Shooter's Remorse

[skynite 4]

Just shot first, for the first time. It was midnight, I was alone in a Cherno. I saw a player milling around the train depot... I followed him for a bit. Studied his movements. I'd just dealt with a bandit earlier today so I was on edge. I followed him for a solid ten minutes... He knelt down to drink something and I envisioned him turning around, spotting me, and shooting me with the AK he was carrying. I panicked.... I opened fire, missed. He ducked into a small building with one entrance. No escape. He couldn't see. I had night vision. He had a POS assault rifle. I had a suppressed M4. He backed himself as deep into the corner as he could. I could tell he was afraid but it was already too late. I'd crossed the line. I could have given up, high tailed it out of there, leaving him to wonder why his life was spared. But I didn't, I approached the building. Aiming through the door, I saw a sliver of his body and fired again. He was down. It was over. I rushed in to check what was on the body. Nothing I didn't already have. I killed a man for three water bottles. I felt terrible....

Edited November 20, 2012 by Col_Kluts

[bigdogsco 143]

Don't feel bad that's just the way it goes. He would have done the same to you.

[Michaelvoodoo25 3120]

Remember if in fear, next time shoot his legs. That way you don't kill them!

[Castle (DayZ) 23]

I gunned down so many fresh spawns last night to try and keep the helicopter we were fueling up secret.

But then it broke and we couldn't repair it because it brought up the wrong repair menu. Eventually we decided we'd leave it for an hour and try again later, but in that time someone else managed to repair and fly it away...

[puppetworx 474]

Yes! Shooter's remorse is the perfect name for this. I've noticed some people try and protect themselves from it by killing no-one, and others seem to do so by killing everyone equally! Then there are those who author their own rules of engagement so that they can at least rationalize why it was okay to kill a particular someone. Lastly there is the gut instincts player who kills when they feel it is necessary in the moment. No strategy is perfect and mistakes are made in all cases.

I'm basically a gut instincts player, if I feel like someone isn't being straight with me I'll evade them or kill them. The last time I did this which made me feel unseasy was when I had logged out in Solnichniy to fix a bug which prevented me from healing myself only to log back in to find a player over my ATV holding a FAL and screaming at me not to shoot them. Okay, a huge amount of things to process at this point: he was looting my stuff, he had my FAL pointed at me which easily beat my SAW, he appeared not to know just how powerful a FAL was, he could've killed me when I was logging in but didn't, he had probably followed me in here when he heard my ATV, he said that he didn't know it was my ATV he was looting from, so on and so forth... I talk to the guy and he immediately said he would drop my stuff and be on his way, but I told him to just leave me the camping tent and he could have the other stuff (I have way more then I need). In the next few seconds talking to him something felt off, even though he was dumping the tent back into the ATV as requested something seemed wrong about the picture - so I shot him in the head.

In the brief aftermath he says "Really?" over direct coms and then I hear him explain to his friend, who is supposed to be way down the coast, that I just killed him. I grab all my stuff off his body jump on the ATV and then hear somebody on direct coms doing that "mini-mini-mini-mini-mini-mini" sound. The guy doesn't shoot but I didn't give him line if sight anyway, as soon as he hears me driving away he stops the noises and starts friendily asking for a lift. I didn't fucking stop, I'm gone. Here's the thing I still don't know if it was right to kill that player. I don't know if that guy approaching me was his mate. I don't even know what it was that made me think that this guy wasn't being straight with me, it was just a feeling. In retrospect I probably could've just wounded him and left but in the heat of the moment I took no chances and I felt kind of bad for it. What the fuck is this game???

[Dankine 377]

learn to aim ;p

[puppetworx 474]

learn to aim ;p

Haha. I usually joke about how scared people when when I point or fire a FAL in their direction....now I know just how they feel. :lol:

[Derpy_Hooves (DayZ) 4521]

Would have done the same as you, wouldn't trust anyone looting through my stuff, Usually punishable with a swift shot to the head, no comms no remorse.

I must take the survival thing a bit too at heart, I will generally avoid most players but if someone is heading my way and is armed i normally shoot without explanation. Suppose it's just how look at it depends on your emotions are to it.

[privatewolf 59]

One time I met this guy with a white pickup.. he was very friendly, but my intentions were not congruent to his. We drove around chernaurus trying to find a gas station, and when we did I murdered him in cold blood and stole his car. After a few minutes I began to feel guilt, almost like I actually killed a person. Afterwards I tried to find out where he was at the moment via the side channel, and once I knew where he was I returned his white pickup to him, no gear touched nor his can of beans were eaten. I felt a warm fuzzy feeling inside me as he drives away after saying 'Thank you so much!' and that is the day when I realize, I'm not meant to be a bandit

[skynite 4]

It was funny, I did feel like he would've done the same to me, but on the flip side, maybe he was one of those one in a million players that would team up with me and we would romp through the zombie infested countryside. Then I figured, "Ahhh hell, maybe he has that tent I've been looking for...." I left everything but a couple water bottles on his body. There were only three players in total on the server and no one else could have heard the shots. I hope he made it back to his body in time....

[Dankine 377]

tis still 99% of the time kill or be killed in my head. remorse? lol

[Steak and Potatoes 13480]

Unequal playing field I request a rematch with this man when he has NVG's and isnt backed up into the corner like a baby racoon in the dark.

[jdz (DayZ) 238]

In Cherno with NVGs and a CCO SD, seems legit.

[dallas 5195]

tis still 99% of the time kill or be killed in my head. remorse? lol

I think what makes DayZ so completely unique, is lost on many players.

OP you should congratulate yourself on being able to experience this authentic remorse, even if it made you feel bad. Even thought it's weird to feel emotions in a shooter, you still had the ability and imagination to generate more advanced feelings than just "PWNAGE!!!111oneoneone." I think that's what Rocket set out to do with DayZ.

Any other shooter, you'd feel a limited range of emotions, but because DayZ is constantly making your second guess the other players' motivation and intentions, you are often put in situations, where you have to justify your actions, without having black/white answers.