My criticisms of DayZ mod/Standalone

[westonsammy 1]

Before reading this post, please remember that these are my OPINIONS, and i'm not saying any of this is 100% true or that anything said here is 100% false. This is just what I think.

Also before I begin, I would like to say that I think DayZ is a incredibly fun game, and I have spent many items scavenging for Mountain Dew and shooting up bandits.

DayZ mod:

MY criticism of DayZ mod is that it gets too much credit for what it has done with the ArmA 2 engine. I understand this isn't a problem created by Dean (Rather by the over-hyped fanboys), but it is a problem nevertheless. I have seen far too many people and even professionals call DayZ "One of the best mods of all time". I believe a better fitting title would be "One of the most fun mods of all time." Because compared to other mods for ArmA 2, DayZ has not really done much. The Undead Mod for ArmA 2 had already implemented zombies into the game, and DayZ WAS NOT THE FIRST DYNAMIC ZOMBIE GAMEMODE IN ARMA 2! In Febuary of 2012, about 4-5 months before DayZ mod's release, Craig, a modder for ArmA 2, released DZS (Dyanmic Zombie Sandbox) which was a mission (Not a mod) for ArmA 2 that featured a dynamic zombie apocalypse, with respawning zombies roaming towns, the need to scavenge cars and buildings for weapons, and in later updates the inclusion of food and water, along with hunger and thirst.

DayZ Standalone:

My criticism for DayZ Standalone is that I feel that it is being rushed, and that BI is not adding enough to the original mod. Why do I say this? Well first, lets look at the features that DayZ Standalone has so far demonstrated, and why I think some are good, and some are just lazy.

-"ArmA 2.5" engine (Includes Volumetric clouds and lighting): Although this really is just someone mashing together ArmA 2's engine and ArmA 3's engine, I can understand that creating a entirely new one is really not necessary.

-Building Interiors: Probably the most impressive feature of DayZ standalone, although still this wouldn't take much work. Modders for ArmA 2 have made (Without a dev team) entire sets of enterable buildings for custom maps (Celle, Emita, Taviana, ect) and ArmA 2 OA's Takistan had already done this.

-New zombie animations: Another one of the more-worked on features of DayZ Standalone, these are looking to be really nice

-Clothing models/Changing clothes ability: Already implemented into ArmA 3, it feels as if they have just ripped this out of that

-Slightly Altered Chernarus: Really, all they did was flood a small section of the coast (If BI let people modify chernarus like that, modders could have done it in a couple of hours) and copy and paste Utes, the other map that shipped with ArmA 2, onto Chernarus.

-Hacker prevention: For DayZ Standalone, this isn't such a big feat. The only reason DayZ Mod is so hackable is because its a MOD (You can look up the technicalities of why that makes it hackable). Vanilla ArmA 2 is much harder to hack and cheat from, and most "Hackers" on Vanilla ArmA 2 servers are just bastards connecting to a server that hasn't enabled sig check with a editing mod or such.

I'm sure they have planned more features, but so far their starting lineup doesn't look too good. Remember, this is now a GAME, with a dev team and all the resources BI permits them to use (Considering the mods popularity, I think that is a LOT). I will now list what I think they SHOULD have in DayZ Standalone, although I know its probably too late for them to implement these without a major delay in release. Also, if they have already planned to add some of these, please post in the comments with proof so that you can correct me! :D

-New map(s): As the DayZ community has seen, many ArmA 2 modders have been able to develop entirely new and unique ArmA 2 maps with their own custom buildings, complete with interiors and such, all by themselves. So why cant DayZ Standalone give us AT LEAST one new map on release? I expect them to create more maps after release, but as I said before, it feels like they are ripping a lot off of ArmA 2.

-New weapons/vehicles: So far DayZ devs have not announced any new weapons or vehicles for DayZ standalone, which leads me to believe they will have the same weapons and vehicles as DayZ mod. I feel that they should add a more "Civilian" weapon and vehicle pack to DayZ standalone, instead of the militaristic ArmA 2 one.

