rocket

There will be a special conspiracy theory edition of DayZ, to compliment the collectors edition. It will feature a make-it-yourself tinfoil hat (glue not provided), and a collection of statistics provided by CM LEGION. However, they are not "actual statistics", because he "wasn't inspired" to use real statistics. Instead, it was just easier to make some up.

64: Q: Do you plan to implement any other needs besides thirst, hunger and keeping warm? [Rabbitman] A: The medical system is being revised and redeveloped and I made extensive use of the suggestion topic on the subject made here on the forums. This will create new needs but they will be more behind the scenes, intuitive and the result will be somewhat the same as it is now. The team is giving serious thought to the (initially joke) suggestion for having characters having to go to the toilet, mainly because of how it could affect the spread of disease in game (highly populated areas would result in more disease etc...). 65: Q: Are you keeping in touch with ACE mod development team and do you plan to borrow some of ACE weaponry and features (for example changeable weapon sights and optics)? [Ravian] A: I'm not in touch with mod developers in an official capacity I am afraid, although I know many developers personally and do talk. Because DayZ is branching from ArmA2, the method we are using for recording things such as weapons means we can be much bolder. We are moving to a truly objected oriented method of recording player weapons, whereas currently arma2 effectively stores your current weapon as a string. 66: Q: Are you going to work on optimization of the game engine to increase FPS? It seems that now you can only play comfortably in DayZ if you have the newest top hardware. [Hopss] A: Very significant optimization is being done, much of it already in progress. An example being the zombies themselves. Their current models are high detail character models, with seperate heads from bodies. This means the model has eight "sections", each section effectively represents a pass by the GPU. Less sections = better performance. Imagine you have 30 zombies on your screen, that is 150 passes alone that must be done for zombies. We can easily optimize this down to 1 section per zombie without any loss in quality of the models (but initially, a loss in variation till we make more models). So 150 to 30 sections in a scene, for the zombies alone, is a good result. This is just a simple example of the many options available to us that are already in progress. 68: Q: How will melee be in the standalone? Will it be directional like in Mount&Blade? [waffen-79] A: We still don't know. I wouldn't go so far to say melee is a focus, but high end weaponry is not a focus. This means more focus is on melee than before. Wow, that really avoided directly answering, I should be a politician. 69: Q: how far away are you from adding new content to the game? eg more guns, animals, zombies? [God_his_self] A: Content is being worked on concurrently by small art teams, using an "insource" model internally within the company. In other words, it is already happening. 70: Q: Is DayZ standalone going to be a BIS published game? [Joe Duck] A: Yes. 71: Q: Is DayZ standalone going to be distributed online at BIS website or is DayZ going to be a spinoff with it's own full identity and maybe a separate studio? A: I would like to run my own studio one day, but now is not the time. BIS is awesome and the natural partner for development of DayZ. Distribution is still TBC, but I would not expect a retail product anytime soon. It would be digital. 72: Q: Do you expect or even want to release DayZ on Steam/GOG/Desura/Origin/Amazon? A: Personally, I like Steam. GabeN is one of my heroes, and Valve is an amazing company. Officially, I don't handle BIS distribution but I know they have an awesome and skilled team who do. 73: Q: Project Zomboid and Minecraft have already had huge problems selling Minecraft development type games with VISA and Paypal, as people was paying for an unfinished product. Have you worked this out yet? A: I don't think it is as much an issue, because the engine here is finished (ArmA2). Notch seemed fine when I met him at PAX, so I don't think it's a big issue. 74: Q: Do you already have a name for DayZ standalone? Other than DayZ Standalone, that is... A: Good point. Uh. Honestly I just don't know, we'll come up with something I guess.

I also recently made comments endorsing private hives, and explained why I was a dick about the concepts earlier.

That's not entirely accurate. You can't know for sure how "bad" a bandit someone is, but if someone kills a very bad bandit, they will actually gain humanity.

I REGRET NOTHING

I could spend my entire time doing interviews, making official statements (which makes me wonder, have I only been doing unofficial statements now?), or I could make the game and spend some time talking directly with users here, on reddit, and etc... Still, I've asked matt to make an "official" post about it. Also, your conspiracy theory is awesome. Unfortunately, I don't receive money from ArmA2 sales, but it's the thought that counts.

