Character wipes with patch releases

[Fiddlesticks 0]

This may not be an actual suggestion for gameplay per say, but I would still like to see it and I didn't see any other suggestion for this, so sorry if it has been.

But my idea was that, whenever a new patch that introduces new features (not small hotfixes that just fix items spawns and things like that), that the main server do a full character wipe for every user. This would force everyone to start back at 0 and it will give a more accurate view on how well a patch is working. This way instead of just the brand new players being forced to do trial and error, it will also force the veterans that haven't died in however long to actually try and test the update from the first spawn.

Using the 1.7.1.1 (pretty sure that's the right number) as an example, when the staring gear was changed to just a torch,band-aid, and painkillers. Any veteran that was alive before the patch, aren't testing the difficulty and/or gameplay change. Also with the sex change becoming a new feature per new character, it would force every user to attempt that new feature, and more user specific bugs will be easier to spot, such as awhile back when only about 1.5k users were unable to connect to any game.

Thanks for reading!

[Strategos (DayZ) 190]

I agree.

[Fiddlesticks 0]

Also, I just thought, with character wipes/ resets. It would remove and dupped or hacked items that are present in the game

[Stretch (DayZ) 0]

Just fyi, a pretty healthy discussion about this took place on reddit yesterday. Was the top trending submission for about 12 hours.

http://www.reddit.com/r/dayz/comments/v8fkz/dayz_vets_vs_newbs_disparity_grows_as_an_outcome/

[Never 237]

Its a damn good idea though.

Brings the focus back to testing instead of players treating like a finished game and protecting their precious gear.

The backlash will be a huge flamefest and show just how disgusting some of the community is i'm sure, but fuck them, if its a test lets fecking test it. It'll help give a much better idea on how each patch is progressing.

Maybe set up a regular patch/reset rhythm? Like every 7 days or something is update day?

[Never 237]

cheeky bump for discussion? It is a really good idea from a testing point of view.

[kloust! 0]

I agree.

The people criticizing others about wanting a spawn weapon back (etc) are the veteran bandits who have all the best gear. Let's see how you like spawning with a flashlight and a bandaid, lol

[santiagoaquino6@hotmail.com 37]

I agree with this.

[Tassadarh 2]

Tell us the truth: You just got killed after a week of gametime don't you?

Don't worry, death catches up every one of us. In a short time.

You don't need to restart it. Everyone will day in a week or two. And if you don't... well, you're a really good player and you deserve to live.

[Techercizer 82]

I might not like it, but OP is right. Resets every patch would not only help highlight new bugs and reduce the incidence of bugs related to the transition from one version to another, it would also reduce the amount of attachment people have to their characters.

This is an alpha first.

[dale0404 16]

Would also like to see this, sounds like a cool thing to do. Might weed out some "unwanted" also. :D

[Reign19k 1]

Let's do it.

Testers need to be on the same page. Only issue I see with this , is that endgame content will not be tested. I'm sure a solution to this will be introduced though.

[leo235 2]

YES

kinda have to agree. Also might make cheaters easier to spot.

[skipper1993 0]

I think this is 100% a good idea in terms of testing, but it also adds something in terms of balance and shit

[nikolai_au 21]

I agree with this as well, was thinking could it be that all gear on characters and backpacks gets reset but the toon itself stays alive? That could potentially placate anyone who is trying to keep themselves alive as long as possibe?

[Arkaddy 4]

I vote yes too. Too many reports of problems due to transfered objects from one version to another, or servers not fully updated.

[John (DayZ) 62]

Uh, no thank you.

I understand where you're coming from, and while this isn't a finished product, that doesn't make it any less of a game. I enjoy working my bootay off and getting nice gear to survive with. I don't particularly like the idea of losing everything I have every time Rocket breaks something and has to release six hotfixes in a row.

Besides, this would actually send the deathmatching "issue" into overdrive. You know those guys that play just to get a DMR and sit on top of a building in Cherno? Well, that's going to be 90% of the playerbase, when everything we do stops mattering because within a week Rocket will release a new patch that will destroy everybody's work.

[Tysn 0]

Well' date=' that's going to be 90% of the playerbase, when everything we do stops mattering because within a week Rocket will release a new patch that will destroy everybody's work.

[/quote']

The resets could be regulated to major gameplay-affecting updates, rather than every small hotfix as with the recent patches.

