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Baty Alquawen

2016 In Review

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5 hours ago, ECO80X said:

if you add function ON\OFF HUD menu, it will be great. With new stamina andhealth bar DayZ looks like battlefield or CS or another arcade shooter, not survival!


Please leave profanity and vulgarity at the door and do not attempt to bypass filters.

As it has been stated countless times, the UI just like the hot bar will be togglable.

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9 hours ago, Hicks_206 (DayZ) said:


Please leave profanity and vulgarity at the door and do not attempt to bypass filters.

As it has been stated countless times, the UI just like the hot bar will be togglable.

Sorry for my lang.

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Great work over the 2k16 year devs ... now a pushy question : do you have a time frame of when we might see new animation system / player controller ? I can think of a dozen things that I want so bad that is tied in with that ....

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A great summary and thanks for all the hard work from the team. So much of that behind the scenes work going to come to fruition in 2017, can't wait!

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On 23-12-2016 at 10:12 PM, Tatanko said:

Not to plug myself, but for anyone interested in a recap of previous years to get a sense of development from beginning -> now, I did a 3-part series on this around the holidays last year. I'll put links below :)

 

Part 1: http://imgur.com/a/aEnbM

Part 2: http://imgur.com/a/naNwq

Part 3: http://imgur.com/a/Y0dZC

Nice read. Thanks.

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On 12/24/2016 at 10:29 AM, Hicks_206 (DayZ) said:


Please leave profanity and vulgarity at the door and do not attempt to bypass filters.

As it has been stated countless times, the UI just like the hot bar will be togglable.

I love DayZ, I have 1500+ hours into it.  I've bought copies for friends, it's my favorite game since Ultima Online but some of these changes worry me.  These are serious questions, I am not trying to be snarky so apologies if they come off that way at all.  

Why did the design team decide to do a 180 on the "no UI" goal?  Toggling it on/off isn't really a great compromise because you'll always be at somewhat of a disadvantage for disabling it.  Especially if it includes sound/sprint/blood notifiers, which it seems to.  One of the status reports said it was to be more friendly to new users, but what has changed in players over the past few years to warrant that sort of decision?  It seems to essentially say people are too dumb to figure it out and DayZ isn't about hand holding.

Similarly, why was so much effort put into the dynamic crosshair, which really dumbs down the experience significantly?  Most people aim from the hip now, even in your own/dev team videos you guys are using it.  How can complaints/tweaks to the third person camera be justified when this is as much, if not more of an issue (after all it affects first person just as much)?

Were no other options considered besides the stamina bar, which is an extremely annoying mechanic in these types of games (personal experience from multiple arma mods)?  In a game where so much running is necessary, stamina bars just don't feel good at all.  Personally I think a baseline constant speed, affected by weight would be a much better system.  With side effects of sway/breathing and other penalties for sustained sprinting.  Surely there are other alternatives as well than a straight stamina bar that are being considered?

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7 hours ago, Bororm said:

Why did the design team decide to do a 180 on the "no UI" goal?  Toggling it on/off isn't really a great compromise because you'll always be at somewhat of a disadvantage for disabling it.  Especially if it includes sound/sprint/blood notifiers, which it seems to.  One of the status reports said it was to be more friendly to new users, but what has changed in players over the past few years to warrant that sort of decision?  It seems to essentially say people are too dumb to figure it out and DayZ isn't about hand holding.

The desire among some of the DayZ community for very limited or even no UI is silly, IMO. The game needs to communicate a large amount of information to the player and it is often not practical to do that without UI elements. Wanting less UI is okay, but some take this much too far.

I don't think the new UI looks particularly distracting. No more so than the text reminders.

7 hours ago, Bororm said:

Similarly, why was so much effort put into the dynamic crosshair, which really dumbs down the experience significantly?  Most people aim from the hip now, even in your own/dev team videos you guys are using it.  How can complaints/tweaks to the third person camera be justified when this is as much, if not more of an issue (after all it affects first person just as much)?

That was a terrible change. The only purpose of the new reticle was making unsighted fire more accurate. And it is very accurate. Going back to the 'limited UI' thing, it also is more busy and visually distracting. Why did they switch from the center-fixed dot?