Those damn heckers....!!!

I replied directly in Max's thread so he didn't have to also copy and paste, but posting this here for consistency (and so folks know it is updated). 41. Q: Are there plans for future additions to the map? Such as a new city, rivers, etc.? [Rickets] A: The Chernarus map has been updated significantly, focusing on bugfixing, addition of some new areas, balancing resource items (such as water etc...), and development of interiors for buildings that don't have it. Not much more will be done for the map for the Alpha release. 42. Q: Is it possible that we can get versions of some of the simple features/solutions to common problems from other mods like ACE, such as: Grenade launcher reticle adjustments and foldable leaf sights, combat deafness, fast roping, fire, non-leathal devices, grenade throw adjustments, NVG adjustments, map tools, wire cutters, weapon resting/bipods, etc? [TheCapulet] A: Some of these things will be developed, particulary those that have been identified as being significant problems (such as grenade throwing), so I guess the answer is "yes, for some of these". 43. Q: One of the things I got used to years ago with my experience in emergent gameplay/persistent worlds are "game masters", or trusted in-game 'moderators' (staff) who helped advance player/world story lines in ways not possible from simple player clients while always staying within the scope of the lore/narrative. Is this something you've thought about at all for DayZ? [TheCapulet] A: I think that we will have only very limited "hard" in game lore/narrative, and the rest will be developed by the players as they play the game. We already have legends like the "black widow" and "Dr wasteland" so I think the development team should just recognize these organic story/narrative elements and then reinforce them appropriately in updates where it makes sense. But consideration to identifying specific game masters as described, that hasn't been looked at. Probably currently this could be easily achieved with a private hive. 44. Q: are there any plans to add more interiors to buildings prior to standalone? [adrianadrian] A: Yes. This is confirmed, many have already been completed by BIS artists. 45. Q: When Day Z goes standalone, are there plans to add more random loot/heli crash/vehicle spawns? [adrianadrian] A: The loot spawn system is being entirely replaced. 46. Q: Will you enable player to become infected with zombie virus, and to infect others? [Xiroth] A: With the zombie virus, no, players are immune (the "zombie virus" concept in game is being developed by my brother Dr Richard Hall, a virologist). 47. Q: How far away are we from the new website design you showed us at "rezzed"? [Cutzero] A: We have to get the standalone out and confirm how it is working, the architecture involved etc... before we can work towards that. The mod didn't have the server resources needed to pull off that level of detail (before private hives we could only barely cope with capacity). 48. Q: What do you think of adding local notification sounds and messages for player logins and logouts? [sheaf] A: On the face of it, not a bad idea. But could get really repetitive and also prone to griefing. I think we can do better to solve these issues, more in line with what MMO's like WoW do. 49. Q: What`s your idea/plan to make people communicate more in this game? [Delta] A: Focus on the elements of the game, with a view towards authenticity where possible (note: I did not say realism!). I believe more developed survival concepts, like diseases, and "end-game" content like vehicle and base construction, will promote more communication (for both good and evil reasons). 50. Q: With all due respect, how much of the threads in the suggestion forum board are actually read by rocket? I put quite some thought and time in trying to provide useful feedback so I'd like to know if the info was actually brought over. [Leo] A: I block out time to review them each week. I think I read most suggestions, eventually. Some can be quite repetitive. There are some excellent ideas threads, particularly useful when they are consolidated. 