those stories to collide in tense and surprising ways.

This expanded release sets the tone for the larger game: a fast-moving survival thriller set in a collapsing utopia, where every choice feels heavier because time is never on your side. I’m excited to finally share a much bigger slice of Stronghold with you, and I can’t wait to hear what you think once you dive in.

Safe Haven and Stronghold Crossover

I also have something special planned for the months ahead. With Stronghold now expanding into its early chapters, this feels like the perfect moment to connect the two games. I’m going to write a crossover between Zombie Exodus: Safe Haven and Zombie Exodus: Stronghold. Because Stronghold takes place one year after the outbreak began, the timelines line up in a way that makes this completely possible. Survivors from Safe Haven’s early days could realistically cross paths with the Stronghold cast.

Even better, I’m letting my Patreon community help decide which Safe Haven character makes the jump. It might be someone beloved. It might be someone unpredictable. It might be someone whose story raises more questions than answers once they step inside Stronghold’s walls. Whoever arrives will have a meaningful impact on the plot, the Stronghold group, and the larger mythology of the Zombie Exodus universe.

I’ll be posting a patron poll soon, along with a short list of possible candidates. Which character from Safe Haven would you like to see in Stronghold?

Free Skill Levels

I’m also bringing back a special feature that many long-time players will recognize. In Safe Haven, anyone who loaded a completed save from the original Zombie Exodus received bonus skill points as a thank-you for sticking with the series. I’ll be doing the same in Stronghold. If you have a Safe Haven save file, you’ll be able to import it and receive extra starting skill levels as a loyalty reward. It’s my way of saying thank you to everyone who has supported the universe across multiple games, and it gives returning players a small but meaningful edge as they fight to survive inside Stronghold.