Considering Purchasing the Game

[ColdAtrophy 1850]

I'm a Game Design student. I'm not afraid of some bugs. I actually have a few Early Access games that I got just to monitor progress and see how they change from an academic standpoint. The second half of that statement is that I am a student. I do okay monetarily, but I'm not rich. Spending money on games is something I have to be conscientious about. 

 

This one I'm considering buying to play with a friend. He doesn't play it often and hasn't played it in awhile. I read a lot of user reviews on Steam wherein the players are bashing the devs for the apparent lack of progress in the game. Gamers are not generally even tempered, patient individuals. I know that because I am one first and foremost and I've been reading and watching the behavior of other gamers for a very long time. Gamers tend to get irrational and overreact very quickly. I wish someone would do a psych study on our demographic as this has always been interesting to me. So anyway, when I read user reviews, it begins to paint a picture but it most definitely does not tell the whole story.

 

What I'd like to know from you forum regulars is this:

 

1) Is the development of this game really slowing down? Can we chalk some of that up to the fact that we just got through the holidays and this type of work naturally will slow down through that time of year?

 

2) Do the devs appear to be slacking off and losing interest or do they still appear to be engaged in making a polished final product?

 

3) Is it possible at this stage in the game to have a fun, unique experience that isn't overshadowed by bugs?

 

4) Do you regret having purchased this game?

 

Thanks for your time. 

 

[sneakydudes 278]

Its a good game, Devs working on it. Bugs yes, and some actually get you killed. Over all its work in progress.

[ColdAtrophy 1850]

Its a good game, Devs working on it. Bugs yes, and some actually get you killed. Over all its work in progress.

 

I guess what I'm asking though is are the devs actively still working on it? Do you feel that they are doing their best to provide a polished final product?

[Max Planck 7174]

1) Is the development of this game really slowing down? Can we chalk some of that up to the fact that we just got through the holidays and this type of work naturally will slow down through that time of year?

 

 It isn't slowing down, and it isn't slow. A lot of the important progress happens on separate code branches though, and we won't see big leaps before those get merged into experimental/stable.

 

 

2) Do the devs appear to be slacking off and losing interest or do they still appear to be engaged in making a polished final product?

 

The dev team have recently started communicating a whole lot on these official forums, they release weekly progress reports and the team leaders communicate with us and answers questions.

I don't see any signs of slacking, development and communications seems a lot more 'structured' than it used to.

 

 

 

3) Is it possible at this stage in the game to have a fun, unique experience that isn't overshadowed by bugs?

 

Yes, but the bugs sure can be annoying. Some people seem to be affected a lot, some don't. If you are likely to pull your hair out in frustration, I suggest you wait.

Hair is important.

 

 

 

4) Do you regret having purchased this game?

 

No, but sometimes I do regret playing it a bit. It's the old sausage factory comparable: A sausage can be a lot less appealing if you see how it is made.

The current build is fairly far from the end goal though, but there is still the risk of burning out on it before it is even made.

Edited March 5, 2015 by Max Planck

[tommy290 941]

1. Development is no slower than any other AAA game.

2. No. These are real people who have mouths to feed and bills to pay. Any notion that they just don't give a shit is laughable.

3. Very much so.

4. Not at all. I have much, much bigger regrets from BF4 and Titanfall.

 

Steam reviews should never be used as a basis for judging a game. I typically don't trust ANY reviews that aren't from gaming buddies who I know enjoy the same type of games I do, but Steam reviews are the lowest common denominator of reviews.  

[ColdAtrophy 1850]

1. Development is no slower than any other AAA game.

2. No. These are real people who have mouths to feed and bills to pay. Any notion that they just don't give a shit is laughable.

3. Very much so.

4. Not at all. I have much, much bigger regrets from BF4 and Titanfall.

 

Steam reviews should never be used as a basis for judging a game. I typically don't trust ANY reviews that aren't from gaming buddies who I know enjoy the same type of games I do, but Steam reviews are the lowest common denominator of reviews.  

 

Thanks for the reply. I agree that Steam reviews are not necessarily the best source for judging a game. They can, however, indicate a possible problem. That's why I'm here. I don't think Steam reviews are a proper judgement call on the quality of a game. I do, however, think that sometimes forum regulars can offer a deeper insight as they oftentimes have played the game a bit more than the average casual gamer.

 

 

 It isn't slowing down, and it isn't slow. A lot of the important progress happens on separate code branches though, and we won't see big leaps before those get merged into experimental/stable.

 

 

 

The dev team have recently started communicating a whole lot on these official forums, they release weekly progress reports and the team leaders communicate with us and answers questions.

