Status Report - 13 Sept 2016

[SMoss 2101]

Contents This Week

• Dev Update/Hicks
• Community Spotlight

 

Dev Update/Hicks

Greetings Survivors,

Lets dive right into it and take a look at where we are with our milestone goals. After that we'll talk about some of the current top issues we are working on in prep for 0.61 experimental, and lastly we have a few new things on our Trello for you all.

Fair warning - text wise this is a brief status report - but we tried to also push in some stuff that is being worked on, if not specifically for 0.61.

0.61 Milestone Goals:

• Server Login Queue
  • Ready for experimental branch testing - no current issues preventing this at this time.
• Merge of New Audio Technology from Arma 3 Eden Update.
  • Technology successfully merged into DayZ branch. Ready for further testing on experimental branch.
• Update of Weapon Sounds for New Audio Technology.
  • All current firearms configured - Audio team is working on completing SFX for future firearms. In addition, this week several issues were encountered with impact noises on some weapons not operating properly, this issue is being addressed by the audio team as of the time of this report.
• Dynamic Spawning of Infected.
  • Gameplay Programmers are still working on fully plugging in animal spawns to this system. While this is ongoing, the design and gameplay programming teams have been discussing ways to evenly distribute dynamic spawns across all vilages and points of interest, and ways to provide a compelling experience without impacting the server performance budget during the lifetime of the server.
• Predators (Wolves)
  • Still cautiously optimistic here. However at this point it is looking like we *will* be testing wolves on some of the initial 0.61 experimental pushes to see if they behave and operate as expected in a live environment.

 

Beyond our defined milestone goals, we have several additional changes that are looking to be rolled into 0.61, lets take a quick look at those right now.

• Dynamic Shadows
  • Programmers from the Enfusion engine team have been working to resolve the last remaining issues encountered in internal testing with this. As of the current build in internal testing right now we still have a few small issues with light in some edge cases ignoring geometry, however this is looking really good for 0.61 experimental. Below you'll see an example of how this is looking right now, both in the Status Report and on our Trello.
• Network Synchronization Improvements
  • As Miroslav, our Lead Gameplay Programmer discussed in a previous Status Report - he has been working hard on improving our client/server synchronization in an effort to improve quality-of-life and reduce frustrating deaths and poor gameplay experiences due to client/server disagreements. Things are looking very, very promising. That said, as tends to happen in development, internal testing has encountered several issues that can potentially cause unexpected changes to player position and movement under less than ideal network conditions. As everyone that plays DayZ has different connection conditions, and communities are spread across the globe, ensuring that gameplay and network synchronization works properly under all reasonable pings and connection speeds is critical. So that said, the gameplay programming team and the quality assurance teams are working hand in hand to resolve this issue for 0.61 experimental.
• New Server Browser
  • Many players have reported large frame drops and client unresponsiveness in our legacy server browser (currently used in 0.60 stable branch), and due to that we have pushed up the merge of our new server browser to 0.61 in an attempt to address this sooner, rather than later. Keep in mind however, this is only the first iteration of this and some functionality will not be present or working entirely. However, functionality we fully expect the first iteration to be 1:1 with the current 0.60 server browser.

Currently, our QA Lead Ondrej (Andy) is tracking 16 must-fix bugs for 0.61, including but not limited to:

• Player Sounds significantly quieter than environment and AI
• Client crash after exiting
• Player position hitching under less than ideal network conditions (150+ms)
• Animation Issues related to swimming
• Certain walls and objects not displaying shadows at certain angles
• Characters getting stuck when climbing ladders
• Player to Player magazine capacity synchronization
• Item Duplication Exploit (Thanks to the new security feedback form!)
• Client crash related to connecting to server
• Characters stuck in weapon raised pose in certain conditions

We've updated our Trello with some new progress shots from the art team, and a preview video of the current status of dynamic shadows (see below!)

http://trello.com/c/GSZoLFyL/122-dynamic-shadows

- Brian Hicks / Creative Director

 

Community Spotlight

 

Thanks again for all the bug reports we've received from you all so far! Since noone likes a cheater, don't be shy to also report those security related issues that you come across. As mentioned a couple of weeks ago, we have a new task type in our feedback tracker which is specifically set up so that you can safely and securely report sensitive issues in DayZ. For more info on that, please have a look at the following link: http://dayz.com/blog/dayz-security-issue-report

Also, for those of you that have been having trouble finding supplies in Chernarus as of late, there is help to be found. MadMcardle has made a small guide on how you can go about getting food in 0.60:

On top of that; MadMcardle also has a pretty neat playlist containing useful guides for crafting different items such as the fireplace, the spear, and the improvised fishing rod for example. All good help for those that like to try and create their own gear and such: DayZ Crafting Guide

Well done, sir!

Header image credit: JøhnnY

- SMoss / Community Manager

[☣BioHaze☣ 7337]

Thanks devs, all!!

This wait is excruciating but I'm gutting it out, eyes on the prize!

