HOW TO PLAY: ZooRacers BattleKarts BETA v4

ZOO ECOSYSTEM
ZOO ECOSYSTEM
Published in
7 min readSep 22, 2022

Welcome to the ZooRacers BETA “HOW TO”, where we walk you through the details of the ZooRacers v4 public BETA release.

Of course we remind everyone that all details below are solely related to the BETA version of ZooRacers — Multi-chain Battle Karts and are likely to change and/or evolve until the release of the final game.

  • Note that all TurboBolts (TB) earned during this final Beta will be reset upon main launch.

Before being able to play ZooRacers, every player must register with the ZooGames platform. More info regarding this can be found here https://medium.com/@ZooEcosystem/2b33de123c8d

1. Overview and ranking

ZooRacers is a kart-battle style game, where players fight against each other on a vast open map.

In this BETA version, each battle must host a minimum of four (4) players, and up to a maximum of sixteen (16). Once a player enters a room (quick match or custom match), the number and details of players (ZooGamesID, kart type and ZooGenes) joining are displayed, and once 4 players have successfully joined, a countdown of twenty (20) seconds starts during which another twelve (12) players (or whatever the number set in the custom match) can also join. It is not possible to leave the lobby once the timer hits five (5) seconds, and once the timer reaches zero (0), the battle begins.

Each game session has a duration of seven (7) minutes (420 seconds).

The goal is to obtain as many points as possible by:

  • Collecting blue orbs from the map and red airdrop boxes;
  • Collecting blue orbs from other players. These are lost by other players when receiving a certain amount of damage and/or when a player dies;
  • Using items. For each item used, a player receives 50 points.

Each player starts the match with ten (10) points.

The current top 3 ranking is shown during the game and final ranking is displayed at the end of the battle with the winner being the player that obtained the most points. In case of a points tie, the winner will be determined by number of kills or, if this is also a tie, then number of personal deaths.

Additionally and as a separate mechanism from points, players can also collect TurboBolts (TB), which are the ZooRacers’ in-game currency and can be used in this version to purchase perks only (more features coming with the final game).

2. Menus

In the menus you can start by adjusting the settings to your preference. This includes sounds, graphics quality, brightness and rearview mirror display on/off.

Note that in this v4 you can now also edit keyboard settings and choose the controller layout you wish to use during the game.

The most important part is the CUSTOMIZE section where you can pre-set up to 4 slots by selecting the preferred gaming assets for your kart. Currently, you can load your favorite ZooGenes (more info here) as a 3D kart driver, as well as attach one of your ZooBoosters and ZooElixirs selected from your ZooGames account wallet.
Additionally, players can click on the “+” button to purchase a Perk: a one-time use option that will be automatically applied for the next battle.

Adding/changing NFTs will either increase or decrease your Overall Score. The Overall Score is important as it determines player’s strength and can be a deciding factor in the Custom Match section.

In this BETA v4, players can choose between all four karts:

  • A buggy kart;
  • A racing kart;
  • A MonsterTruck kart;
  • The TraderJoe tractor.

All karts have different stats and this is up to the player’s preference.

When you are ready, select BATTLE and choose to enter a QUICK MATCH to earn free vZOO from the ZooGames incentive pool, or to create your own CUSTOM MATCH by selecting some criteria such as Number of Players, Overall Player Score to be admitted for the match, and entry fee (shared pot).

3. The limit zone

This Beta v4 features the entire map split into different zones which are randomly selected at the beginning of each battle.

The delimited zone is a dangerous place to cross: going outside the (clearly visible) zone will cause high damage to the player and will rapidly result in death if they do not return to the play area / battle space fast enough.

The delimited zone also gradually reduces until reaching the minimum battle space during the last minute of the match.