-Tons of new gameplay features: IE: fortification, advanced medical system (maybe similar to ACE?), easier ability to find friends/friendlies, dedicated leveling system (maybe based on bandit/hero reputation?), advanced movement system (especially with those new building interiors!), higher server capacity (Since its no longer a mod, Standalone could possibly handle 150+ player servers), mod support (Pretty sure Dean, a modder, will add this, but sort of distressed by the fact it hasn't been confirmed)

-Dedicated Website/Forums (Herp derp?): If BI can re-design the ArmA 3 web page in a week, they surely can make a DayZ Standalone one aswell, or at least put DayZ in the BI forums! XD

Anyway, that's about it. I don't want to distress people too much, i'm SURE they will add additional content in future updates for Standalone, so do not worry. I just think i'm going to be dissatisfied with the release, but will probably buy it anyway.

[-Gews- 7443]

In Febuary of 2012, about 4-5 months before DayZ mod's release, Craig, a modder for ArmA 2, released DZS (Dyanmic Zombie Sandbox) which was a mission (Not a mod) for ArmA 2 that featured a dynamic zombie apocalypse, with respawning zombies roaming towns, the need to scavenge cars and buildings for weapons, and in later updates the inclusion of food and water, along with hunger and thirst.

I've played DZS, and those zombies are absolutely TERRIFYING.

Vanilla ArmA 2 is much harder to hack and cheat from, and most "Hackers" on Vanilla ArmA 2 servers are just bastards connecting to a server that hasn't enabled sig check with a editing mod or such.

I don't know about hacking, but I know I've been hacked plenty of times on Wasteland. Probably about as much as DayZ...

I feel that they should add a more "Civilian" weapon and vehicle pack to DayZ standalone, instead of the militaristic ArmA 2 one.

Agreed, but people would flip shit if their particular favorite gun was gone... so would I. Gotta tread carefully there. :lol:

I think you're coming down a bit too harsh on them though. They can't reveal everything they're doing, and I'd buy it based solely on the changes announced so far.

[aussiestig 681]

DayZ wasn't even close to being the first zombie mod for Arma, you're right. But the difference is, it clearly did everything right. That's evident by the fact that it had 1.5m downloads, and the rest never got more than 60,000.

I don't think everyone is expecting this game that's completely changed dayz, and made this game we've all been waiting for. It's been 6 or so months since they started development on dayz, and they have a very small dev team, so to have a totally different game, with heaps of new features would be ridiculous.

Not to mention, ALL of the code for DayZ has been re-writen. That's right, not a single bit has been transferred across from the mod. 6 months to create what is effectively 100% a new game is not a bad effort at all.

Rocket has promised 12 months of updates after the dayz release, and possibly more depending on where we get too. He also said that we will be getting weekly, sometimes daily updates. Think of the DayZ SA as a base game for the dev team to build on over the next year. Sounds good to me.

[westonsammy 1]

Not to mention, ALL of the code for DayZ has been re-writen. That's right, not a single bit has been transferred across from the mod. 6 months to create what is effectively 100% a new game is not a bad effort at all.

Rocket has promised 12 months of updates after the dayz release, and possibly more depending on where we get too. He also said that we will be getting weekly, sometimes daily updates. Think of the DayZ SA as a base game for the dev team to build on over the next year. Sounds good to me.

Was not aware of the re-written code, I have to say that is very impressive.

As for your other statement, I still believe they should have created more on-release content, because it really feels more like a "Official" version of a mod then a game (Especially with the "Daily updates" you mention). Although I understand all games don't have to follow the same marketing model of release then DLC every so often, its going to feel a bit strange playing a game that's being modified every day.

[westonsammy 1]

I've played DZS, and those zombies are absolutely TERRIFYING.

I don't know about hacking, but I know I've been hacked plenty of times on Wasteland. Probably about as much as DayZ...

Agreed, but people would flip shit if their particular favorite gun was gone... so would I. Gotta tread carefully there. :lol:

I think you're coming down a bit too harsh on them though. They can't reveal everything they're doing, and I'd buy it based solely on the changes announced so far.

