Status Report - 09 Sept

[bauertschi 254]

i would have liked to ask about the contaminated zone, because i genuinely feel it's a terrible, generic idea. I understand, there are literally dozens of people who asked for this feature but do you actually think it's a worthwhile addition to the game or is this some form of "giving in" to a popular community-demand?

 

i would like to know the reasoning behind this decision and potential areas that would make sense. Especially as you mentioned the infection is airborne, how would that make any sense...or isn't this about the infection at all?

 

I don't know if the idea is forced by the community, have never heard anyone proclaiming we need it. I see two main aspects, 1st the new possibilities and 2nd the once again shrinking map. Short things first, with servers with 80+ ppl, just to say a number, and parts of the map getting taken out unless u have a gas mask, I am not sure, where exactly one should build his bases. But I have always worried about too many ppl on servers generally, in my mind 40 or 50 is plenty, but hey.

 

The thing with new possibilities depends on exactly what is in those areas. Maybe some exclusive loot that is needed in bases somewhere, don't aks me what exactly :). Now if ppl need to get that "loot" in certain intervals, in order to get some gimmick in their bases, why not, something else to do. The only thing that comes to mind now is some kind of chemical lighting or power device. What's the idea for supporting camps (like from the "general idea" presentation of hicks) with electricity anyways? Using a truck as a generator and refueling till eternity? Not saying my ideas here are original at all, but everything that allows or forces you to do more in the game takes time away from putting bullets into ppls heads. And thinking of pvp ... sorry ... it would be interesting for lone wolf sniper dudes to use such an area as a relatively safe area to run from the ppl they missed, hoping they can't follow without circling around :). Environment can always be used. After all there was a thread some time ago where ppl were proclaiming what a great idea a huge mountain would be, one you need extremely warm clothing and maybe even oxigen tanks to climb iirc.

 

All in all I think contaminated areas could enrich the game. Not that they will. Certainly not, if the devs don't have better ideas about them than I do.

[Funkmaster Rick 373]

SMoss, thanks a bundle for throwing that one out there for us. I think there are quite a lot of us DayZ players who've seen how the PvP playstyle forces nearly everyone to adopt it in order to survive, we see the Twitch streamers largely streaming combat since it's the most obviously entertaining feature to watch - we've seen how the streamers can indirectly reinforce the PvP playstyle simply because their viewers find it entertaining and want to try it out. I, for one, still harbour fear that DayZ will end up being little more than a shooting sim by release, and greatly appreciate your response.

[SMoss 2101]

Thanks for taking the time to answer from your sick bed.

 

All you guys traveling and sharing exotic infections has got to be rough.... :(

 

Get well soon!

Well, ehh, no travelling for me. I must have just had something to eat which I shouldn't have. Must've been the shrimp...

 

All things considered, thanks BioHaze!

[SMoss 2101]

thanks for this information (albeit it currently is a PvP shooter ;) )

 

 

If we're all being honest, I think that, deep down, that's all most of us really wanted to hear. The things we like to do in DayZ aren't as much fun to watch on Twitch. Hope you are feeling better.

 

I could very well imagine that the "PvP state" of DayZ at the moment is also affected by features/mechanics related to for example hunting and fishing being bugged or not fully complete as well as the lack of infected. I do prefer the hermit playstyle myself; hunting, fishing, growing a bit of crops, and once base building gets here there'll probably be even less time to run around harassing friends and/or other players :D

 

As mentioned, the PvE part of DayZ has not and will not be dropped by the designers, but there's still a ways to go before all features are implemented and bugs ironed out.

[star-lord252 83]

All good news I'm glad there's a hot fix I hate this shitty desync all of the sudden.I'm still waiting for .59 any new of an exp branch coming.

[SMoss 2101]

As for 0.59; we'll see what the internal testing reveals in relation to fixes for the item clean-up and the issues caused by the large player camps.

[☣BioHaze☣ 7337]

We're on the cusp of the cusp of the new tech (maybe, hopefully, possibly)! :D

[VahidkinG 192]

We're on the cusp of the cusp of the new tech (maybe, hopefully, possibly)! :D

 

Nah, eugens tweet is so good to be true. guess he just didn't choice his words wisely and sadly there is no more information about this.

[sausagekingofchicago 4711]

A couple additional item maps tweeted by hicksy.  Both of civy weapon spawns on two separate servers (Winchester, SKS, Mosin, Trumpet, Sporter, B95, MP133, IZH43, IZH18, 527)

 

Edited September 11, 2015 by SausageKingofChicago

[Coheed_IV 381]

That's what I think most people want, but I also seriously think that 2018 would be so late that the game will have so little impact left that it will disappear into obsurity very fast. Just my opinion. I can tell for sure none of my friends - myself included - will have much DayZ drive left in 3 Years from now. We're almost burnt out as it is.

 

The question remains though if and why 2016 is an unrealistic target window for a release. 

