popmelt

Signed, but the debug monitor is only intended for alpha, yes?

Another problem with classes is, it forces you to play co-op, either you like it or not. From what I understand theres many survivors out there that enjoys and have become familiar with the "lone wolf"-approach, so bringing in a class-system would alienate a large number of the playerbase.

Signed. All of it.

How about the decline in hydration stops or halves during rain, and you would need a funnel to fill the water-bottle during rainfall?

Your points are valid, but I'm not sure DayZ is supposed to be a "milisim survival". Correct me if I'm wrong. Personally I feel the game would be even more scarier if you could not just sprint all over. I'm okay with running infected, but the sprinting as it is now, for both zombies and players, is a bit over the top. I'm aware it's Alpha and the AI is botched, but personally I would like them to be a tad slower, but do more harm. In regards to the Stamina-bar, it would have you think twice before engaging any threat. This is were I feel this mods strength is. If you can outrun anything there is no need for evaluating anything. You would just go Jenkins everywhere. I have not been to Berez yet, and I have yet to figure out all of the controls regarding the "body language", but thanks for the heads-up. NPCs to guard their shit would not play into the risk of erecting a camp in the first place, so I'm all on your side there :)

That may be. That raises the question; "Why does new games feel like they have to create new types of zombies?" I guess the whole thing started with the remakes of the old classics and the 28 day later films. And after the release of Left 4 Dead, every game made special zombies. My personal experience with this game is that the zombies are just an obstacle to tackle the real threat; other players.

Wall of text incoming. I've been playing DayZ over the last couple of days, and I'm convinced. This mod has a ton of potential, and its nice to see an initiative for a realistic, and open, zombie survival game. We all have different views on what would make this a better, and more fun game, so I'm pretty sure many of you won't agree with my suggestions, but I decided to list a few. Just so we are clear, I'm new to the ARMA-franchise, I bought the game solely to give the DayZ-mod a go. This means I'm not sure about whats possible to do in the engine and whats not. First. Sprinting zombies? I've never enjoyed them. It just feels wrong. Remember, zombies are rotting carcasses, it does not make sense for them to be able to run without their legs ripping apart (unless the games zombie-lore differs from the classics). How would I go about making the game "feel dangerous" without running zombies you might ask? Make them hurt, bad. If you get bitten, you'll have to take an antidote or you'd die within a set time, and antidotes would be a rare commodity, so rare that it promotes PvP. Limit the players movement based on amount of weapons and provisions carried. And most important; add a stamina-bar. Running forever makes little to no sense, and if you can't run, you cant outrun a horde of walking dead. I believe these changes would make co-op more interesting due to the fact that players would be needed to delegate responsibilities amongst each other, and most importantly it would promote co-op play (imagine one player as a light-foot scout carrying next to nothing to spot either zombies or player, when his team-mates carry more proviants and heavier weapons). I believe these two changes would balance the Co-Op/PvP experience. Other things zombies should not be able to do; swim and climb ladders (one of my friends said he had experienced the latter, I'm not sure if it really happened). Second. Close encounters with other players. There should be a quick way to signal that you are friendly, this could be a button for raising your hands up in the air communicating that you are unarmed, or at least not pointing your gun at them. This could also work in a scenario where you are "forced" to do it by players that outnumber you, in either players or gun-power, but for some reason wont kill you, they just want your precious antidote. Who knows, it could also be used as a way to set up an ambush. Player-built bases/barricades and custom signs? Would be awesome. Signs could even be used as traps. I'm not sure how this would play out since I'm not sure how the ARMA-engine works. Another thing I'm pretty sure everyone wants, is that you are able to enter every house. Theres nothing more frustrating then a house with doors that cant be entered. I guess this is a map-issue. Maybe it gets better in ARMA3? (I've heard the rumors) :) Third. Larger cities. It's already a large continent to play out on, but the cities feel small in comparison. I love the idea of smaller cities and rural areas, but the map lacks a large city. These cities would contain more provisions, and play out to be a hub were most people would want to go, but they would have to take account for the risks it brings, with more players and a considerable amount of zombies. These are a few of my thoughts that I've been collecting. I'm pretty sure there are many of you who have similar or same thoughts. TL;DR : No sprinting, swimming or climbing zombies, but more dangerous bites which requires antidotes to cure. Stamina-bar, not possible to outrun zombies forever. Weight capacity effects movement-speed which promotes co-op, and helps giving a natural role in a group. Better "body language" in close encounters with other players. Custom barricades and sings. Larger cities with more risks.