ScumZone.com is a website I made for SCUM, a supermax open world survival game.
The online multiplayer island mixes elements of The Hunger Games and Escape from New York. But it’s too big. Players have trouble finding each other. Player-vs-player action is rare, holding back the fun potential of the game.
To address this, I added a “PvP Zone” to the game. The small zone moves to a new town or landmark on the vast map every 24 hours. Player interactions inside the zone count towards their ranking on the website. The leaderboard uses the same scoring approach used for chess tournaments. Players who have finished exploring, gathering, and equipping themselves can head to the zone to look for a fun fight.
I ran the project in my spare time for about a month. 50 people took part, but it didn’t take off. In retrospect, I should have kept going. A few groups have since set up the software for their own game servers with far more players, and I help them from time to time.