Looks Like We're In For Nasty Weather!

[atempleton 123]

Currently we only have two states of weather - raining and sunny. This is a simple suggestion, but could really effect your gameplay experience and immersion I believe - extra weather effects, or maps of Chernarus modified to emulate natural disasters. Ultimately one of the primary impediments in any disaster situation or survival situation is the weather, and this should ultimately be represented in game through conditions such as the following:

 

Snow, Ice & Blizzards:

 

Whilst likely to be rare in a country like Chernarus, snow is still quite possible to have and should affect the temperature, obviously increasing risks of hypothermia meaning not being properly clothed can get you killed quicker. The cold temperature may even come with ice. Ice can safely be navigated with appropriate footwear. Having no footwear will cause severe health risks on top of the already existing damage due to skin coming into contact with the cold, and again cause risks of hypothermia. This will make it possible to cross the lakes instead of navigate around them, and also perhaps more important provide a rare opportunity to walk across to the Prison and Skalisty Island, rather than the long, slow and risky process of swimming. Finally the snow will change the landscape to layers of white from the snow itself, giving a perfect opportunity to use Winter Hunting clothing - possibly catching out players who don't carry spare changes of clothes caught out.

 

 

Storms & Flash Floods

 

Currently we already have rain in the game, and storms simply increase the rate of rainfall (so slightly worse weather affects than rain) but more importantly, may cause flash flooding of the various lakes and creeks in game. ARMA 2 had a scenario in the ACR DLC that contained a flooded Elektro, where you conducted search and rescue in a boat of civilians trapped on top of buildings:

 

 

Obviously flash flooding creates hazards such as the water itself, but provides new and interesting ways of navigation as well such as being able to swim or drive boats to access rooftops, and increased risks of catching various infections or diseases such as Cholera. Hail can also come infrequently with storms, and when hail does come standing outside will begin to cause you to lose blood, be dazed, gain shock damage, bleed etc.

 

 

Heat Waves

 

In Chernarus, heat waves are a potential weather condition that could occur infrequently to frequently I imagine, and could provide an interesting challenge for survivors. Obviously, the risk of dehydration is significantly higher, and staying out in the sun for too long could cause risks of hyperthermia or rapid dehydration. This will make water a much highly desired commodity/resource and people may get more desperate over it, killing others for it if need be. Finally, fires can possibly break out in some forests and other wilderness locations, leaving them unable to be accessed safely (rapidly killing those who approach the fire) and also possibly causing a risk to people's bases and damage of tents and items inside them. Make sure you pack a singlet or t-shirt because it's about to get really hot when a heat wave strikes!

 

 

Predicting The Weather:

 

Weather prediction will be a vital skill for survivors to learn to be able to predict the patterns approaching of weather, so there will be various signs to look for. For storms for example, one can simply look at the clouds or measure the air pressure with barometers. Thermometers can also be used to measure air temperature. Status reports (the annoying little messages in the bottom left hand corner of the screen) can also be provided occasionally by the player to alert the player through things like saying, "The air feels so hot," or, "I can smell rain in the air." Approaching hail storms could also be predicted because of the notable greenish tinge that appear in the clouds. Snow storms can be predicted by chilly breezes coming through the air. This will help players prepare for the approaching weather condition, which is likely to come within an hour.

 

 

Finally, all public servers should have weather patterns implemented, so as to promote unpredictability in game play to keep gameplay interesting, and players on their toes.

 

What's everybody thoughts on this?

Edited December 5, 2015 by Handgun_Hero

[S3V3N 1402]

I think the situation in the game is that summer's gone and we're shortly before Winter, deeply in autum. I know the trees don't look like autumn, but when I asked why the days are so short that was the explanation I got. So heatwaves would seem out of place, though certainly interesting for a differently themed (modded) map. Hail would require a new set of attributes, for example what if you wear a helmet or protective clothing (plate carrier, press vest, anti-stab, gloves). That would certainly require updates, since hail is a condition, much like being in a fistfight, whereas rain just gets you wet and soaked. It definitely could be done, and I think it would fit the situation well. Another positive aspect is that (other than snow) the hail could respawn quickly, so there would be no need to add yet another layer of effects/textures to pretend it's winter. Fire would be interesting, but the map is too large to really get you trapped by fire. If it was all wooden or mostly forest, I would find that more interesting; the cost of computing such a system and making it a gameplay feature (like in Far Cry 2), seems too high to me and it doesn't really fit the setting. 

 

As it is, I think all the game economies are stressing each other out, which is why we haven't seen them all together in one complete build yet. Even in experimental there is no rain yet, so I'm guessing this will be finalized when the new system for particles is fully integrated with the new renderer. Once that is done, I see no reason not to have new effects and hail would certainly be a good one! Hail and rain also impede vision and sound, so that could be interesting during fights or when dealing with zombies. Idk, if you've been in the situation in game yet, but there is lighting and thunder and dark clouds drawing near, sometimes. I think it is supposed to rain then, which it doesn't do at the moment. These indicators are enough to gather the weather is changing. I'd rather have fewer to no status messages, while I play. I want to be able to judge from how my character behaves and how my environment looks on what I need to do next. Been playing with New UI for weeks now, and the game is more fun like that. 

Edited December 5, 2015 by S3V3N

[Espa 711]

Wow! I love the screenies of this business! These are a part of my own list of desireable changes! I REALLY -really- want to see these things done and allow it to affect gameplay in such an immersive manner.

[Espa 711]

Actually, I'm totally going to link this post in my own suggestion list so that it's referenced and you're given credit!

[ColdAtrophy 1850]

I think the situation in the game is that summer's gone and we're shortly before Winter, deeply in autum. I know the trees don't look like autumn, but when I asked why the days are so short that was the explanation I got. 

 

The time and date can be set to any time or date in the mission settings. In experimental, for example, we are currently in autumn but we've been in summer before too. The devs set this for every update.

[S3V3N 1402]

The time and date can be set to any time or date in the mission settings. In experimental, for example, we are currently in autumn but we've been in summer before too. The devs set this for every update.

 

Ah thanks for that! I thought it was supposed to be always autumn. From what I understood though, the current situation is how the devs want the game to play: long nights, short days. As long as we can fix gamma and the new renderer isn't in to make night lighting look more decent, I don't really see the point in us playing at night. Why don't the devs change that to a summer scenario, then? Almost every time I join a server it is night and the days are so short, I barely notice them. If there are supposed to be summer and autumn seasons, a change of foliage would be nice. I think Autumn fits the mood the best, though.