droznig

I've already made a viable suggestion that seems to go largely ignored. Instead of all characters being able to pick between all servers, you pick what difficulty you want to play each character on, once you pick you can not change the setting for that character. You pick easy you can only play on servers with default easy settings from Arma 2 such as tpv, crosshairs etc. If you pick hard, you can only play on servers which have the default hard settings for arma 2, fpv only, no croshairs etc. No mix and match, if you want to play on hard or easy, that's cool, but server hopping between difficulties is just silly and should not be allowed. If people want to play on servers where cheats or hacks are allowed or where tpv is allowed, that's cool, but I don't ever want to have to play with those people. At the risk of sounding like a horrible racist, they should stick to their own kind.

I've said it many times before and will say it again, for any one in europe, there are no active fpv servers left. secondly, the fact that people from tpv servers can hop on to fpv servers gives them an unfair advantage. The point is, the way that it works now, people who prefer fpv are being forced to play tpv or not at all and that is not cool. Every one knows that tpv is much much easier to survive than fpv, there might be an invisible sniper on the hill, but you can be completely invisible too while checking out an area the sniper doesn't even need to see you before you make a choice to go in,you can check inside buildings before eposing yourself, minimising risk, around corners minimising risk, count zombies before you commit to a situation, all before you ever make yourself visible. It's much much easier, you are the only person here who would argue otherwise. But the point is, why should people playing easy mode be allowed to switch after the got their no risk gear to a hard mode server, that's utterly rediculous. Yes, let people choose, but make the choices mean something. Not one foot in one foot out.

How can you see through a curtain.....

Through a closed curtain?

But my point is, with a good curtain, your view is limited to the tiny crack, if you are too close to the curtain you fill the gap where it was not filled before. But like I said, there is no point talking about what is realistic, we should only be talking about what is best for the game, real life has no bearing on what might be best for the SA. Good for inspiration but it shouldn't be used as an argument in and of itself.

Irl, a sniper would need to move his scope or binocs to keep an eye on you and check you out, that movement is usually what gives them away, a sniper sitting still far enough away from a window to be completely concealed will have a very limited view of a very limited area, the closer he gets to the window, the wider his fov to the outside is but greater chance of being seen. Picking the perfect window which gives the exact view you need from a great enough distance to be safe is much different from picking any window and having the full fov regardless. Same with bushes, you can be completely hidden only looking down through a gap in the bushes, but that will be a limited view and you will be required to move to track targets outside of a very limited area. Movement is what gives snipers away, with 3dp, no movement whatsoever is required to gain a complete and impossible view form complete concealment. Besides why are we talking about real life, we should be talking about what is and is not good for the SA, real life should not really come into play so much, just what works for the game itself. Comparing to real life is not really constructive. I don't think that's the case at all, I explained this before but will try to be brief, it's human nature to abhor being treated unfairly and try to even the odds, this creates a situation where if other people who you can interact with can use a mechanic that gives them an advantage it is human nature to desire to even the odds, and so despite them prefering fpv, they go to tpv servers because they know people from there can kill them even on a fpv server after they have the gear. It's not fair and people naturally gravitate to a state of neutrality, the only way that is possible is for people who prefer 3dp to move to fpv servers. Psychology of cheating is very interesting in that regard. This video is brief but it touches on the phenomenon a little, but there are plenty of articles and studies to go with it. People will do things they don't like but feel justified in doing if it conveys an advantage to them, despite them not liking doing it and knowing it is wrong if they know other people do it, it justifies it in their minds, subconsciously.

It makes sense that rocket would prefer third person because it means he can see the animations and art work that he or his team has worked on, things that we would be able to see in other players but I personally have no need of seeing myself do. Even the CoD new game has third person in the trailers to promote the new animations or w/e.

I second all of the above, well put and a good starting point for any one joining in on the discussion late.

I'm not even going to. You are making a complete fool of yourself. Try harder.

