PaleHorsePreacher

I read this entire thread.. and I'm very confused with the responses. People who complain about the zombies being to easy are the very ones abusing their "stupid AI" to get rid of them. Don't complain about it and at the same time abuse it to your advantage. This game, by it's nature, is designed to offer many play styles (see sandbox). You want to make things harder? Stop farming heli-copter crashes for elite loot. Use only a melee weapon, or only carry 1 clip of ammo. There are numerous ways that you can manipulate your play-style to suit your needs. Lastly, this whole power-gamer mentality has to stop. Not everyone has the time to devote 6-8 hours a day. This game already takes hours to achieve a moderately geared character, couple that with the complete and utter loss of that time upon death, and you have a pretty challenging game as it stands. If you make things too difficult, it will eventually wear out the replay value.

It's a great idea, but sadly no - or at least not that I've seen or found. With the average life span of 30 minutes or so.. it does not lend itself to the time required for roleplay interaction. Maybe once the game gets grounded and the direction more definitive, it could be something to look into. I'd love to RP in this game.. but I just don't see it working as is. Not without a dedicated group and a private server at the minimum.

To me, I just really don't get the shoot on sight mentality. Certainly it's an element of the game, but I do not believe it is/was intended to be a core feature. What is the point? Sure.. you may get their gear (however much or little it may be), but ultimately you are going to die at some point. Be it a glitch, zeds, hackers, bandits, ignorance -whatever. No matter how much you alt-f4 or server hop, someone or something will eventually have your number and you will have to start over. Servers get wiped, bases get robbed - there is ZERO point in getting attached to or coveting anything. There is alot of talk about realism in this game. It doesn't get much more like real life than accepting the fact that you will die and everything you've achieved up to that point becomes moot. This idea, to me, is the entire motivating factor to work together. If I've got help, I've got a chance to live longer. Two times the eyes, firepower, scavenging ground covered, pack space etc. Yes, granted, its splitting your resources also... but if I'm finding more of one thing and you of another, we both just benefitted.

Yes, the only way to get an actual indication to your location on that map is if you have a GPS. Otherwise the only way is to make note of where you were when you spawned (should be some text in the lower right screen) and then guess-timate your direction and travel.. I got lucky and found some power plants/lines and was able to get my bearings. If you come across something distinctive, just pull up the map and try and find it (mouse wheel zoom in and out). Keep an eye out for road crossings, power lines, railways.. anything that might stand out to you on the map.

I play in 3rd person because 1st person makes me nauseated after a few minutes. The vision is too narrow and unstable in first person - couple that with all of the collision issues and it really helps to see your character. Like someone else said, in real life I can also watch my feet.. turn my head, shift my eyes. Real life arguments are never applicable in a video game.

I have gotten many laughs from this thread. Kudos, good sir.

Arcadies put together a very coherent post and all of his points are valid. The game should be what you envision it to be, the customers will follow. You would probably do well to have a combination of all the models. People can purchase the initial game. You can offer a subscription model, which may provide additional bonuses (such as larger inventory etc), as well as a free model (still play, just without the bonuses). Throw in a nice cash shop with some aesthetic stuff (skins, hats, clothes, packs, whatever) and you got yourself the potential to do pretty decent. It may seem silly, but people shell out money for anything they think looks 'cool' or unique. I have bought comestic items in some of the games I've played, just because - I've got a job and it allows me to have expendable income. The entire point of running a business is making the opportunity to take in people's expendable income. Alot of people complain about cash shops, but lets be honest - they work, which is why most games offer some form of it (even the powerhouse titles). Yes, you always have those people who complain (regardless of what you put in it), but you will never please 100% of people - no matter what you do.