dudemaster 4 Posted January 23, 2014 (edited) This post will be divided into 2 sections:- the short and sweet version, to facilitate for the busy development team- the elaborated version, to explain why I think this is necessary for DayZ The ShortI believe DayZ will be more enjoyable for the players and more successful for the developers if additions and changes were simply not published at all in update notices, leaving the players to discover ALL game mechanics for themselves or seek them elsewhere. Fixes though, would naturally be a good idea to publish. Elaborated Version "Curiosity killed the cat, but satisfaction brought it back" - Eugene O'Neill I'm a cat, and this is a direct metaphor to my experience with DayZ, which I've been playing since the very first public release of the Arma 2 mod. Anecdotal, granted, but I think I speak for everyone who fits in the category of people who went to seek out a game like DayZ in the first place, making it an already massive success compared to its overwhelming competition. I remember a time when videogame developers lived, ostensibly, to frustrate me. Videogames from my youth were notoriously unforgiving. I remember sitting in front of my TV doing the kneeling potty dance, bouncing up and down literally moments from pissing my pants trying to progress, yet at the peril of being subject to major embarrassment and probably a decent ass-h'whoopin I found myself resolute, even obsessed with the task of finishing a level. Every major design decision appeared to have been made to spite me. I would curse myself and the developers for my failures, and I would celebrate my successes. Sure, a great deal of this is relevant to being a dumb middle class kid whom otherwise has no context for real adversity nor success. As an adult and continuing lover of videogames however, I still find myself having the same emotional rushes from failures and victories as I did when I was a dumb kid. Thanks though to a new generation style of entertainment and videogame development, these moments are unfortunately much fewer and further in between. Most adult gamers can relate to the loss of satisfaction from playing videogames compared to when they were younger, and some of this may be attributed to growing up, or a new set of goals and fears and so on. Personally, I believe this can be directly attributed to the change in attitude of modern videogame design. Game designers provide a great deal of support for the players, to the point that there is almost no information withheld from the player; no technique or mechanic that isn't first clearly identified, demonstrated, and forced on you to practice. I apologize for two in one post, but Bill S. once said "Brevity is the Soul of Wit", and by that measure our current concept of interactive entertainment is as soulless as a bad simile supported by a cliched historical quote. Speaking of souls, incidentally, I think the reinvention of the asshole developer is the biggest reason for the semi recent sleeper success and hip status of 2011's multi-platform hit "Dark Souls". The development of DayZ has consistently seen this type of development. Sure there are some changes or additions that have come and gone that could be counted as exclusions, but I think the current state of development proves that rocket wants or has always wanted the game to go on despite you. I've seen new survivors go from spawning fully clothed with food, water, medicine, road flares, a weapon, a backpack and some ammo to its current state of spawning with absolutely nothing but the shirt on your back. I couldn't agree more with decisions like this, not only because it fits the context of a survival horror type game or because it creates a more severe consequence for failure, but also because it enriches the longevity of the game. It adds more flavor and legitimacy to the experience of a dire continuing survival situation. Posting massive changelogs then is counter intuitive to the development of DayZ; First because it robs the player of the joys of discovery, second because it figuratively and quite literally equips you with the advantage of knowledge. After reading the most recent changelog, I couldn't help but feel regret. It's the same regret I feel during the course of any entertainment media when I am presented with something I was already prepared for, be it from a trailer or synopsis or spoiler. Whether it's a joke from a comedy movie, a great plot twist in a novel, or even a dramatic or clever piece of dialogue in any form of media, being supplied with it outside of the context of its intended delivery will always diminish or even ruin its dramatic effect. In my opinion, the latest changelog should've looked like this:Known Issues- Corpse cleanup causes server crash during forced server restart- Spray Painting a magazine while on weapon, creates fake (unusable) copy in inventoryFixed- Niosh mask (respirator) inventory size fixed to 1/1 slot.- Missing strings for BE popup for alternate languages, set to English while translations are being done.