Even worse IMO were some textures I saw for different reticles, for example, a shotgun-specific reticle, wider and with a different shape than the rifle version. The reticle is there to give an idea of where your weapon is pointing when not using the sights, no? So why would a shotgun reticle be a different shape, why would it be larger? Pointing a shotgun is not inherently different than pointing a rifle. In fact, more so than most rifles, many shotguns are designed to be natural pointers (when combined with proper form). So what's with the larger reticle? In an 'arcade' shooter, go ahead—but it makes no sense when considering a simulation. I hope those various reticles are not implemented.

A reticle design should be somewhat logical, and should not allow unrealistic levels of accuracy.

7 hours ago, Bororm said:

Were no other options considered besides the stamina bar, which is an extremely annoying mechanic in these types of games (personal experience from multiple arma mods)?  In a game where so much running is necessary, stamina bars just don't feel good at all.  Personally I think a baseline constant speed, affected by weight would be a much better system.  With side effects of sway/breathing and other penalties for sustained sprinting.  Surely there are other alternatives as well than a straight stamina bar that are being considered?

I think the fact this is a game where so much running is necessary makes it all the more important that people be prevented from sprinting without end. No one complained about limited sprinting in the mod. People also want an extra burst of speed now and again, 'only one speed' doesn't seem like a great solution to me, then you have the Goldilocks problem, either too fast or too slow for a given situation. 

I somehow doubt we will be forced to walk (look at A3's fatigue/stamina changes...)
 

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14 hours ago, -Gews- said:

The desire among some of the DayZ community for very limited or even no UI is silly, IMO. The game needs to communicate a large amount of information to the player and it is often not practical to do that without UI elements. Wanting less UI is okay, but some take this much too far.

I don't think the new UI looks particularly distracting. No more so than the text reminders.

That was a terrible change. The only purpose of the new reticle was making unsighted fire more accurate. And it is very accurate. Going back to the 'limited UI' thing, it also is more busy and visually distracting. Why did they switch from the center-fixed dot?

Even worse IMO were some textures I saw for different reticles, for example, a shotgun-specific reticle, wider and with a different shape than the rifle version. The reticle is there to give an idea of where your weapon is pointing when not using the sights, no? So why would a shotgun reticle be a different shape, why would it be larger? Pointing a shotgun is not inherently different than pointing a rifle. In fact, more so than most rifles, many shotguns are designed to be natural pointers (when combined with proper form). So what's with the larger reticle? In an 'arcade' shooter, go ahead—but it makes no sense when considering a simulation. I hope those various reticles are not implemented.

A reticle design should be somewhat logical, and should not allow unrealistic levels of accuracy.

I think the fact this is a game where so much running is necessary makes it all the more important that people be prevented from sprinting without end. No one complained about limited sprinting in the mod. People also want an extra burst of speed now and again, 'only one speed' doesn't seem like a great solution to me, then you have the Goldilocks problem, either too fast or too slow for a given situation. 

I somehow doubt we will be forced to walk (look at A3's fatigue/stamina changes...)
 

 

I agree very much.

You are basically forced to hip-fire in a close-combat-environment because it gives you a significant advantage in terms of aiming and shooting faster than your opponent while being almost as accurate.

I killed a guy with hip-fire from like 80 metres, fired 4 shots. It's ridiculous.

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14 hours ago, -Gews- said:

The desire among some of the DayZ community for very limited or even no UI is silly, IMO. The game needs to communicate a large amount of information to the player and it is often not practical to do that without UI elements. Wanting less UI is okay, but some take this much too far.

I don't think the new UI looks particularly distracting. No more so than the text reminders.

That was a terrible change. The only purpose of the new reticle was making unsighted fire more accurate. And it is very accurate. Going back to the 'limited UI' thing, it also is more busy and visually distracting. Why did they switch from the center-fixed dot?