I keep hearing that DayZ will disappear because the development is (in some guys opinion) too slow. Like it will lose appeal as time ticks. And this ussually comes from someone with over a thousands hours. It sold 3 million alpha copies, and spawned a new genre in games! It's got legs.

By your logic 12 year olds (that never played the mod) will be 18 and ready to play. If your burning out, just take long breaks. I think you'll be surprised how relevent it will remain when you return.

[St. Jimmy 1631]

A couple additional item maps tweeted by hicksy.  Both of civy weapon spawns on two separate servers (Winchester, SKS, Mosin, Trumpet, Sporter, B95, MP133, IZH43, IZH18, 527)

 

And those pictures don't have pistol spawns, so it's even more?

[themightylc 56]

It sold 3 million alpha copies, and spawned a new genre in games! It's got legs.

 

 

I really appreaciate your standpoint - and faith in this game that we all love -  but that's actually kind of my point.

The spawning of a new genre also spawns many competitors. For all we know there could be someone building THE DayZ killer right now. This game (not it's ideas but it's technical core) could be outdated by the time it comes out - and with already more than enough copies sold, there is no real ("business real") reason to push being competitive in the (near-future) market. Those 18yo will pick "the best game to date" - not the game which the eldery of that time will have the fondest memories of. And BI will not care about anything those 18yo buy - they've already surpassed their sales expectations.

 

Don't know. It's a weird situation. We'll just have to wait and see.

[SMoss 2101]

Of course we care, but rushing out a half-assed product just to try and stay "competitive" in the current/near-future market would not make sense businesswise either. Your concerns are valid for sure, but I really doubt that the guys in charge of planning and management would green light going ahead with the project if they did not think that DayZ would be competitive on the (future) contemporary market come full release.

[freethink 984]

So hopefully as a result of the combat scrum something will be done about weapon sway and breath control. 

Edited September 11, 2015 by freethink

[B4GEL 175]

It's always good to see the devs engaging with the community but I have some reservations about this "Community Combat Scrum". I don't believe that these big name streamers with have much valuable insight to give the devs, the instant gratification play style that is popular on twitch is completely at odds with the direction the game is supposedly taking (see the comments the devs made about coastal deathmatch when the CLE first dropped).

What kind of issues are important to these PvP focused players? I imagine all they'll want to talk about is desync.

 

I also don't agree with this stance some people seem to have that the two main playstyles are PvPer or Hermit, that you either shoot everyone you see or avoid them. Dayz has always been about interaction and i don't think that a playstyle based around avoiding interaction should be encouraged by game mechanics. These survival elements making their way into the game like farming, hunting, base building and crafting should not be seen as utilities for 'Hermits' to play with while hiding from 'PvPers' but as a way to push players together, to encourage cooperation with the goal of survival.

 

It will be interesting to hear exactly what contaminated terrain means, I can't help but imagine horribly unrealistic clouds of green gas and cliche barrels of toxic waste. Hopefully the devs have something more interesting and realistic up their sleeves.

[jiggyjoe 43]

Hi there DayZ community... The post im' making here is not about complaning nor telling the devs what to do, but i gotta say i do have some concerns !

Seeing the devs plan that community scrum makes me wonder, are they still working on zombies ? Has any improvement been made on that level ? 

IMO, it is a core mechanic of the game, even more than PvP, back in the mods, you would see most of the time zombies before you even see / hear another player, i don't know if im' the only one, but id' personally think that it would be a better idea to gather all possible ressources to work on that zombie problem and THEN, move on with less-important stuff... 

We don't need to know ALL the details, but at least some updates like, we or we didn't see any improvements and still working on it would at least, ease some concerns, some friends i have that bought the game since the no-zombie patch (Kinda) already asked for a refund (Since DayZ is advertised as a game with zombies in it they are quite dissapointed that there are none of them) 

We all do appreciate that the dev team is including us in the process of shaping the game or at least, give our insights, but a priority list should be established, to at least, make sure the core mechanics of the game are in a working state before trying to add more guns, vehicles and clothes...

Please do not flame, im' just trying to be as constructive as i can within the limit of my spoken english haha ! 

Have a nice day all ! 

[Noctoras 409]

It's always good to see the devs engaging with the community but I have some reservations about this "Community Combat Scrum". I don't believe that these big name streamers with have much valuable insight to give the devs, the instant gratification play style that is popular on twitch is completely at odds with the direction the game is supposedly taking (see the comments the devs made about coastal deathmatch when the CLE first dropped).

What kind of issues are important to these PvP focused players? I imagine all they'll want to talk about is desync.

 

This is what gives many of us here a big headache. It could easily sway DayZ into the wrong direction - making it fancy for streams and kills, but less functional as a sandbox. There is so many different guns in the game now, but too little apart from shooting. I honestly do not think that any PvP elements should in the focus of development these days - PvP is the only thing that works smoothly so far, with the natural consequences.