51. Q: Do you plan on implementing radios in the alpha? On the subject, what a re your plans for the radio system? [Wulfsok] A: I would say it less likely to be in the initial Alpha, but it would be a high priority for future updates. I think something like a very simplified ACRE would be a great place to start. The ACRE mod is an outstanding example of what can be achieved in the ArmA system. Probably a bit complex and resource demanding for the DayZ implementation but I think it's a great example of it. 52. Q: The ability to sprint for unlimited distances seems to completely counter the design of a giant map. Do you ever plan to put limitations on player sprint? [Zipper -82ndAB-] A: There should be consequences to this but mobility is one aspect we probably need to compromise authenticity/realism in order to make the game actually playable at all. We could tie this in with the revised medical system (health + energy etc...) so that there is impact on those who run everywhere. Current ingame mechanics limit sprinting anyway. 53. Q: Can we get a /played hours counter that resets on death? [KgKris] A: More statistics are planned for the diary statistics system I talk about in other questions. 54. Q: Rocket, do you plan on removing the option of third person view when you make it over to the standalone game? [Corvax] A: I think it would be unlikely, I think having it at a server level is a good idea. Possibly we could come up with several agreed levels of difficulty that servers can run on, and then your character is limited to playing on servers of those difficulty levels. If you join another server with a different difficulty with your character you will need to make a new character, etc... 55: Q: Will there ever be rewards for surviving certain amounts of time? [brudagon] A: I don't think we should "manufacture" rewards. I like how zero punctuation put it... DayZ forces you to rethink how you play games as just because a ladder is hard to get to doesn't mean there will be anything on top of it. I think the immersive environment where you can do what you want, and play how you want, is the reward in itself. 56: Q: Rocket, what was your job title in the NZAF and what rank were you before you left? [Chick3enFingDing] A: I left at the rank of "Flying Officer", although I was employed in a "Flight Lieutenant" paraline for most of my career in the RNZAF. My last job title was "Staff Officer Supply Policy", and I hated it (it was a job at Defence HQ and I was one of a handful of low ranking officers working at the HQ). My favorate role was as Flight Commander of our Emergency Response Group, at RNZAF Base Auckland. That was heaps of fun, but stressful. 57: Q: Is moving away from the client-server model on your wish list for the tentative standalone game? [AlphaStrik3] A: Not initially, no. We don't have the resources or time to really do that currently. But I think it is something we will look at pretty quickly if we have the game design right and we don't screw this up. I.e. if the concept is commercially successful as it is. 58: Q: Do you envisage any further changes to the zombie spawn mechanic? Current immediate respawn is immersion breaking - areas are never cleared. [DannyBoy76] A: Entirely rewriting it. So yes, it will be changed. 59: Q: In the stand-alone release do you have plans to properly close off the map? Perhaps a guarded wall/quarantine zone by an AI force (UN/US/PMC?) on the edges of the map. [lOldBoyl] A: I think we will make the concept work with what we have, and then get really ambitious with all sorts of cool stuff, and think well outside the square, for what we could do here. Rather than just pumping out other maps. Mind you, I think the community will come up with awesome maps and we should support that (my opinion only). 60: Q: Will you be adding back a starting weapon? [Grizzly2O] A: No put you will be able to punch. 61: Q: Are Characters liked to CD-key or profile? [waffen-79] A: Currently CD-Key. Possibly will remain this way, or we have some kind of limit like one for each difficulty level. 62: Q: When there is a standalone version, will DayZ still be kept running on Servers for Arma 2 as a "mod"? (for the memories ^^) [s3V3N] A: DayZ Mod will be available, but become more and more community run and developed until it is entirely community run. That is why Private Hives are so good for the project. 63: Q: Current "average life expectancy" is 49 minutes; What is your ideal life expectancy target for the mod? [CruelCoin] A: I think around an hour is about right, which is what it is now. I just think the death should be more legitimate and less from bugs.