Until then..... halp! D:

 

[St. Jimmy 1631]

Some people will likely miss this so I post it

https://trello-attachments.s3.amazonaws.com/547c4a954dad7ad76b9cb6a1/57c0b25c3f2de7ff0dbedcdb/60e4ce88a2b98d10f607ee302161ec34/Shadows.mp4

Dynamic shadows are working nicely!

[odin_lowe 3686]

Looking great! Still a few major fixes before 0.61 hit experimental, so keep it up fellas!! This is shaping up quite nicely!! Cheers!

[MadMcardle 175]

Thank you @SMoss for the spotlight today, it was totally unexpected but has really made my year! Lol. I moved over to PC gaming for DayZ last year and I can honestly say I have never loved a game as much and to get a mention like this makes it all worthwhile.

[Noctoras 409]

11 minutes ago, odin_lowe said:

Looking great! Still a few major fixes before 0.61 hit experimental, so keep it up fellas!! This is shaping up quite nicely!! Cheers!

No offence, but this in a similar wording is posted by the same few people over meanwhile more than 5 months from the last experimental. I'm far from this hype train by now, we're more than 9 months into 2016 and have seen ONE update so far. Yes, it's the enfusion engine and yes, some things take time. I just don't really feel confident for the whole project anymore.

Zombies are no threat since ages, vehicles will be removed now, survival has not seen anything new since farming, we basically have a survival game without survival, medical system is underdevelopped at best, skill system will only be a slight speed bonus, apart from PvP there currently is nothing and PvP mostly means a sniper bullet in your back. Yes, this is the negative side of things, but since I've only seen the "yay, hooray" comments so far, I feel the need to shed some light on the dark side of things. :)

Good night :P

[Arthur Dubrovka 376]

:/ thanx for those honest words. But this sounds as we have to wait another few weeks for new exp. push. I know... patience but phheew nocturas is right. One patch in nine months... common guys.

Edit: But I think it's the same for the devs right now. I love this game don't get me wrong. It has to be hard at this stage of development. Thank you guys for your hard work...

Edited September 13, 2016 by imunone

[Espa 711]

Timetable for .61, Devs? Any answer would be good. 

[zemos (DayZ) 9]

1 hour ago, St. Jimmy said:

Some people will likely miss this so I post it

https://trello-attachments.s3.amazonaws.com/547c4a954dad7ad76b9cb6a1/57c0b25c3f2de7ff0dbedcdb/60e4ce88a2b98d10f607ee302161ec34/Shadows.mp4

Dynamic shadows are working nicely!

LOL i was like, hmm what where that to miss! Anyway thanks, i did!

[blackberrygoo 1416]

1 hour ago, Espa said:

Timetable for .61, Devs? Any answer would be good. 

Yes I also would like to know , devs is it weeks or more in your opinion .... Less maybe ? Thanks for the work and answer . 

[philbur 476]

Easy guys....you know better than that.

The day they put it on the line by announcing a drop date for a build (give or take a day) is the day they return to legitimacy in my world at least.

Brian listed 16 "must-fix" items and a few seem pretty complex at this stage. I think that was his sneaky way of setting the tone for an October release.

I hope I am as wrong this time as I usually am!

Edited September 13, 2016 by philbur
because I can't spell

[odin_lowe 3686]

7 hours ago, Noctoras said:

No offence, but this in a similar wording is posted by the same few people over meanwhile more than 5 months from the last experimental. I'm far from this hype train by now, we're more than 9 months into 2016 and have seen ONE update so far. Yes, it's the enfusion engine and yes, some things take time. I just don't really feel confident for the whole project anymore.

Zombies are no threat since ages, vehicles will be removed now, survival has not seen anything new since farming, we basically have a survival game without survival, medical system is underdevelopped at best, skill system will only be a slight speed bonus, apart from PvP there currently is nothing and PvP mostly means a sniper bullet in your back. Yes, this is the negative side of things, but since I've only seen the "yay, hooray" comments so far, I feel the need to shed some light on the dark side of things. :)

Good night :P

I don't care for "hype trains" or whatever. I've got DayZ since it first came out, and was a DayZ mod player before that, and still is. 

I like DayZ, but I don't need DayZ, it's just a means of entertainment I find suited for me, so I couldn't care less if it took 10 years to complete, as currently I've had plenty of great moments in the game. It was well worth it's 24.99$ I paid when it came out.

I'm still looking forward to what's to come in the game, but even if it came down to being canceled and development stopped, I'd simply move on and remember good times I've had in the game.

People hype everything these days, and consume products like gluttons. Moderation makes you appreciate what you have. 

Good night.

[Noctoras 409]

1 hour ago, odin_lowe said:

II couldn't care less if it took 10 years to complete [...]

but even if it came down to being canceled and development stopped [...]

Seems we have different opinions on game development. That's legit, albeit I cannot see what makes it "take shape" and "come along nicely", if you basically only remotely care. But people see things differently.

However, coming aloing for me means something different than (I just quote someone from reddit now):

Quote

December 2015 "We're really hoping to release the Lil Bird for at least on experimental so players can give it a try."

May 2016 " Enjoy the new renderer!" No word on Helis on experimental

Current 2016 "Forget heli's; we added wolves! Well...shit, they don't really work in our internal builds, forget about helicopters, WOLVES!"