I don't see any signs of slacking, development and communications seems a lot more 'structured' than it used to.

 

 

This begins to clear up the two biggest questions I had. Thanks for the input.

[schwaBAM 200]

I agree with Max on all of his responses.  However, I do not see the bugs in this game as overshadowing my fun and adventure.  Yes, there are points where they get you killed, but I don't mind restarting and heading in a new direction.  I still have fun each and every time I log in to play.  The random cheater is what is rather annoying, but the fact that most of them are horrible shots is kind of funny.  

 

I believe you can and will have a lot of fun adventures with your friend.  The excitement/emotion/uncertainty I get when I see a real player makes the interaction that much more fun.

 

Combine that with the devs continuously improving the game and I think you will have found a nice home.

[blunce 991]

It isn't slowing down, and it isn't slow. A lot of the important progress happens on separate code branches though, and we won't see big leaps before those get merged into experimental/stable.

 

 

 

The dev team have recently started communicating a whole lot on these official forums, they release weekly progress reports and the team leaders communicate with us and answers questions.

I don't see any signs of slacking, development and communications seems a lot more 'structured' than it used to.

 

 

 

 

Yes, but the bugs sure can be annoying. Some people seem to be affected a lot, some don't. If you are likely to pull your hair out in frustration, I suggest you wait.

Hair is important.

 

 

 

 

No, but sometimes I do regret playing it a bit. It's the old sausage factory comparable: A sausage can be a lot less appealing if you see how it is made.

The current build is fairly far from the end goal though, but there is still the risk of burning out on it before it is even made.

 

What Max said^

 

IMO a lot of DayZ consumers are spoiled in a sense. They're use to the cookie-cutter routine of reading press reviews of games & buying finished titles. DayZ is one of the few, if not only early access title that appeals to the masses. A 3million copy sales figure very much shows that.

 

Also, the price of the game will only go up. So you can always take advantage of that. You can't lose really.

[ColdAtrophy 1850]

Thanks for the all the responses. I just wanted to make sure I wasn't getting on board a definitely sinking ship. Off to grab my debit card. See you all in the wild!

[schwaBAM 200]

Hit me up if you want to roam around together!

[omniwind 5]

Too bad I didn't get here sooner I would have told you not to buy it because of all the cheaters and the forum admins "moving" any posts about it to the graveyard when it's the biggest problem in dayz, I'll take zombies running through walls all day but when you go to google and type in "dayz hacks" you see just how screwed you really are when people are using these things.

[IgnobleBasterd 161]

 

 

 

No, but sometimes I do regret playing it a bit. It's the old sausage factory comparable: A sausage can be a lot less appealing if you see how it is made.

The current build is fairly far from the end goal though, but there is still the risk of burning out on it before it is even made.

 

Lol, I've seen countless of PETA-style documentaries and I enjoy every sausage I eat. :)

[BleedoutBill 1636]

DO NOT buy this game. It will turn you into the gaming equivalent of a crack whore. You have been warned!

 

If you are seriously considering a purchase, you need to be aware of a few things. Most importantly, we are still in alpha, so nothing has been optimized. Therefore, you will need a CPU with VERY strong single core performance to run the game. I would recommend an i5 4690k, or better. AMD CPUs are not up to the task and will only frustrate the hell out of you. The GPU is pretty irrelevant at this point. Anything in the GTX5XX family and up, will be more than adequate.

 

The game, itself, is an absolute hoot to play! It is frustrating, infuriating and sublime all at the same time. Most of the basic functionality is in place, but there are a lot of place holders and a few rough edges. The player base is very passionate about this game. You will soon find that those who complain the loudest will likely have in excess of 500 hours in game. Many have spent an astounding 1000-2000 or more hours in this game.

 

If you are interested in the specifics of what is going on with development, browse through the Status Reports:

http://forums.dayzgame.com/index.php?/forum/134-developer-discussion-status-reports/

[HappyXceed (DayZ) 28]

Don't be afraid of hackers, from my experience 43+ hours of game-play and 1 hacker. That hacker didn't even use anything that could kill people instantly.

[omniwind 5]

Afraid ?  Not afraid just simply pissed that I spend all those hours running around the map doing it the way you're suppose to then someone seeing me in a full ghillie suit with his hacks and poking his gun through the wall and shooting me when there is no way anyone could see me hear me or have any inclination that I am there without cheating, he just ran up behind the wall stuck his gun through the wall and blew me away I had 2 75 round ak mags full ghillie suit and was stationary for about 15 minutes making no noise and not seeing any players cross my view then all the sudden footsteps behind the wall barrel of gun peeks through and I'm dead.  I guess that's a lot of fun for him ?  TBH I will repeat this story over and over again till they do something about it.