Currently, DayZ uses the Private Military Company (PMC) DLC, which is why the textures look blurry. Unfortunately no ArmA2 models are able to use backpacks (that functionality was only available in ArmA2 OA onwards, and even then not for all models), hence PMC models were used.

I fully support the private hive concept, as we don't have the resources to manage the central hive at its peak of usage. Now that usage of the central server has dropped considerably, we can handle the load. Private hives are much better for being able to focus our efforts on develop and not have to conduct database maintenance all the time. Ander et al have done a very commendable job trying to keep things running, and it has not been easy for them.

I can remember two times: 1. "Shit". 2. "Is that.... (someone)"

Absolutely want to keep this going, I think it's a great resource. I just wish I could get them answered sooner.

I'm still going, I intend to answer them all. It's actually helpful for me as part of the design process, and it's also all recorded.

I'd just like to reitterate I'm really sorry I made that mistake TSAndrey, I should have looked at your username because you've made some great contributions (and challenging questions :) ) here on the forums. Again, sorry! I guess I am in the "assume the worst" mood. Regarding the alternative from injecting scripts, this is something possibly detected through VAC and in changes for how the server<>client relationship works. Where this fails, we could catch nearly all of this (albeit after the event), in auditing the game data on servers. This isn't ideal, but at least they are caught eventually.

Another bunch... 23. Q: Will you add the ability to bury a rucksack or similar smale scale caching? [heretic] A: We've discussed it, my gut says yes, but its not really a priority for initial development. It is more a variation of the placement of a tent or some object, once we get one type working properly it is very easy to do that with other types of storage locations. 24. Q: Do you plan on hiring anyone soon? Community/Engineering/Otherwise? [black Widow] A: Bohemia Interactive handle the hiring of personnel, some people have/are directly engaged to assist with the project. The core team is highly specialized and consisting of those who created and developed the engine over the last ten years. 26. Q: Characters having auto-logging diaries (to create a depth and history to a character's life) that can be looted/read post death? [Athrins] A: We have all discussed this on the team and it an area we really want to do, there is already some engine support for this that can be fleshed out. I am not sure how much we can do for Alpha (we have talked about creating notes, etc... that you can leave in the world or on your body) but I think it will be a real priority over time. 27. Q: Stronger, unique character identity for each 'life'? A: I think allowing players to personalize their character more, through a combination of selecting your face, and then customizing your character based on clothing you find in the world, is what I would prefer here and within the realm of the possible. I don't want to dictate a back story for the character, you decide that. The start will always be ambiguous. 28. Q: Will it be possible for a single person to build an underground base, or is a group required? A: My (very ambitious) plans for this, I see it as being possible but extremely time consuming for an individual. 29. Q: Will underground bases be tied to someone's character like tents, and if so, will they 'despawn' after death of said character? A: They will be permenant structures, that can be taken over by other people, and then developed further, etc... 30. Q: A more intuitive system for holstering/lowering weapons (alternatively having it be the default mode as opposed to weapons-at-the-ready) and the ability to disarm other players? [/Athrins] A: This is something be looked at currently, improving the animations here both while moving and standing still. Expect this to be greatly enhanced with the standalone. Some CQB moves may be available, that might help with disarming but I think they will be like punching or such, nothing military. 31. Q: Rocket, how goes the fight against the hackers? How high are combatting hacking on your list of priorities?[KField86/Zutha] A: It is priority number 2, behind fixing major bugs. it is being dealt with by Bohemia's key programming minds, who have already implemented the initial solutions in the standalone code. 32. Q: IS the next iteration of dayz going to have anything to do with arma 3? as a free mod or paid expansion? Or is it COMPLETELY standalone with a different engine? [Guynumber7] A: It will share a relationship similar to how VBS shares with ArmA. Less than ArmA2 <> TKOH, but a bit more than VBS to ArmA. 33. Q: Will you add any way, being non-lethal equipment or melee weapon, to knockdown another player? [RastaKoueR] A: Melee development is confirmed, initial solution will be more focused on making it less crappy (no more reloading hatchets) and such. 34. Q: Do you feel that the presence of very high level weapons and equipment, like L85 with thermal optics, M107, nightvision, and so on, are in adequation with the authenticity of a Survival, Post-apocalyptic game? A: Nope, they are not. but there was not many other options as ArmA2 is a military simulator. For the standalone, we are working on others but these won't be required to be finished for the standalone to be release, in other words the new weapons (more like what you would find at home) will be available as they get done, some of which may be when Alpha is released, rest of them will be next year as they get made. I think successfully raiding and finding military caches will be important, and will give you advanced items - but (i know from personal experience) maintaining this equipment is not easy. Durability, batteries, etc... will even these problems out I think. 35. Q: Would you implement a Handcuff and blinding system? (For people who roleplay a lot) [/RastaKoueR] A: It has been very successful in popular ArmA mods such as Citylife - so I think that would be great, but not a priority and not specifically on the list at the moment. 36. Q: Any chance of a new island when you go Beta, specifically Taviana or Lingor? [skint] A: For the alpha (december), no. I am hoping we sell 1, 2 million copies. Then we can get really ambitious... what use are islands when you have proce... I've said to much.... :P Community wise, that is a different story. I think some officially support community maps would be awesome, personally. 37. Q: Can we get an odometer added to the debug window? I would love to know how much distance my character has traveled. [NFK] A: Agreed, cool idea. but will probably have statistics as part of your character diary, not onscreen all the time (aim is to have nothing in the ingame UI). 38. Q: do you plan to add more character depth. This could add to some kind of endgame.[A Bush killed me] A: I want to add more tools, more options, to the game - then the players can use these tools to find the depth, to world on trying to create their own worlds in this harsh forgiving environment. It's an ambitious goal but I think we have a good chance at it. So rather than character depth, I think more tools, more game depth (more survival stuff, more investigating the world/infection, more construction, more grouping tools, more vehicle repairing, more food gathering, etc...). 40. Q: when will we get the dog companion you teased us about awhile ago? [MartinCB] A: Soon, I want to release it in a non-shit state. If it release it in a shit state, I will get a lot of crap.