Personally I consider third person view a cheat, I absolutely hate using it, but for about a year now there has been only one UK servers which don't have it turned on and that server if it is even still there at peak time for about 4 hours a week will have maybe 10 players, the rest of the time it's completely empty or only 1-2 players, and many of those players that do come on I know for a fact got their gear from 3rdp servers. From my perspective, since I'm limited to fpv and they get their gear using 3dp, those people compared to me have an unfair advantage in gear alone which is the very definition of cheating. Yes I consider it cheating. I hate 3dp, I understand the reasons that some people like it, I don't agree with them but I understand them. If people want to play a game on easy or with hacks, that's fine that's their own prerogative, but when them picking easy affects me when I pick whatever setting I want to play, that's a huge problem for me and it prevents me from playing my favorite game, which is the bottom line. Another problem I have with this whole situation is that I know 3dp players generally use fpv to shoot and do certain other things, so I know they can use it and know how to use it, I on the other hand never use 3dp, so asking 3dp players to come over to fpv is not a huge ask since it's already an integral part of their game play style, but forcing people like me to play 3rd person which realistically is the only way i could keep playing on current servers and play with people is a huge ask and it annoys me that people can't see that. I've been pretty civil in all these threads, but you have to understand I hold 3dp advocates responsible for me not being able to play my favorite game.

It's the closest representation we have of opinions. Also, as was discussed on the other thread, the SA has a 3d model of your character in the inventory so you can still admire them without having 3rd person on.

No but what it does indicate, is that the active people on this forum, for the most part would prefer 1st person over third given the choice. And judging from the other thread and pretty much all threads of this nature, it seems to be a recurring theme in the forum, people on the forum prefer 1st over third. Conclusion, change the forums to first person view only.

Personally, I'm not buying this as it is now, my only issue is tpv players being allowed on fpv servers and those people being allowed to server hop between them at will. If I can be sure that the sniper on the hill that shot me got his gear and to that spot on the same difficulty that I have been playing on, that's fine by me, but if there is a chance that he got his gear by using what I consider to be a cheat (tpv), that's not ok. It cheapens the entire experience for all fpv players even if they are the minority, the game would in essence encourage tpv over fpv as the mod does.

Let me word it differently, I prefer to play on servers without what I consder cheaters, I prefer not to cheat even when presented with the opportunity and the option even if it is acceptable, I prefer not to cheat. Call me old fashioned but I like playing games for the challange, not to cheat or cheapen the experience. I like playing games the way they were designed to be played. I also want to take this opportunity to point out that 3rd person is only on by default on Arma 2 if the admins select "Recruit" or "regular" It comes down to preference I suppose but the few pvp servers in arma 2 never had 3rd person turned on. The fact that so many day z servers label themselves as veteran but have it turned on disgusts me.

Actually the game was designed with first person views in mind, the whole 3rd person thing came later simply because the optoin was there to cheat so people started using it to lessen the difficulty of what was an otherwise brutal game at the time*. Day Z is and always has been a first person game which is why it's so frustrating seeing so many people using what is effectively a cheat to play the game in a way it was never meant to be played or designed to be played. There is no way I'm going to buy this game if people who I consider cheaters, regardless of their reasoning, are able to play on the same server as me. Before everyone get's all upset with me, It's just my opinion, I consider anything that gives you an unfair advantage a cheater, seeing around walls, for me falls in that category. If you can hop from your cheat server to my 1st person server, that's a deal breaker for me. *Note: when Day Z was crazy popular for about a month, all that hype came from people playing it in first person, you can see in youtube videos that largely made it popular that the older ones are almost all first person and then as the videos get newer they turn to 3rd person which directly corresponds to the mod losing concurrant players. Again it's just my opinion, but 3rd person actually damages player numbers as a whole. People think they want it to be easy and softer, but then when it gets easier they lose interest. WoW is a fantastic example of this, the hardest that game has ever been has also been the most popular it's ever been, people whined and cried that end game was too hard, so slowly slowly the retardation began and they made it easier and more accesible, which technically should have made it even more popular since you are able to cater to a wider player base, but instead the numbers dropped dramatically.