- Version number in server browser and details- Saline transfusion doesn't refill full blood- Glitches on right hand while moving and while giving taunt fixed- Removed scripted server teleporting check as now managed by engine- Animation: Fixed misc issues with vaulting- Animation: Fixed getting on the ladder from kneel for the armed player- Animation: Fixed animation speed for unarmed player in main menu- Animation: Fixed an issue with changing weapon while aiming in kneel- Animation: Fixed an issue with rotation while aiming in prone- Security issue with IGUI variable compiling- Situation where player used item on other players inventory causing neverending looped item checkNew- UI: Editable character name in main menu- UI: Hive, mode and time columns in server browser- Database: Support for sub hives. (Sub-private, Hardcore/Regular public)- Security: Signature verification against PBOs- Performance: Server Performance improvements These are things either innocuous to the prospect of delightful surprise or corrections to game mechanics that were game breaking or otherwise greatly unintended. The joy of discovering new content or item uses might be something the development team is unfortunately precluded from, due to the nature of being the people responsible for creating the content; however, ever since my very first spawn near the lighthouse between Balota and Kamenka, discovering the existence of new items and abilities has consistently been one of the greatest motivations to go out and continue searching new places, as well as one of the greatest sources of surprise, laughter, cheering, and so on. Besides this, reading things such as the new use for burlap sacks including a detailed description of its effects has completely ruined my will to try it even a first time for lack of curiosity, and has completely deflated any potential for experiencing its use for the first time to culminate in any sort of joy or surprise. Of course there will still be wikis and other resources to find combined sources of information, but at the very least it won't be shoved in my face every time I go to launch the game from Steam, and with the frequency of new additions that players of DayZ have always enjoyed coupled with the rarity of items in general, such information will never be complete nor instant. For example, I have never found a single silencer despite 54 hours on record of mostly searching military camps. Edited January 23, 2014 by dudemaster 1 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Delta426 23 Posted January 23, 2014 People seem to be forgetting what alpha means. The game at this state is not meant to be satisfactory or enjoyable. You are not a customer who has the right to be disappointed or dissatisfied in any way. All of our jobs right now are bug finding and mechanics testing. The only way the devs find out that spray painting a Mosin breaks it, is if 1000s of people do it. Because of those 1000s maybe 3 will take the time to report it. So yes everyone must know everything all the time so that these issues can surface. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dudemaster 4 Posted January 23, 2014 With the amount of activity the game has seen since the first release of the buy-in alpha, I highly doubt that anything will ever go undiscovered or unattempted over a period of one week. This will also generate a lot more hype for the game. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Chaingunfighter 917 Posted January 23, 2014 On 1/23/2014 at 4:02 AM, dudemaster said: With the amount of activity the game has seen since the first release of the buy-in alpha, I highly doubt that anything will ever go undiscovered or unattempted over a period of one week. This will also generate a lot more hype for the game.It doesn't matter, things need to be tested and a lot of secrets actually do go undiscovered/unreported for a long time. Trust me, it took the DayZ wiki ages to become updated to the point where it had basic info on even the four guns. You could also argue that releasing patch notes generates more hype than not, as people considering buying the game may see a new addition that they want and decide to get it. Besides, most people would just go and look at the configs and see which files were modified by the day of the patch, and they'd discover most of the new additions pretty quickly, so it's moot. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dudemaster 4 Posted January 23, 2014 things do need to be tested, but not by 1 million people. There's the whole experimental branch of the game with its own steam subforum and everything. They don't have to publish every small change so it smacks you in the face every time you launch the game. Also, I agree with the "it's an alpha" sentiment, but let's face it, it's currently THE definitive version of the game however incomplete, and it's what everybody is going to be playing. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Mos1ey 6301 Posted January 23, 2014 You could always just not read the patch notes. How are we supposed to report if features are not working correctly if we don't know what they are in the first place? xD 2 Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Bash Arkin 266 Posted January 23, 2014 On 1/23/2014 at 4:18 AM, Mos1ey said: You could always just not read the patch notes. How are we supposed to report if features are not working correctly if we don't know what they are in the first place? xD Word for word + :beans: Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
Wolfguarde 108 Posted January 23, 2014 Actually, ideally, you would have all of those 1 million people testing. More bug testers means more bug reports means better game for all and more stress for whoever's sorting bug reports :P Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
dudemaster 4 Posted January 23, 2014 (edited) On 1/23/2014 at 4:18 AM, Mos1ey said: You could always just not read the patch notes. How are we supposed to report if features are not working correctly if we don't know what they are in the first place? xD use the experimental branch and look in the experimental branch forums? Edited January 23, 2014 by dudemaster Share this post Link to post Share on other sites
IkaikaKekai 1957 Posted January 23, 2014 We have patch notes and we still get about 5 threads per item when someone 'discovers' them, and that's not counting the 'what dis thing do?' threads. Share this post Link to post Share on other sites