I don't have the faintest clue what you are getting at. I have the slight suspicion, that you also have absolutely no idea. They inject the scripts into memory, replacing already loaded script addresses with addresses to their own. BE is not part of ArmA2, how is BE supposed to know this is happening? And for that matter, how the hell is ArmA2? Should it poll memory all the time? Should it keep a record of what it has in memory (RAM usage x2)? Maybe it should keep a record, of its record? Or a Record of the record of its record? My post above clearly states the four obvious processes needed to solve this issue, which I have discussed at length with studios and developers at PAX who are the world experts at this. Please remember good advice; A closed mouth gathers no feet. EDIT: Taken my own advice, I initially read your message as sarcasm - my apologies! To clarify the point made I got confused on, what TSAudrey correctly states, the scripts get loaded directly into memory referencing say "\dayz\coolscript.sqf" and replacing it with "\haxx\hahalolwut.sqf". BE doesn't know this occurs, neither does the game.

First wave of answers (I have a post character limit) 2. Q: What are some improvements we might see when DayZ is ported to RV4 (Arma3) engine? [blaf] A: DayZ will run on a branched Take On helicopters (RV3) engine. It is already being customized to DayZ specific needs. The main improvement is an engine tailored to DayZ's specific needs. An example being weapons being objects on a character and not stored simply as a string reference, this means the object can have durability, enhancements, etc... 4. Q. possible to have running waterways ? creeks etc or is that a major rewrite of map/code etc. [Hetstaine] A: I would not rule it out as eventually having, we have discussed it before but it is a major rewrite of both code and the map. Not for the initial release, but maybe something to be looked at in the future as it is a big part of survival (finding creeks etc...). 5. Q. What are some of the extra building mechanics..could we make a lean to shelter instead of tents to save equipment, make a raft etc. A: Initially we have discussed having the ability to "shore up" existing buildings doorways. This will be something that may make it into the standalone, as we are preparing for this in the redevelopment of the art assets. 6. Q. Chance of getting a magazine jam or a barrel blockage ? A: Absolutely, See #2 above it is work that has been occurring to turn weapons into objects rather than string references (allowing them to have their own attributes while on the player, that they retain when dropped). 7. Q. More wildlife ..crows at dead bodies, cats, dogs in cities ..very rare chance of a bear ? A: Wildlife and survival elements are a priority, as are more atmospherics around dead bodies and such. Additional animals will be something to look at after the initial release, as they require creation, animation, etc... 15. Q: When will MyLittlePonies be added into the game? Or if not then what about rideable horses as a type of vehicle? [Redshift] A: MyLittlePonies already exist in the heart of every player.... :P Rideable horses we have discussed, I even did some preliminary work on it. It will be more work than I initially expected but both me and Marek (CEO) are keen on this. But I doubt it would be in by the end of the year, something that requires more review. 16. Q: Any plans on adding group functionality within the game (even a simple way to designate who is in your group, and use group chat)? [Redshift] A: Factions and clan support is something we are actively pursuing, probably with a rewrite of the current way it is done with ArmA2 grouping that is more designed around AI. the system will not be designed in a way that makes it easier to find your group, but to recognize those in your groups visually somehow (possibly creation of armbands or such, has been discussed). Still much more work to be done, and the initial implementation will require significant community input and feedback before I imagine we will have something resembling a working solution. Expect pain, mistakes, bugs, with QQ and then happiness. 