Even worse IMO were some textures I saw for different reticles, for example, a shotgun-specific reticle, wider and with a different shape than the rifle version. The reticle is there to give an idea of where your weapon is pointing when not using the sights, no? So why would a shotgun reticle be a different shape, why would it be larger? Pointing a shotgun is not inherently different than pointing a rifle. In fact, more so than most rifles, many shotguns are designed to be natural pointers (when combined with proper form). So what's with the larger reticle? In an 'arcade' shooter, go ahead—but it makes no sense when considering a simulation. I hope those various reticles are not implemented.

A reticle design should be somewhat logical, and should not allow unrealistic levels of accuracy.

I think the fact this is a game where so much running is necessary makes it all the more important that people be prevented from sprinting without end. No one complained about limited sprinting in the mod. People also want an extra burst of speed now and again, 'only one speed' doesn't seem like a great solution to me, then you have the Goldilocks problem, either too fast or too slow for a given situation. 

I somehow doubt we will be forced to walk (look at A3's fatigue/stamina changes...)
 

I think you're always going to need some UI, but the current system of keeping it mainly in the inventory screen is a lot better imo and the limited information provided also adds to the immersion.  I realize the new one is pretty similar to the mod, but what's really wrong with the current situation besides spammed texts, which is an easy fix of just not spamming the messages so much?  Sure the artwork for the statuses in the inventory screen could be slightly improved, but to put the information up constant and more in depth on your HUD just really starts to turn the game arcadey.

 I also just find it disheartening because of what a reversal it is on their original design philosophy.  Small changes that individually you can cope with, but when they begin to snowball is where things get screwy which is very much what is worrying me.

I guess I often forget that you couldn't constantly sprint at your very top speed in the mod, but there is at least another example of how it was done better.  Without a stamina bar, and the subtle difference of speed, it was hardly even noticeable.  As for "only one speed," maybe I wasn't quite clear.  The speeds would be essentially the same to what they are now (well after some potential nerfs), you'd still be able to walk/jog/sprint, but your sprint would be affected by your weight.   The differences wouldn't be terribly significant so you don't have people running at ridiculous speeds, but it would be enough that there would be incentive for scenarios like dumping your bag/gear if you're running for your life.  I know it's not a perfect idea, but I just think stamina bars are the laziest way to implement stamina ever.  And experience from arma 3 koth and other mods (I think exile?) just proves how incredibly awful it makes gameplay feel, when you're running kilometers with no real threat, but having to stop and lay down constantly to refill your bar or else jog at an awful pace.

I want the game to slow down, I really hate the current state of pvp because of the constant sprinting, but I just think the team can be more creative than that.  It's super disappointing.

Edited by Bororm

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33 minutes ago, Bororm said:

I think you're always going to need some UI, but the current system of keeping it mainly in the inventory screen is a lot better imo and the limited information provided also adds to the immersion.

I guess I don't see how a toggle-able, minimalist HUD is such a huge departure from this.  It's the same information, it removes the need for most, if not all of the text spam, and you can hide it.

You argued earlier that people who choose to hide it by default are at a disadvantage.  When you consider the kind of information on display, I really don't think that's the case.  It's not like you won't know the information the HUD provides whenever you want to - just bring it up and then hide it again.  It's not much different than pulling up the inventory screen except you don't have to opt in to all of the inventory information that you're not interested in at that time, plus it's more aesthetically pleasing (which granted is a matter of opinion: mine :).

Besides, if by hiding the HUD you become good at using the in-game cues to gauge aspects your status, then you may actually have the advantage over other players who have to glance at their HUD.

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37 minutes ago, sanguine00 said:

I guess I don't see how a toggle-able, minimalist HUD is such a huge departure from this.  It's the same information, it removes the need for most, if not all of the text spam, and you can hide it.

You argued earlier that people who choose to hide it by default are at a disadvantage.  When you consider the kind of information on display, I really don't think that's the case.  It's not like you won't know the information the HUD provides whenever you want to - just bring it up and then hide it again.  It's not much different than pulling up the inventory screen except you don't have to opt in to all of the inventory information that you're not interested in at that time, plus it's more aesthetically pleasing (which granted is a matter of opinion: mine :).

Besides, if by hiding the HUD you become good at using the in-game cues to gauge aspects your status, then you may actually have the advantage over other players who have to glance at their HUD.