[tommy290 941]

Afraid ?  Not afraid just simply pissed that I spend all those hours running around the map doing it the way you're suppose to then someone seeing me in a full ghillie suit with his hacks and poking his gun through the wall and shooting me when there is no way anyone could see me hear me or have any inclination that I am there without cheating, he just ran up behind the wall stuck his gun through the wall and blew me away I had 2 75 round ak mags full ghillie suit and was stationary for about 15 minutes making no noise and not seeing any players cross my view then all the sudden footsteps behind the wall barrel of gun peeks through and I'm dead.  I guess that's a lot of fun for him ?  TBH I will repeat this story over and over again till they do something about it.

 

And everyone who knows anything about DayZ will tell you "Don't get attached to your gear." over and over again.

[ColdAtrophy 1850]

DO NOT buy this game. It will turn you into the gaming equivalent of a crack whore. You have been warned!

 

If you are seriously considering a purchase, you need to be aware of a few things. Most importantly, we are still in alpha, so nothing has been optimized. Therefore, you will need a CPU with VERY strong single core performance to run the game. I would recommend an i5 4690k, or better. AMD CPUs are not up to the task and will only frustrate the hell out of you. The GPU is pretty irrelevant at this point. Anything in the GTX5XX family and up, will be more than adequate.

 

The game, itself, is an absolute hoot to play! It is frustrating, infuriating and sublime all at the same time. Most of the basic functionality is in place, but there are a lot of place holders and a few rough edges. The player base is very passionate about this game. You will soon find that those who complain the loudest will likely have in excess of 500 hours in game. Many have spent an astounding 1000-2000 or more hours in this game.

 

If you are interested in the specifics of what is going on with development, browse through the Status Reports:

http://forums.dayzgame.com/index.php?/forum/134-developer-discussion-status-reports/

 

I have an i5-4690k that I can crank up to 4.5ghz stable if I want to with an H60. I also have a Gigabyte GTX 970. I think I will be okay.

 

Stock: http://www.3dmark.com/3dm/6097060

CPU Oc'ed to 4.5ghz, GPU +100mhz core: http://www.3dmark.com/3dm/6106018

 

Thanks for all the tips and info. I'm looking to get involved in something a little new and different. I've been stuck on BF4 for the most part for the last year and a half across two platforms now and I'm ready for something different to grab my attention. 

 

 

Don't be afraid of hackers, from my experience 43+ hours of game-play and 1 hacker. That hacker didn't even use anything that could kill people instantly.

 

I'm not afraid of hackers. You should go check out the Battlelog forums. Every day there is a 5+ page thread about how BF4 is infested with hackers but I've only seen two in close to 300 hours and they were promptly banned. I find that the majority of hackusations are a result of insecurity and an unwillingness to accept defeat from competitive but basically unskilled individuals. This is not to say that hackers don't exist, but I've been accused of hacking a couple times and I'm a mediocre player who just so happened to have a good match. I think it's a psychological thing.

[omniwind 5]

And everyone who knows anything about DayZ will tell you "Don't get attached to your gear." over and over again. 

 

 

 

 

Has nothing to do with the gear you can get the gear again, it's how I died, it's not a game mechanic so it's BROKEN like your brain apparently because you think I'm mad about the gear?  I'm mad that people can do that to ANYONE and the fact that people are doing it just shows how pathetic some of you are.

Edited March 5, 2015 by omniwind

[omniwind 5]

I'm not afraid of hackers. You should go check out the Battlelog forums. Every day there is a 5+ page thread about how BF4 is infested with hackers but I've only seen two in close to 300 hours and they were promptly banned. I find that the majority of hackusations are a result of insecurity and an unwillingness to accept defeat from competitive but basically unskilled individuals. This is not to say that hackers don't exist, but I've been accused of hacking a couple times and I'm a mediocre player who just so happened to have a good match. I think it's a psychological thing.

 

 

That's like saying you don't get burnt when you put your hand in fire.  and I feel that was a direct shot at my skills as a gamer Ive been playing games for my whole life, and I don't see any game that let's you put your gun through a solid wall and shoot people on the other side, it may not be a hack but it's cheating due to the poor coding on the devs part.

[ColdAtrophy 1850]

That's like saying you don't get burnt when you put your hand in fire.  and I feel that was a direct shot at my skills as a gamer Ive been playing games for my whole life, and I don't see any game that let's you put your gun through a solid wall and shoot people on the other side, it may not be a hack but it's cheating due to the poor coding on the devs part.