17. Q: A large part of the community would like a harder game, where do 'you' see opportunities to make this game harder? And do you think this game should be made harder? [L0GIN] A: The standalone game will get much, much easier when even some of the bugs are removed. But the standalone game is also getting much much harder, as a result of new survival elements such as a more developed medical system and diseases, etc... so i think the game will get harder/easier, and probably result as an overall experience that is harder but more intuitive. But who knows, that is my hope/guess. Reality remains to be seen. I think it should be harder, I want it to be harder. But it should be "fairer" (less sudden inexplicable bleeding... :P) 18. Q: The inventory and toolbelt are currently set up so a player can take the equivilent of a warehose and toolshop with them, can we expect you to trim this down, to actually allow specialization and teamwork to occur in this game? A: The entire inventory system is being redesigned from the ground up, for a more authentic feel and set the stage for more interaction to occur between players. But this must be supported, and not forced in an unauthentic way. People generally accept requiring another player to apply a bloodbag, because giving yourself and IV is not very easy unless you are trained, a nurse, or chuck norris in which case you don't need an IV, you just snort the blood. I have been working with our programmers to discuss ways we can organically support specialization without tech trees, we have some ideas around social learning. I think the survival changes planned will add a new passive enemy to the game, a common enemy that players who organize will be better equipped to face (disease, medical issues). However, both evil and good can group. 19. Q: Do you think there is room for the community to contribute assets to the game (how ever small or big), or will you be doing everything yourself (with your team)? A: Absolutely, 100% think this is the case. Maps, items, equipment, all of the above. In particular changes to the world itself. 20. Q: You mentioned recently that a stand alone game will be very polished and cost around €15, but do you realize a stand alone game will take a couple of years to flesh out, what will the fans do in between? and aren't you afraid the hype will die down during that time leaving you with nothing to show for your effort... A: Standalone alpha (non-polish) release end of this year or we're screwed and I'll do insane. There will be plenty to do and talk about once we get it released. 21. Q: Any chance on a 'Learning by Doing' (hidden +1) system, that lets players improve on certain non-IRL-transferable skills? (addition: certain IRL skills can be transferred over into the game like 'reading stars'; but there are also 'skills' that do not transfer over that easily, f/e bandaging, fixing cars, gutting; Introducing a chance on failure and having this chance reduced by giving players a +1 every X time they preform such a skill mimics the IRL learning process, aka 'learning by doing') [/L0GIN] A: Agree, this is a complex area. I like it, but as you noted there needs to be some design there. Fixing cars I totally agree with especially with the new car construction/modification discussion we have had about design. I think we will take some steps in this area, and see what comes out of it. 22. Q: Any chance in the future the community can create skins for their characters, or develop the land to make servers unique? [nnuu] A: Initially user made content will be unlikely for the alpha as we will make it as secure as possible. Armbands, etc... that is something we could easily have. I think over time the user content will be what makes the game fun. But we need to make the game, and make it secure, first.

Tonight I am going to answer some of these, as many as I can!

I don't recall seeing anything I took offense too or thought was out of line in your post, hence why I took the time to reply. The issue raised is not only valid, but serious. And yes, the discussion has occurred before but I think it is something that we will have to continue to discuss and tell people about until it is fixed. To do anything else would be like yelling at the sky to make it change color. Everyone is frustrated, but that is a good sign. That means people care about the result, the onus is now on the dev team and me not to fuck this up. If we do fuck it up, it's our fault because this is our dream project to lose.