[joe_mcentire 2074]

It's always good to see the devs engaging with the community but I have some reservations about this "Community Combat Scrum". I don't believe that these big name streamers with have much valuable insight to give the devs, the instant gratification play style that is popular on twitch is completely at odds with the direction the game is supposedly taking (see the comments the devs made about coastal deathmatch when the CLE first dropped).

What kind of issues are important to these PvP focused players?

Would like to see Gews in there. Seems to know his stuff about guns and shooting and military in general.

[MrAerospace 87]

These guys are running a business. Let's not immediately jump to conclusions simply over the use of the word "combat." They are professionals, know what they're doing and will be walking into this project with specific goals and outcomes in mind. If this new method of community involvement doesn't prove to be fruitful, then that's that. It's not something to get upset about before it even happens.

Besides, who better to discuss combat related issues and questions than players who rack up countless hours in DayZ combat? You really think they wanna a pacifist's insight into violence? So long as it's not 15mins of players complaining about lag or desync, it might actually lead to better/new outcomes for the game, and then we all benefit. So here's to hoping and waiting.

[☣BioHaze☣ 7337]

So hopefully as a result of the combat scrum something will be done about weapon sway and breath control. 

 

In one of the interviews or play sessions Hicks said they would be specifically looking into sway and the hold breath mechanic soon.

[Coheed_IV 381]

Those 18yo will pick "the best game to date" - not the game which the eldery of that time will have the fondest memories of. And BI will not care about anything those 18yo buy - they've already surpassed their sales expectations.

 

Don't know. It's a weird situation. We'll just have to wait and see.

It has been a different kind of situation for sure, but all games are different.

 

I'll agree that they have to build the "best game" not the mod. BI has always cared about their player base and has supported them better than 99% of game studios out there.

 

Building the game to be fairly hack free and support modding is no easy task.

 

Enjoy your break. :P

[sausagekingofchicago 4711]

And those pictures don't have pistol spawns, so it's even more?

 

I would assume so as it's just showing rifles/shotties.

 

[jiggyjoe 43]

This is what gives many of us here a big headache. It could easily sway DayZ into the wrong direction - making it fancy for streams and kills, but less functional as a sandbox. There is so many different guns in the game now, but too little apart from shooting. I honestly do not think that any PvP elements should in the focus of development these days - PvP is the only thing that works smoothly so far, with the natural consequences.

Yep, exaclty what im' thinking !! You could express it better than i will ever be with the limitations of my english haha !!

But yeah, i have to admit that i truly don't understand why putting so much effort in the only aspect of the game that (Except the 7-8 bullets hit to die) works very well when this kind of effort could be more needed for the zeds problem, the camp lag, non-despawning items and such... I know PvP is a core element in the game, but im' just scared that the PvP oriented-work is made in detriment of the other aspects like the ones i mentionned earlier...

I don't know but, having 3 million copies sold tells me that financially all the ressources are there to at least, see constant improvements in the game when it comes to ALL it's core mechanics ! 

Right now, sadly, the game took a huge step back with 0.58 stable... I'll have, once more to take some time off and come back when acceptable changes will be made, appart from some pew pew, there is very little to try to ''Test'' at the moment ! 

[wasnu (DayZ) 392]

exp. servers online (4.2 MB update) and the "old" chars are alive, but camps are wiped.

 

good that my two toons always log out with an barrel in hands  :D

 

oops, wrong thread, sorry

Edited September 11, 2015 by wasnu

[SMoss 2101]

Hi there DayZ community... The post im' making here is not about complaning nor telling the devs what to do, but i gotta say i do have some concerns !

Seeing the devs plan that community scrum makes me wonder, are they still working on zombies ? Has any improvement been made on that level ? 

IMO, it is a core mechanic of the game, even more than PvP, back in the mods, you would see most of the time zombies before you even see / hear another player, i don't know if im' the only one, but id' personally think that it would be a better idea to gather all possible ressources to work on that zombie problem and THEN, move on with less-important stuff... 

We don't need to know ALL the details, but at least some updates like, we or we didn't see any improvements and still working on it would at least, ease some concerns, some friends i have that bought the game since the no-zombie patch (Kinda) already asked for a refund (Since DayZ is advertised as a game with zombies in it they are quite dissapointed that there are none of them) 

We all do appreciate that the dev team is including us in the process of shaping the game or at least, give our insights, but a priority list should be established, to at least, make sure the core mechanics of the game are in a working state before trying to add more guns, vehicles and clothes...

Please do not flame, im' just trying to be as constructive as i can within the limit of my spoken english haha ! 

Have a nice day all ! 

Having the community scrums does not at all exclude team members from working on the infected in the background. The amount of infected was cut way down a while ago due to server performance issues, as mentioned in our status reports. Also, there are many different tasks performed by numerous different team members. Being able to add more items does not mean that resources have been taken away from the team(s) that work on the infected.