4. HUD

Quite a few UI changes have been made for this v4

All visible HUD elements are as follows:

  • Minimap — View airdrop box locations, other players, etc… This will be blurred during the final minute of the game.
  • Top 3 Players rank — First 3 players of the battle and their ZooGamesID as registered on Zoo.Games as well as the player’s current rank if not in top 3.
  • Player’s Health bar — (Green) If empty, the player dies.
  • Player’s Plasma bar — (Blue) Once empty, the player will start to take actual damage.
  • Player’s Energy bar — (Yellow) The Energy bar is reduced when deploying the shield to block damage or when shooting with the kart’s primary weapon.
  • Rearview Mirror — This is optional and can be hidden in the settings menu section.
  • TurboBolts — Number of TurboBolts collected during the battle.
  • Score — Player’s score depending on the amount of points obtained (blue orbs).
  • Kills — Number of kills achieved by the player.
  • Deaths — Number of times the player has died during this battle session.
  • Battle Timer gauge — Displays all 3 parts of the battle: Peace, Battle, Final.
  • Time — Displays time remaining before the battle ends.
  • Equipment — Selected weapons (3) and current item available (1)

5. Weapons and items

Players can have a maximum of three (3) weapons attached to their kart and weapons are classified into three (3) categories.

The BETA version provides players with all available weapons to choose from:

- Energy: Revolver / Machine Gun / Shotgun / Laser

- Explosive: Canon / Missile Launcher / Heat Seeking Missile Launcher / Trap Launcher

- Heavy: Heavy Machine Gun / Heavy Shotgun / Heavy Laser / Crossbow

Each weapon will be shown in-game with the remaining munitions associated with it. The primary weapon (Energy type) has an infinite amount of ammunition but reduces the Energy bar when used.

There are many items available for pick up on the battlefield, and each has a particular effect associated with it.

Color-coded airdrop boxes — Red boxes contain coins, Blue boxes contain items, and Green ones contain regeneration supplies such as Medkits and Plasma refills.

6. Perks

Perks are a one-time-use bonus which can be purchased (with TB) and selected before the battle starts. Each player can only use ONE perk per battle. Once purchased, the perk is automatically assigned to the designated slot and can not be removed or changed.

Perks are divided into 3 categories: Grade 01, Grade 02 and Grade 03.

Each category is more expensive than the next due to perks within a higher category being more beneficial than the ones in the lower categories.

7. Controls

The default keyboard setup — you can now edit these in the settings menu.

8. Boosters and Elixirs

Players must click on the ZooBooster and ZooElixir boxes to select their preferred NFTs adding to their current stats and increasing their overall score.

Each Booster category boosts a specific stat such as Acceleration, Max Speed, Max Energy, Base Damage, Defense or HP, and the higher the rarity of the NFT in said category, the higher the stat point boost.

9. A reminder about ZooGenes

ZooGenes are the ZOO Ecosystem’s gaming-oriented generative NFTs and are compatible with all ZooGames. In ZooRacers they are used as 3D drivers and boost a great number of in-game stats such as defence, base damage, steering control, etc… (final details TBD) There is also a free Tiger ZooGenes for players to use in the game.

  • Find out more about ZooGenes on their dedicated site ZooGenes.io and/or browse the listed ones up for grabs on OpenZoo.io

Reminder of important links and socials:

Official ZOO Ecosystem Website: https://Zoo.One

Official ZooKeeper Website: https://ZooKeeper.finance
* Documentation: https://docs.ZooKeeper.finance

Official OpenZoo Website: https://OpenZoo.io
* Documentation: https://docs.OpenZoo.io

Official ZooGames Website: https://Zoo.Games
* Documentation: https://docs.Zoo.Games/

Official ZooGenes Website: https://ZooGenes.io
Official Twitter: https://twitter.com/ZooEcosystem
Official Telegram: https://t.me/ZooEcosystem
Official Discord: https://discord.gg/ZooEcosystem

Official YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/ZooEcosystem
Official Announcement Channel: https://t.me/ZooKeeperAnn
Official Reddit: https://www.reddit.com/r/ZooEcosystem/
Official Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/ZooEcosystem/

Official ZooKeeper Merchandise: https://zoofarming.myspreadshop.net/

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