About needles in a haystack and the illusion of threat

[cat (DayZ) 22]

-----About needles in a haystack and the illusion of threat

The map is too large

Assuming the game map without water is ~200 square kilometers. Then the average density on a 50 player server is 4 square kilometers PER PLAYER. That means if evenly distributed, each player has a box of 2x2 kilometers all by himself.

Taking into account the average density of obstacles, like buildings, trees and terrain the average unobstructed viewdistance is less than one kilometer. Further taking into account that if you do not run the game on full AA and high resolution the visibilty of other players is reduced further.

Taking all of the above into account, the average player who does not constantly scan the area for other humans will only notice other moving players on a maximum distance of 200-300m.

That is basically needles trying to find each other in a haystack.

So to recap all of this:

On a 50 player server:

-4 square kilometers per player

-Unobstructed view distance: less than one kilometer

-Practical spotting distance: 200-300m

Now some may argue, a chance this low to find other players is good, it enhances the sense of loneliness and dread. But that is just an illusion. Statistically you are very safe by simply running around on your own. And that loneliness is not dread, it is perfect safety. I designed quite some missions for all arma and flashpoint games, and while an empty landscape with creepy music seems foreboding and dangerous, it is in reality a peaceful, void space, simply because you can not populate the map densely enough with zombies to uphold a sense of constant danger. Hardware limitations and bandwith are limits to this.

So if you remove the creepy music and look at the statistic reality of it, a game on a map this large degenerates to peaceful hiking with teh occasional food can hunt in a village.

And this perceived illusion of threat will quickly wear of to experienced players and the only real threat will be interaction with other players, which is too rare because the huge playable map waters it down.

So I would like to propose this:

1

Create variants of the game where only half or a quarter of the actual map is accessible. Halving it would still leave each player with 2 square kilometers for himself.

2

Offer the same mission on Takistan. Here is why:

It is much less tough on the CPU and GPU because there is less object density on the map.

The landscape is wide open, with only concentrated dense areas scattered. This has several advantages:

Players can see others from farther away, because the practical spotting distance is far higher.

Also Tak offers far more enterable buildings which allows players to fortify in places.

NOTE: Moderators please do not remove this threat by assuming it is just another "map too large" topic, as I am clearly explaining the reasons in detail why that is.

[oilman 72]

"NOTE: Moderators please do not remove this threat by assuming it is just another "map too large" topic, as I am clearly explaining the reasons in detail why that is."

Holy fuck, I'm sorry, but what?

Your reason for not posting in the already created thread was that your post is detailed?

I'm confused.

[griffinz 2816]

Ill lock it, just so you can read this:

You knew there was already a thread on this, and you chose to start an identical one.

Regardless of how much more structured your OP is, you have been beaten to the punch. You must post this as a reply to the original thread.