If you liked DZS, I've got some good news for you. Craig (Creator of DZS) has promised to release a ArmA 3 version within a month of the Alpha release :D

Again, since wasteland servers are often spammed and hosted by admins who know nothing about ArmA 2, they don't enable Signature Check, which checks to see if people are connecting with mods (Which is perfectly allowed on non-sig check servers) and some people like to exploit this by connecting with mods that let them spawn in items or mess with the game (Like dropping cluster bombs everywhere)

I know that they probably will release more content, but when a game is going to be released, they usually showcase their most obvious and impressive features (I call it, "The starting lineup" in this post) while leaving lots of little details away from the public. I can only hope they are showing us the smaller features of the game, because I DO want DayZ Standalone to be a awesome game.

[pmjkerr 76]

How can you criticise something that you havent played??

[Odrama Vin Laden 18]

.Ok, let me apologize ahead of time for tearing apart your post, and I understand this is just your opinion, but you should at least get your facts right before you write a book on it.

-"ArmA 2.5" engine (Includes Volumetric clouds and lighting): Although this really is just someone mashing together ArmA 2's engine and ArmA 3's engine, I can understand that creating a entirely new one is really not necessary.

1. It is no longer the "ArmA 2.5" engine. If you have been following development, you would know that they are now using a completely rewritten engine utilizing client-server architecture, similar to that which is used in many MMOs to handle gamelplay.

-Hacker prevention: For DayZ Standalone, this isn't such a big feat. The only reason DayZ Mod is so hackable is because its a MOD (You can look up the technicalities of why that makes it hackable). Vanilla ArmA 2 is much harder to hack and cheat from, and most "Hackers" on Vanilla ArmA 2 servers are just bastards connecting to a server that hasn't enabled sig check with a editing mod or such.

2. Refer to #1. This new architecture means, that the majority of game code will be handled server side. You will input to the server and the server is technically controlling you. You will not be able to run unintended scripts(which is how ***ers do their thing now) because the server will be running all the scripts, we just tell it what to do.

-Dedicated Website/Forums (Herp derp?): If BI can re-design the ArmA 3 web page in a week, they surely can make a DayZ Standalone one aswell, or at least put DayZ in the BI forums! XD

3. www.dayzgame.com

Again, sorry. Not a personal attack, but you did ask for people to correct anything you had wrong.

Hope this gets you as AMPED for this game as I am.

[-Gews- 7443]

How can you criticise something that you havent played??

I criticized Arma 3... :ph34r:

Iranians using Israeli weapons? Haven't played it, but still...

Obviously everyone is going to be defensive about criticism of the standalone because we're on a DayZ forum, we tend to like DayZ. ^_^

[Slide885 59]

I'm not sure what the point of this is. You are complaining about something that isn't even out yet.

[-Gews- 7443]

-Dedicated Website/Forums (Herp derp?): If BI can re-design the ArmA 3 web page in a week, they surely can make a DayZ Standalone one aswell, or at least put DayZ in the BI forums! XD

Didn't notice this... boo, we are the DayZ forums! <_<

Bohemia will probably add a subforum but I've noticed a lot of scorn directed at DayZ from (some of) the people over there.

[Jonsse 69]

I think you're about 6 months early giving any critique on DayZ SA. A lot of your points are just unnecessary criticism on features perceived to be in the Standalone rather than what is. We've basically seen one video, a couple of screenshots and a lot of text explaining some of the development. Standalone isn't out yet. They've barely started internal testing. The reason you know even this much is because Rocket want us, the fans, to be kept in the loop. At this point in any normal game development you would barely even know the title of the game, let alone have a 10minute video showing of a few recently implemented features. So you can blow out hot air all day long, but it won't change anything. If you feel you'll be dissatisfied when we eventually get to play DayZ SA, then you can do us all a favor and GTFO now.

[Raged 187]

You left out the exciting, Taking A Shit, feature.

