State of Decay 2 will drop players into a much bigger world than the first game, its developer has revealed. In a new interview with IGN, State of Decay 2 developer Undead Labs notes that the playable area of the co-op zombie survival game willbe "substantially larger" than the first State of Decay game, though the developer isn't ready to talk specifics.

Speaking to IGN, Undead Labs CEO Jeff Strain said:

The millions of State of Decay players have been clear about what they want in State of Decay 2: A bigger, better State of Decay they can play with their friends. We intend to deliver on all of those.

Fortunately, players will be able to freely explore that large world, even if it means breaking away from their group. Strain confirmed that players will be able to split up and reconvene with others at any time, though it may not always be advantageous to do so. And while the game can't necessarily turn into a straight PVP match, other players will be able to cause a meaningful impact on your world. Design director Richard Foge pointed to examples such as other players making noise and attracting zombies to your location, or killing an NPC and causing their enclave to become hostile towards you.

State of Decay 2 is expected for release sometime in 2017 as a Play Anywhere title for both PC and Xbox One.