What happens then, as is currently happening with the mod is that you are giving people the choice to play with cheats or without, forgetting about pvp, it makes the solo experience a lot easier so people naturally gravitate to the easy option of using cheats and the first person servers lose population. For example, last i checked about a month ago there was one single fp only server of all the UK servers out of the 20 or 30 that there are. One. And judging by the comments here it seems like most of them just do it because that's what other people do and they don't want to play without the cheats that every one else uses. What might be a better option which would still allow choice, is you have one character only at any given time but you need to select first person or third person, only servers which fit your selection will be available for you to play with the character. People might be more inclined to actually populate first person servers because they know that every one else they are playing with didn't get their gear on a 3rd person server etc. Personally I think 3rd person should be done away with all together, but if there has to be choice, make it binary and not one foot in one foot out.

Immersion is key to this game and it's character, feeling like you are really there and really have something to lose is important. My suggestion, for the sake of immersion in the stand alone is to keep text pop ups which give you a sitrep on your character and his status, this may sound counter intuitive but hear me out. I've heard Rocket talk about how he wants to remove all text prompts and make it so that you have to glean from how your character is behaving as to his status, for example, if you are sick, you find this out because you hear coughing from your character. Here's my problem with that with regards to immersion, in real life if I am sick, I know I am sick because I feel awful, same with a broken leg, if I break my leg I know about it because, well my leg is broken and it hurts. Since direct neural interface is probably out of the question, we need to come up with something else to replace the pain and body response you would have in real life. Text prompts and or status on the side of the screen work because it's simple and easy to understand, it gives you a direct link to how your character is doing. If however as rocket suggests, those prompts are removed we are left with a situation where your character turns into a sort of tamagachi where you have to kind of guess how your character is feeling or what's wrong with him which completely removes the character from being an extension of self and removes that element of immersion. Simply needing to ask the question "Is he hungry" or "Is he sick" "whats wrong with him" separates you from your character. I'm not saying that it can't be done without using prompts, but it seems like it would be counterproductive to do so. Secondary suggestion: I also think adrenaline should play a role in how often your prompts come up text or otherwise, if you are in a high stress situation how hungry you are goes out the window completely, blood physically moves away from your bowels and into your muscles and brain, same with how hot or cold you are, when skydiving for example it can get extremely cold when you jump but you don't even feel the pain in your hands until a few minutes after you land. This introduces an element of being able to push your body to the point of failure because the adrenaline over rides everything else so over an extended period it can lead to people "forgetting" to eat or drink for example. If there is a way to measure stress or adrenaline, or even just start a timer when you get shot at or hear a shot, or are in a certain proximity or sight of zombies, during the timer no prompts for hunger or exposure occur, but when your character calms down you get a flood of prompts from your body. Same with if you have been shot and are bleeding, you aren't going to think about eating at all for the time being, getting a prompt for food when you are potentially going to die in the next 5 minutes seems somewhat redundant. Not sure how good a suggestion that is, but it's just a suggestion.

Thank you for the information, it's good to know that there are both included right now, but on numerous occasions over the past year I have heard rocket say something along the lines of "Eventually we want to completely remove text cues all together" Implying that in the finished product there would be none, which is why I made this post. Besides until we get our hands on the game it's impossible to say for certainty one way or the other what works best but I'm just airing my concerns and opinions on the topic and interested to hear what other people have to say about it. It makes sense that people would think that using audible and visual cues would be more immersive, I'm just pointing out that this might not be the case.