And by the way, vehicles will be removed with the new patch as well. Shaping nicely? Well ... matter of perception I'd say.

And if they ever want to make it in some sort of timeline, a lot of planned content is just going to go down the drain.

 

And for me, one of the worst parts in this SURVIVAL game is (I am lazy and go quote someone from reddit again)

Quote

Survival, at least against non players, is an absolute joke. Player interaction off the coast is about as infrequent as the patches the developers release to experimental [...]

There are little to none incentives to interact with other surivors aside from killing them for their own loot which 95% of the time is ruined or wasn't needed to begin with.

I agree with you on the money though. Timewise I definitely got my money's worth. This doesn't keep me from doubting the direction of and commitment to the game.

This game also serves a good purpose: It could stall this unhealthy early access concept, which came about us like a natural disaster. Many of these games show that this model doesn't really offer incentives for companies to keep comitted with huge resources. Understandably. For me, it most likely was my last Early Access game.

 

That said, there is a real good example of dev communication on Reddit for those who missed it (from Eugen) : http://www.reddit.com/r/dayz/comments/52lrz3/status_report_13_sept_2016/d7lgbqg

Definitely worth reading and whilst I do remain sceptical, I appreciate answers like this.

 

Edited September 14, 2016 by Noctoras

[odin_lowe 3686]

13 hours ago, Noctoras said:

Seems we have different opinions on game development. That's legit, albeit I cannot see what makes it "take shape" and "come along nicely", if you basically only remotely care. But people see things differently.

However, coming aloing for me means something different than (I just quote someone from reddit now):

 

Reddit is a source of poison and oppression. It's infection is worse than Chernarus'.

I'm looking forward changes to the engine like the new shadows, and new sound plugin. I've been playing DayZ for so long, that even small changes make a difference to me. I just don't take as seriously as many, since it's just a game. It's shaping up nicely, as the engine gets polished and defined as it's own, and not old legacy ArmA2 engine/code. If they remove vehicles because they don't even work properly, than it's far better than letting them sit around for nothing. Players currently run too fast, and never need to stop anyway, and they never needed vehicles to go from point A to B, so it's really just comes down to some whiny spoiled kids who wants more toys, but already have their room filled with toys.

Come on, no 2 games have the same development process.

I've tested/applied for early access games/alpha/beta for more than 75 games for the past 12-15 years. One of the first ones was the closed beta of Söldner:Secret Wars back in 2004. And since then I never stopped, and noticed that no two game development is alike.

After playing video games for 29 years, I don't follow hype trains and don't follow the young generation's trends of Facebook/Twitter/Instagram/Reddit of over-consumption.

Now take your negativity and gtfo.

You really don't seem to appreciate DayZ, or it's development, so what the hell are you doing here?? 

[Noctoras 409]

1 hour ago, odin_lowe said:

Now take your negativity and gtfo.

I'm not gonna go anywhere and am looking forward to your next chorus ... 29 years of game experience and still whining about different opinions on a game. Well then, I rest my case for now, not going to get into this kiddie flame stuff.

Edited September 14, 2016 by Noctoras

[odin_lowe 3686]

You shouldn't have quote my positive post in the first place if you didn't want replies. It didn't concern you in any way. You started this, so it's pretty good that you exit the way you came.

Case closed kid.

[odin_lowe 3686]

On 13/09/2016 at 1:17 PM, SMoss said:

Network Synchronization Improvements

• As Miroslav, our Lead Gameplay Programmer discussed in a previous Status Report - he has been working hard on improving our client/server synchronization in an effort to improve quality-of-life and reduce frustrating deaths and poor gameplay experiences due to client/server disagreements. Things are looking very, very promising. That said, as tends to happen in development, internal testing has encountered several issues that can potentially cause unexpected changes to player position and movement under less than ideal network conditions. As everyone that plays DayZ has different connection conditions, and communities are spread across the globe, ensuring that gameplay and network synchronization works properly under all reasonable pings and connection speeds is critical. So that said, the gameplay programming team and the quality assurance teams are working hand in hand to resolve this issue for 0.61 experimental.

 

Back on topic. Even though we find wolves, dynamic shadows, lights not going through walls anymore, or the new sound engine interesting, I can't wait to see how less "desync" we'll have.

[☣BioHaze☣ 7337]

Rereading this report is quite disheartening.

It looks like so much work is left to be done before we see experimental.

Holy shit.

Experimental is going to be heinously overpopulated again.

The login queues are going to need login queues for their login queues so we can log in while we log in.

There have been some extra time intensive changes in recent months and I'm trying be patient.

The trello page is my best source for a ray of hope when I'm feeling glum about DayZ dev.

I look at the pics and models and animations and I try to imagine them in game, working properly.

*You may need that biohazard shower one day.* Because after you go into the contaminated zone to get chopper parts, you will need that shower to not contract some infection.

^Ugh, this is what people are missing. A good example of how the game will change enormously. What we've been playing is a hodge podge bullshit, "here public fuck with this while we make the game", pacifier.

Hopefully, at least on servers with like minded people, there will be a lot less CoD/dick size battles and jag-off troll children bullshit.

/close vent

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