[Inception. 9443]

People say it is the best mod in their opinion, because by best it includes fun and other things.

[novogeek 253]

Firstly I understand that this is your opinion ... and because you opened up with that line it means I can express my own opinion too ... so here goes.

*cough* *ehem*

I have an idea, why don't you write your own Mod ... or better yet write your own Game ... oh wait, that would be to much effort and so instead you will express your opinion that has absolutely no constructive criticism or even an offer of assistance. As stated in an earlier post, your criticism is a little premature.

Developers and Modders can not possibly please everyone ... and I am amazed that some of them even try to keep this Mod moving forward based on recent community responses to pointless things ... my suggestion to you all ... go write your own Mod and make it the way you want it to be and then see if anyone agrees with you ... until then ... shut up or if you have to express your opinion offer more than just criticism and rather give advice on how you think it could be resolved or even offer to assist if you can.

I know ... I am the Grumpy Old Fart in the Corner ... but that is Mr. Grumpy Old Fart to you!

p.s. Opinions in this post are merely the opinions of the poster and he is wearing his flame-proof underwear today ... so please continue.

[svenbreakfast 231]

I was really happy to see that there was no rush for holiday release of a half-ass product. Nothing but respect for the devs and for BI for letting them develop a product that the community can be proud to have been a part of.

I'm generally a negative dickhead, and if I can't think of anything bad to say about something it's probably pretty legit.

[ShokeR (DayZ) 29]

My criticism for DayZ Standalone is that I feel that it is being rushed, and that BI is not adding enough to the original mod. Why do I say this? Well first, lets look at the features that DayZ Standalone has so far demonstrated, and why I think some are good, and some are just lazy.

DayZ SA is not being rushed, It's necessary for the progress of this mod, Arma 2 Engine has a lots of limits especially with mod like that.

-"ArmA 2.5" engine (Includes Volumetric clouds and lighting): Although this really is just someone mashing together ArmA 2's engine and ArmA 3's engine, I can understand that creating a entirely new one is really not necessary.

New engine is not necessary? have you ever played for example COD game with BF engine?

-New weapons/vehicles: So far DayZ devs have not announced any new weapons or vehicles for DayZ standalone, which leads me to believe they will have the same weapons and vehicles as DayZ mod. I feel that they should add a more "Civilian" weapon and vehicle pack to DayZ standalone, instead of the militaristic ArmA 2 one.

Rocket said he will release new weapons and clothing every week.

It's funny you already complain about something isn't out yet, all the information you write now , your opinion is based on information you got from twiter posts and videos about SA , If they will tell us everything new added to the game then we wont be suprised when we buy it.

Also , they rewrote most of the systems from nothing, trust me when you will play the game when it comes out , It will feel like a diffrent game.

[sausagekingofchicago 4711]

Maybe I'm a massive fanboy but I can clearly see the difference between DZS and DayZ. I can also see the difference between the great work done by the modding community and the highly polished work of the BI artists, be it buildings or maps. I've paid attention to community when we expressed our distaste for leveling and other nonsense found in cookie cutter games developed by fly by night companies. I read the interviews and watched the videos and know military grade weaponry won't be as prominent in the standalone and know all the weapons and character models are being redeveloped. I questioned Rockets sanity when he said the new server architecture could handle up to 100 players, which I think is an awful idea, and I understand why they're not allowing modding on day one of release. Hell, I even know what to expect when the standalone goes public.. it wont be pretty but it'll look a lot nicer than the hundreds of inevitable complaint threads about changes, threads about how Rocket ruined the game, demands for ridiculous safe zones, vaults, one shot kill weapons, flying monkeys, and refund because the AS50 is missing. Let's not forget about the CAPITAL LETTERS WITH EXCLAMATION POINTS!!!!

Anyway, everyone's entitled to their opinion.

[joe_mcentire 2073]

you do not have to do and implement as much as possible to create something good. AND it is hard to compare apples to oranges.

Is the Avatar a better film then the Artist?

Edited February 27, 2013 by joe_mcentire