H1Z1 Steam Early Access Updates, Few Dev Screens and Announcement for a Playable H1Z1

Danilo Napalan Plays the New Zombie Survival Game 'Dying Light' in the Warner Bros. Booth at E3 in Los Angeles — Danilo Napalan plays the new zombie survival game "Dying Light " in the Warner Bros. booth at the 2014 Electronic Entertainment Expo, known as E3, in Los Angeles, California, June 10, 2014. REUTERS

"H1Z1," Sony Online Entertainment's upcoming post-apocalyptic survival game, is getting ever closer to the early access on Steam. Game designer Adam Clegg gives the latest update about "H1Z1" in a blog post over at the official "H1Z1" Web site.

"Over the past week, I've been working on building out some of our medium sized structures with props," said Clegg over at the "H1Z1" Web site. "When we get them from the art team they are just a shell and we then use props to flesh them out and make them feel like real, once occupied places."

The newest developer update shows the building process of some of the locations that can be seen in "H1Z1" including a gas station and a diner. Clegg, for those who are not familiar, is in charge with the world design for "H1Z1." This means he is in charge of creating the overall look and theme of the world, and creating all the features and pieces in it to create a cohesive overall picture. According to him, his job goes from building large towns to dealing with the smallest details such as the interior design and furniture of each of the rooms.

The link above features a few screenshots of the different scenes as created by an in-house editor before being placed in the world of "H1Z1."

As a designer, Clegg then goes to work to create abandoned sheds and facilities to build the overall post-apocalyptic theme—this is basically the part where he is able to get all creative and build a place unique to "H1Z1."

The next batch of photos will showcase just how Clegg has transformed some of the empty space templates into an abandoned diner, kitchen and gas station. But more than letting his creativity run wild, building the world also allows him to plot the areas where possible loot and items can spawn, as seen in the gas station snapshot with the blue markers.

Of course, the art is one of the areas where change can happen at any time given that "H1Z1" has not yet hit the Early Steam Access, so the screenshots that Clegg showcased are anything but final.

Pushing Forward to Early Steam Access

Beyond the art and world design, "H1Z1's" Jimmy Whisenhunt, senior designer, has also affirmed to fans that they are hard at work and pushing the game towards Early Access.

"We're still pushing forward. We still have systems we want to flesh out and we're trying to show as much as we can as we move forward," Whisenhunt said in an interview with Gamezone.

Earlier this month, Whisenhunt showed a demo of "H1Z1" regarding crafting items and weapons and the mechanics behind them. In addition, there were a few screenshots released by SOE to show off the dynamic weather system that it has been working on.

Whisenhunt said the weather is designed not just to establish the look and feel of "H1Z1" but to also provide another factor to consider survival. Changes in and the harshness of weather can have an effect on players' "H1Z1" character, which make it another potential threat to their survival.

While all these factor in the final Early Access date, SOE did give some good news over at the official "H1Z1" Reddit for those who are attending the San Diego Comic Con.

"Yeah we are planning an awesome block party at our SOE campus during San Diego Comic Con and H1Z1 will be there playable! Expect to hear a more formal announcement soon about how to attend."