Dr. Goner

How are the cameras set up? Do they randomly follow players? Sounds awesome! Thanks!

Exactly my point.

Vanilla, no backpack, no bandagesEDIT: This way you learn to sneak early.

Well, the dayz "campaign" doesn't exist as far as I know. The story hasn't even been created. So, when I see a world like the one in DayZ. I say, man, this must have been a choatic province where the acting government was overrun and withdrew. Then american forces came in with heavy firepower before being overrun themselves. The world of dayz has NOTHING to do with the Arma campaigns, so you're either ignorant or lacking in imagination to not be able to set this story line up.

Let me make it realistic for you. The US armed forces came in at the start of the outbreak to assist European forces. Done.

I've been reading through some older topics that touch on the subject of achievement systems and end game content. What do you all think about this? Instead of earning trophies or whatever, the achievements you earn could be persistent gear. I'm not talking about earning an AS-50 after killing a hundred zeds, but what about earning a compass after your 100th blood transfusion? I think this would work in several ways as a portion of the end game and also to reward consistent players. It would alleviate some of the grinding after each death. Anyway, I'd like to hear your thoughts on this. Thanks!

I guess it all depends on what that tattoos function is in the game. If it's purely cosmetic, you're right, it wouldn't be much different than our current ability to add glasses, beard etc.

OK, so why is the 1866 portrayed as a shotgun in DayZ? I know they can fire 410 shotgun shells but its not commonly done. I own a 30cal version called a Marlin 30/30 and it is by far one of the best guns on earth for both home defense and hunting. This is one of the greatest weapons ever made and I'm posting this to suggest it should be a very difficult find in standalone. That's right folks, I think that M4A1s and such should be as rare as AS50's when the standalone rolls around. Maybe even more so. Let's try to keep this to discussing why the Winchester 1866 should be one of the best guns in this game. Also, let's use this thread as a place to celebrate this beloved weapon and ask for it to be properly portrayed in the standalone. 44 cal rimfire rounds people. None of this shotgun crap. I mean you seriously think a Lee can compete with one of these. Wikipedia explains this beautifully, note the last sentence. Winchester Model 1866 [edit] The original Winchester rifle – the Winchester Model 1866 – was famous for its rugged construction and lever-action mechanism that allowed the rifleman to fire a number of shots before having to reload: hence the term "repeating rifle." Nelson King's new improved patent remedied flaws in the Henry rifle by incorporating a loading gate on the side of the frame and integrating a round sealed magazine which was covered by a fore stock. Originally chambered in the rimfire .44 Henry, the Model 1866 was nicknamed the "Yellow Boy" because of its receiver of a bronze alloy called gunmetal. These rifles were used in number by the Ottoman Empire in the Russo-Turkish War, where they made quite a name for themselves during the Siege of Plevna. The battle incidentally caused all the major powers to seriously consider adopting repeating rifles, considering the outnumbered Turks inflicted 4 times as many casualties as the Russians did with their single-shot Krnka and Berdan rifles.

Best. Gun. Ever. If fixed.

I respectfully disagree.

So you can't keep your skills, fire building, mechanic, etc. But, for some reason, you get to keep your tattoos?? I like the idea of earning something but I feel like it's such a personal preference to some people that this discussion is going nowhere. Earning a compass and a tattoo are not inherently different. Compass is a physical object, tattoo is a physical object, also, the tattoo itself could prove to be far more valuable than a compass in the standalone. Anyway, I'm leaning more and more towards the idea that you keep nothing and start new, but is each life a different character or do I relive again as DrGonzo? I feel like the restart is the point of logical inconsistency, but how could it be fixed or improved? Maybe it's perfect the way it is?