Agreed. The approach must be several layers: 1. Remove the ability to inject scripts in game. This is done through stopping the engine from loading pbo's after runtime, not allowing SQF script riles in after initial load, and checking signatures of all Pbo's. Compiling the SQF in the distribution is also additional security. 2. Improve the security of information between client<>server. You'll never solve that, but you can make it more challenging. This helps make packet injection more complex, therefore more easier to make mistakes. For mistake results... see #3. 3. Auditing of information. An additional cloud of servers who's job is to go through information archived in the database to identify those profiles with suspicious information. Some will clearly be hackers, and these accounts can be banned. Those that are just suspicious can be monitored, and informed of the reasons for their ban with evidence over time. 4. VAC/PB. If, for example, the game is released as a Steam distribution - then it can make use of VAC. Think of it as BattlEye on steroids. It also can cause you some issues with your steam account. Even with all these levels, some hacking will undoubtedly occur. But like committing a crime, the chance is each time you will screw up, and when you do, you'll be caught. When 1-3 is tied with 4, the results can become even more effective. We need to increase the effectiveness to the point where the chances of you encountering a hacker are low, and where the amount of hacking is low due to the risks of getting caught. Once we reach this, and I am confident we can with standalone, then we will be in a much better position. But, these things take time, and they take access to the source + smart people. We have all those things, but time only flows in one direction.

I'm not sure, probably best to contact a moderator directly.

The mod's have some of the hardest jobs here at DayZ, because I directed I wanted the forums to be like the "wild west". Unlike many forums, where the mods are very heavy handed, huge amounts of leeway are given. I think they do a fantastic job of bringing a tiny bit of order to what is one of the wildest gaming forums out there. Max, who posted above, in particular has given countless hours to try and put some order into things, which makes my job much easier because I can review it. In terms of contacting specific communities, I really, really enjoy being able to talk with people. Not just about the good things (I've enough warm and fuzzy media interviews to last me a lifetime), i like talking about the real issues. The mistakes I made, the challenges we face. I think at my Eurogamer talk - this is what I am going to talk about. All the things I am amazed that media have never asked or challenged me about. Anyway - I do have very little time. especially with two key Bohemia employees in prison in Greece (they were map designers on ChernarusPlus), so I would need some kind of easy mechanism to have discussions such as those Max has provided with consolidated questions.

I would love to do these things. But these things require work. The mod was a proof of concept that people enjoyed, even the way it was constructed is fundamentally flawed. I could spend years trying to get it to work properly, or a few months to do it right in source now we know how the design should be and what we want to do. It is not simply a matter of throwing people at the problem, assembling some coders and artists and saying "sally forth chaps!" or "chocks away!" - the development is complex and there are few people who are able to put it all together. I would love nothing more than to have stable and proper support for private hives within the mod. That would be a dream for me. But I am already burning my weekends and nights as it is, I am skipping seriously important commitments without then having to divert more resources. I have already committed what remaining spare time I have to one community based project being announced soon that I thought was really awesome. In many situations, life isn't about what you "should" do, anyone can figure that out. Life is about figuring out what you actually "can" do in the time you have.

I prefer Private Hives because the owners can get far more creative, and there are some really exciting things coming up. It also reduces the administration burden on the development, so that it can focus on making the updates and releasing them - not managing the status quo. And yes, none of the statistics currently track private hives. that is unlikely to change in the near future without impacting DayZ standalone timeframes (which are tight enough as it is).

Much like minecraft (and counterstrike) dayz has to deal with it's share of problems. I've never said I could fix hacking. You will never "fix" it but you can do things to help. And tell me where I have even said that any upcoming dayz patch will even address hacking. I have not made those promises. There are no rules for server administration, we opened this up and there are many excellent private hives. I don't know where you are getting information, but it is all wrong. I've been promoting a number of private hives, because while i am addressing many issues in the standalone - they cannot be addressed in DayZ without changing the source. And that would fundamentally affect the experience of those playing regular ArmA2. Private hives are recommended as a great experience by me. Where people get the idea this is not the case, is beyond me.