'State of Decay 2' Gets July 4th-Inspired DLC; New Weapons, Vehicles and Fireworks Arrive

The Microsoft-published zombie survival game “State of Decay 2” gets its first post-launch content, which is inspired by the Fourth of July festivities and features new weapons and vehicles.

The DLC, rightfully called the “Independence Pack,” was released for purchase on Thursday and comes with three new vehicles that will not only ram into oncoming zombies but also have weapon attachments.

Pyrohawk is a hatchback that can shoot fireworks to avoid zombies trying to hitchhike. The Burninator, as its name suggests, is a truck equipped with a flamethrower that blows flames from the sides of the vehicle. A cargo van called Meatwagon is filled with “chunks of red meat” that are perfect in setting traps for the undead.

A total of five new weapons are included in the Independence Pack, including two ranged weapons, while the others are perfect for some melee action. The Pyro Launcher and Starshank Launcher will let players shoot zombies from a distance. Other July 4th-inspired weapons include a baseball bat called the Freedom Ringer, a razor-sharp Grillmeister, and the BBQ Fork for piercing through zombie skins during close-range encounters.

To fully get into that July 4th vibe, the “State of Decay 2” DLC also comes with fireworks that also work for players' strategies in luring or trapping enemies. The Block Rocker “attracts all the zeds” nearby while the Reign o’ Fire obviously ignites a circle of flame. Players may distract zombies using the loud Bouncing Boris, while the XL Firework Shell is great when the only option is to run.

The Independence Pack also comes with the Fireworks Crafting Station, where players can customize fireworks and ammo for the new launchers. Players can also simply buy other variants through a wandering trader.

Meanwhile, the developers released a list of gameplay fixes and improvements via patch 2.0 this week, such as a “Confirm” button for when players want to totally euthanize community members, as well as a new jogging animation for human characters.

“State of Decay 2” is available on the PC and Xbox One.