After having a twenty hour character destroyed by over zealous admins on a server I had been frequenting for quite some time, I decided to try a new server for the first time in over a month. The new server was great. I found a DMR at a heli crash ten minutes into my play through. I died and ran for half an hour back to the location of my body and heard only buzzing flies, so an admin helped me retrieve my gear after checking data logs. The admins seemed to let the game unfold naturally, help when legit bugs were found, and refrained from policing the action. It was going great! Though someone named Robert did type early on as I ran inland from the coast. "It is mostly friendly here, but don't let your guard down. Bandits sometimes play on this server." These words set the tone of my play through and I was edgy the entire night. I was running around farming the North East air field and trying to cobble a jeep together when I heard shots coming from Krasnostav. I ran to the tree line to scope the runway with my DMR (first time I've had a sniper rifle in game). I watched a player ride in on an ATV, other players started typing in side chat, they mentioned Balota, I'm new, I got confused and thought I was at Balota. I thought I saw another player. There was a little bird on the runway, two jeeps, tons of ammo, I had the airfield to myself man. Now these guys are gonna kill me or I can run and hide. The admins of the old server I played on killed anyone that got near the north east. I know north west is the most common hot spot but the north east is superior in a lot of ways. The player I was watching shot a cow in between the runways. I thought, "No way is he going to walk out there and gut it." Well he did. I put my cross hairs on him. He cut and gutted the animal. He was gathering the meat. I fired. . . He went down but wasn't dead. I fired again and missed. I carefully took aim at his head and fired one last time. DR GONZO HAS KILLED ROBERT. Whoa!! typed a player in side chat. The server was friendly until my actions filled everyone with fear. A player says, "I guess you're not friendly." I back peddled. "Oh shit man that was an accident." I lied. "I thought he was shooting at me." Horrible guilt filled me. I ran and hid in some trees and logged off. As I drifted off to sleep, the entire scenario ran through my head. It was only then that I realized my confusion about Balota and North East. It was only then that I realized I killed a possible friend. I have never experienced a feeling like this from playing a video game. I am a little freaked out honestly. I was just curious if anyone else had a "first innocent killed" experience to share. I'm not a bandit. My skin did not change. But something inside me definitely has.

Awesome man!! Great work. I meant No more as in, I can't believe there haven't been more stories posted here. I was hoping people would post more and you haven't disappointed.Thanks!

This is a great article describing Ludonarrative Dissonance in gaming. DayZ is briefly mentioned by the author as he explains that true immersion would be a huge pain in the ass. It's an intelligent assessment of "immersive" games being made today. How much realism do we really want? How mindlessly willing are we to accept completely unrealistic situations and scenarios by simply saying "this is more accurate than anything I've previously experienced"? The Conan videos are great at pointing this out. Anyway, if you need a lot of pictures and explosions with your readin' books, don't click the link. Those of you looking for a little intellectual stimulation... enjoy. http://www.platformnation.com/2013/04/22/when-familiarity-backfires/

I guess the question then becomes how real do we want it to be?

Ugh... I say immerse yourself in the gaming culture of the people who speak the languages you want to hear. I've heard plenty of foreign language speakers while playing online games. I think people generally gravitate towards groups or servers where people speak their language. Especially in DayZ, I've found myself on servers filled with people speaking Polish. What is the exact problem you have with that being part of the "realism"? Every big game that comes out now has at least four or five different languages to choose from.

True, you have my beans. I like the idea of something completely realistic other than social repercussions being removed (no going to prison or actual death ;) ). What would a game set in reality look like? How long before all of us are brutal criminals? How many would go to work and pay bills in the game of Reality? How many would cowboy up at the local precinct and create a warlord kingdom? I guess I see the ultimate game as very very realistic with some added threat (or not) and some slight elements of reality removed (social contracts).

While I understand what you're saying, your argument is a slippery slope. By your logic why would we have moved on from Pac-Man?

Well, it can also be environmental aspects of the game that break immersion or go against the narrative set by the game. For example in DayZ: Oh my god, I'm living in a Zombie apocalypse... oh, there's an AS50, wait, there's another one. Oh, hold on, if I take this one and come back in five minutes there'll be another one here and I think I'll hop in that chopper and go for a spin even though, there's not indication that I was a chopper pilot when I washed up on the beach.Before ya'll get mad, I love DayZ, I'm just pointing out examples of Ludonarrative Dissonance in the game.

How do you enforce this?

There's a military camp in Berenzino as well. Three Valleys is really close to the area you're talking about, so... there are spawns in the east.

You all really don't have any more first kill stories? I figured this would be a hot thread. EDIT: Reworded for clarity. Keep em' coming folks!!

What if the attachments need various levels of repair? Say you find a scope, but it needs a machine screw or a few washers. You would also need the manual to figure out how to properly attach it. I guess I'm talking about "crafting" in a different way than what we've previously seen in games. Not you need A,B,C to create D but you need A,Z and knowledge level 1,2,and3 to master D. I like the idea of needing a "Chiltons" auto manual in order to perform certain repairs to vehicles. I think the idea of needing blue prints, manuals, and guides is a good thing. Cleaning and assembly instructions for firearms would be key for proper maintenance.

I'm not sure what we should be able to craft. If you want to maintain realism look to army survival guides, but then you would only be crafting traps, shelters, latrines, bunkers and such. I really can't think of anything logical that you could make besides the items I just listed. You could craft navigational devices with sticks and such. You could make a variety of melee weapons, mostly spears and blunt clubs. You could create a variety of booby traps. I think with a collection of proper tools you could craft certain parts for vehicles but honestly, it's unlikely that you would have the proper tools to do any real automotive repairs. Hmmm... just not sure what's realistic.

I love this idea!