Anyway, I do like the idea. Something like this would have been particularly useful on the starting weapon removal patch. Like kloust said it's hard to tell how much feedback on the starting weapon removal are from people who can actually relate, and aren't people hiding out with 30+ day old characters. Updates that have a considerable affect on survival or equipment availability should probably have a reset to go along with them.

[jblackrupert 308]

Definately needs to happen.

There are mainly 2 kinds of players with weapons on the servers right now.

- Players with stashed guns from earlier builds

- Hackers.

And both of them are doing nothing but camping on hills and rooftops shooting unarmed players for shits and giggles.

[Techercizer 82]

Uh' date=' no thank you.

I understand where you're coming from, and while this isn't a finished product, that doesn't make it any less of a [i']game. I enjoy working my bootay off and getting nice gear to survive with. I don't particularly like the idea of losing everything I have every time Rocket breaks something and has to release six hotfixes in a row.

Besides, this would actually send the deathmatching "issue" into overdrive. You know those guys that play just to get a DMR and sit on top of a building in Cherno? Well, that's going to be 90% of the playerbase, when everything we do stops mattering because within a week Rocket will release a new patch that will destroy everybody's work.

This is no more of a game than an outline is a novel or a pilot is a show; this is an alpha. This is a fun alpha, with a great concept and gameplay that exceeds its industry peers, but it is at its core still a giant test on the way to making an actual, functioning, game.

Major patch resets would also encourage everyone who's here for the fun, not for the work (who from the looks of it make up most of the hate and rage threads about bugs on these forums) to put off playing for a while until the gameplay smooths out. It would make the alpha a nicer place to test, and more importantly, we wouldn't risk alienating the number of users who don't understand alpha that we do right now.

[djkling 5]

This is standard fare in most online games... especially since it makes debugging problems easier

[JeffCraig 1]

having to wipe at each update just makes more work for the devs.

I dont care about wipes when they need them, but i really dont think rocket needs more to do.

[Techercizer 82]

having to wipe at each update just makes more work for the devs.

I dont care about wipes when they need them' date=' but i really dont think rocket needs more to do.

[/quote']

MORE work? Just delete all the stored character data. Send everyone back to the same state they were when they started playing. If anything, this is less work, because they don't have to worry about diagnosing one-time glitches resulting from old character data in new HIVE versions.

It's as simple as right-click, delete, confirm. You could even cut that down to a single double-click with a batch file.

[-Cdn-Chard 96]

While I can see the point of character equipment resets (and I wince because I've been carefully surviving for three weeks and have most of the stuff I need to stay out of people's way but fight back effectively if I'm forced to (except the legendary NVG))... I thnk that the bigger problems are the hidden tents and vehicles loaded with gear that a newly wiped character can rearm at. Those should be periodically reset... But then that takes away from the other aspect of the game which is long term survival and the pursuit of the means to achieve it (ie. cars, a fortified camp, etc...)

There'll always be tons of fresh spawners testing the game, but isn't there also value in seeing how the "high-end" players fare...

The axe, for example, might interest newly spawned, but when face with chosing between an axe and a rifle as a primary weapon, most veteran players will likely opt for the rifle, especially if you have a small pack that can't hold a second primary weapon.

Just my 2 cents...

[Never 237]

Chard' pid='149597' dateline='1340156811']

While I can see the point of character equipment resets (and I wince because I've been carefully surviving for three weeks and have most of the stuff I need to stay out of people's way but fight back effectively if I'm forced to (except the legendary NVG))... I thnk that the bigger problems are the hidden tents and vehicles loaded with gear that a newly wiped character can rearm at. Those should be periodically reset... But then that takes away from the other aspect of the game which is long term survival and the pursuit of the means to achieve it (ie. cars' date=' a fortified camp, etc...)

[/quote']

Yeah the 'stashes' should be wiped as well.

My '7 days' cycle was just a vague suggestion. Maybe a better method would be if its a large patch with changes maybe patch'n'wipe every 7-14 days, then test the vital issues that instantly crop up, then once those are ironed out extend the period to 14-18 days for a more focused test on 'endgame'. (haha what endgame?)

At the moment theres isn't really much endgame content at all, so until some is coded in and needs a longer test is needed, lets just patch and wipe each time.