 

I'm not saying your anecdotal evidence was not evidence. Dude, I've not even played the game yet. I'm just sharing why I don't worry about hackers based on the claims of other players. Like or not, the vast majority of gamers who scream hacks are flat out terrible at playing video games. It was not intended to be an insult towards you or anyone else. It basically just is what it is. 

 

Poor coding....I'm not sure it's fair to say that about a game that's in Alpha. Nearly every game, especially one that pushes to innovate, looks and plays like garbage compared to the final product when it's at this stage.

 

I mean, if we want to talk about your specific complaint, you have only mentioned one instance. That in and of itself is no reason for me to believe that hackers have infested the game. Remember that this is the internet and if one does not practice objectivity, it's easy to get sucked up in misinformation, false causes, and so on.

Edited March 5, 2015 by ColdAtrophy

[tommy290 941]

Has nothing to do with the gear you can get the gear again, it's how I died, it's not a game mechanic so it's BROKEN like your brain apparently because you think I'm mad about the gear?  I'm mad that people can do that to ANYONE and the fact that people are doing it just shows how pathetic some of you are.

 

If you're not mad about losing the gear, then why did you mention it? If you're not mad about the gear, then you wouldn't care about dying to an alleged hacker. It's no different if you die to another player, a ladder, falling off a building... In the end, death results in a loss of gear. If a player doesn't care about the gear, then they just keep playing and enjoying the game. If a player does care about the gear, then they come to the forums and try to convince everyone that hackers have taken over and are ruining the game. That's pretty much how it works around here. Hackers are no more prevalent in DayZ than any other PC game. It's not even close to the "biggest problem in the game" and to suggest as much to the OP is silly. 

[omniwind 5]

Eh, I'm sorry I put carpet in for a living and if I put the carpet in I make sure it stays in place you just paid me to put it down, I paid them to make walls in the game now make the wall a freaking wall.  Pretty simple concept you put walls up and they're actually walls right?

Edited March 5, 2015 by omniwind

[omniwind 5]

If you're not mad about losing the gear, then why did you mention it? If you're not mad about the gear, then you wouldn't care about dying to an alleged hacker. It's no different if you die to another player, a ladder, falling off a building... In the end, death results in a loss of gear. If a player doesn't care about the gear, then they just keep playing and enjoying the game. If a player does care about the gear, then they come to the forums and try to convince everyone that hackers have taken over and are ruining the game. That's pretty much how it works around here. Hackers are no more prevalent in DayZ than any other PC game. It's not even close to the "biggest problem in the game" and to suggest as much to the OP is silly. 

 

 

 

Uh I'm sorry context does matter I wasn't making a bunch of loud noise where people could hear me like running through a building or something I was stationary and all it was is to give you a picture of the situation at hand....how can you enjoy a game where you cannot see your enemy to even fight them and they shoot at you knowing where you are before you can even see them?  and I never said they took over the game I said it's a problem and I would advise you not to get the game till it's resolved.  That's your opinion and I have mine I think it is the single biggest problem right now, and if you go and check out the hacks on some of the websites and see the pictures they post of how it shows them everything where everyone is and allows them to speedhack around the map you would probably think a little different?  Your avatar pic makes me want to ignore you btw.

Edited March 5, 2015 by omniwind

[ColdAtrophy 1850]

Eh, I'm sorry I put carpet in for a living and if I put the carpet in I make sure it stays in place you just paid me to put it down, I paid them to make walls in the game now make the wall a freaking wall.  Pretty simple concept you put walls up and they're actually walls right?

 

So now you are going from being mad about hackers to being mad about the development progress of the game, although it was clearly communicated to you that this game was in Alpha and may never actually be finished when you bought it? M'kay. 

 

I wish I could be more understanding. I derive no pleasure in arguing with people on forums. I just can't see where you have a leg to stand on here.

[tommy290 941]

Eh, I'm sorry I put carpet in for a living and if I put the carpet in I make sure it stays in place you just paid me to put it down, I paid them to make walls in the game now make the wall a freaking wall.  Pretty simple concept you put walls up and they're actually walls right?

 

Me: "Put in the carpet!"

Carpet Guy: "But I haven't even put the pad down yet."

Me: "Not having carpet is the biggest problem in the room! I WANT CARPET NOW!"

Carpet Guy: "But we're still tearing out the old carpet so you have a proper foundation for the new carpet."

Me: "My neighbor has carpet! I paid you to give me carpet and I want carpet. Pretty simple concept right?"

Carpet Guy: "It's silly to complain about not having new carpet when we just started and are doing the initial work. Please be patient while we do things in the proper order."

 

EDIT: Figured this analogy might work better for you, since you're in the biz.

Edited March 5, 2015 by tommy290