In my opinion, a grumbling stomach being heard over the sound of you crawling running or walking is less likely than you missing a text prompt especially if they have their own colour or applet within the game, also simply reading the text "you are hungry" creates an actual brain response in your own head where the neurones remember the last time you felt hunger the same way you can see peoples brains light up during functional MRI's when a word such as "love" or "anger" comes up, just the word lights up the associated part of the brain. Hearing some one being hungry or sick lights up a different part of the brain, just one part of the brain associated with empathy, again creating a division between your character and your real life brain. You aren't meant to feel empathetic towards your character, it's supposed to represent you within the game, that's what immersion is. Surely it's better to get an actual brain response from the correct part of the brain rather than having all your characters needs met because of an empathic impulse which would lead to people caring less about their character as an extension of self and seeing it more as a pet even if it is only on a subconcious level. It's the sort of subtle thing that could ruin a game, people won't notice or be able to put their finger on why it doesn't feel right, but if the only part of the brain that lights up when you play is the part for empathy it could change the way people play and feel about the game.

But my point is those things are easy to miss, like if you have been cold for a few hours, you might not pick up on the prompt until the second or third, in reality if you are in pain it's not something you can easily ignore. I don't wan't my character to turn into a furby, basically. "what does that noise mean? Does he want me to rub his tummy? Does he want food?" You are introducing a barrier to immersion. Text prompts for me are non invasive and informative, my character doing things I don't tell him to do, or making strange noises are less informative and more invasive on my experience. Just my opinion. Perhaps having an option to turn text prompts off or on might be a good compromise, if the system rocket comes up with really is more immersive the text prompts will convey no advantage what so ever.

"you were kicked from the server" "The server is currently locked" It's sunday, this should be peak time for a uk server, but the server is kicking people randomly and then locking? It's frustrating because this server is the only UK server without 3rd person on.

I hate third person in Day Z, why do people insist on playing servers that advocate it but then complain that it's unrealistic, or that they keep getting sniped. Without third person you MUST have line of sight on a sniper who can see you, that alone makes a huge difference. There is only one server out of all the UK servers that has 3rd person off, to me that's simply retarded. On third person servers, I can sit in a tree, completely hidden and have a 360 degree view around me without ever risking being spotted, Or be in a window looking out able to see everything, again without ever giving the enemy a chance to see me. It just makes everything too easy, and destroys the whole risk/reward gameplay that I associate with Day Z. Support the servers that have third person off, support the kind of gameplay you want. I've been killed by a sniper that i was unaware of twice in my hundreds of hours of playing day Z, but like i said I only play on servers that do not allow third person. I've flanked quite a few and spotted quite a few before running into their field of fire, but only been blind sided by them twice, that seems reasonable to me. If I had been paying more attention I probably could have spotted them as well. There are a few common sense rules to follow apart from never playing easymode third person servers. Learn from your mistakes, why don't you try sniping yourself to get a feel for it, you don't actually have to shoot anyone, just get to the point where you could.

I'd like to see this game keep a high difficulty level. Basically just don't listen to most of the suggestions in the suggestions thread because most of those people just want cheats. Less special needs orientated game would be refreshing.

Please for the love of god don't nerf zombies because of "less mentally able" people either unable or unwilling to learn how to deal with them. How are "less mentally able" people ever going to stop being "mentally challenged" if game developers keep hand holding and catering to their special needs. They need to be pushed to learn, forced to learn and not have their special needs met to the detriment of everyone else who does not suffer form learning disabilities.

Although any improvements on the inventory system are going to be welcome, I just want to say I loved that there was a small chance of losing all your stuff occasionally, it sucked and it was harsh but it gave an extra air of uncertainty to switching bags etc. I know it was a bug, but it gave the game a sort of pseudo human error factor because in the real world, sometimes people just fuck up and bad things happen especially in stressful situations. Not sure if any of this makes sense, but I liked that there was uncertainty in my ability to perform tasks in the game because it simulates the uncertainty of doing a complex unrehearsed task under stress in the real world.