 

If I'm honest, it's again more of the principle than the thing itself, though I think the stamina bar specifically has no place on the hud.  It remains to be seen just how much information the rest will give you, but if I can judge roughly what % hp/blood I have left that's also fairly significant.  But it again goes back to they have completely turned around on their original design philosophy, and for an incredibly lame reason.  The stated reason being that players, especially new, some how need more information/help which is exactly the same as saying they are dumber than before.  It's a common trend in all modern games, to dumb down the experience to appeal to a wider audience, and part of what made DayZ so appealing to me is that it broke away from that.  It's the snowball effect I spoke of, where you start with something like this, add in a dynamic crosshair (again a complete flip on original design), do constant camera tweaks and the game starts to become something else entirely.  If they can flip completely on those first 2 significant things, what's next?  When does picking up a map give me a mini map, or a compass adds one to my hud?  Even if still unlikely, it suddenly becomes not out of the question.

I try to avoid being a crazy conspiracy theorist, but it's borderline that all these changes aren't also exactly the kind of thing you see in console games, which by default need simpler/easier interfaces due to the control scheme.  We also know it's coming to console so it's hard not to draw some sort of connection.  Regardless if that's true or not (I don't really believe it), it's still a matter of dumbing down the experience.

Edited by Bororm

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5 minutes ago, Bororm said:

It remains to be seen just how much information the rest will give you, but if I can judge roughly what % hp/blood I have left that's also fairly significant.

I would be very surprised if the HUD showed this information.  I think it will show if you're regenerating or losing blood/health, but not the amount you have.  From what I've seen, the HUD will not give you any more information than you can already get from the inventory screen or text spam, except for the stamina bar, and stamina isn't really implemented, yet.

As far as your overall concern regarding the game being dumbed down, it's all just a matter of what you think DayZ is compared to what Bohemia thinks it is.  Obviously the point of the game is to be harsh and unforgiving, but that doesn't mean it can't be too much so.

I think, from what I've seen, their goal is to make the game difficult, but the game's difficulty should be as a result of the environment and other survivors - it should not be exacerbated by the game's own systems and mechanics.  If that means adding features to prevent this, then so be it.

I'm sure there will be mods that strip away some of these features.  It will be interesting to see if those mods gain any traction.

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8 minutes ago, sanguine00 said:

I would be very surprised if the HUD showed this information.  I think it will show if you're regenerating or losing blood/health, but not the amount you have.  From what I've seen, the HUD will not give you any more information than you can already get from the inventory screen or text spam, except for the stamina bar, and stamina isn't really implemented, yet.

As far as your overall concern regarding the game being dumbed down, it's all just a matter of what you think DayZ is compared to what Bohemia thinks it is.  Obviously the point of the game is to be harsh and unforgiving, but that doesn't mean it can't be too much so.

I think, from what I've seen, their goal is to make the game difficult, but the game's difficulty should be as a result of the environment and other survivors - it should not be exacerbated by the game's own systems and mechanics.  If that means adding features to prevent this, then so be it.

I'm sure there will be mods that strip away some of these features.  It will be interesting to see if those mods gain any traction.

I just don't know that I've ever even seen a post by players that was clamoring for more HUD before this, and you get a decent amount of feedback against it when it comes up.  I think the majority of people simply don't care either way, and I apologize if I wrongly put you in that group and respect your opinion if you really do want more HUD, but I believe you share that same attitude along the lines of "why not? looks ok to me."  Which I just don't find to be a great reason to devote time and energy into something, especially when it contradicts original goals and has wider implications.

The environment becomes easier with a HUD btw, the one shown tells you how visible/audible you are to zombies and lets you know exactly how much stamina you have to avoid danger.

 

Any ways, I don't want to clog this thread up any more.  We have differing opinions obviously, and I was just hoping Hicks or the devs could address some of my concerns by elaborating on the reasons for some of these decisions.

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5 minutes ago, Bororm said:

The environment becomes easier with a HUD btw, the one shown tells you how visible/audible you are to zombies and lets you know exactly how much stamina you have to avoid danger.

Yeah I could do without the stamina bar and definitely the audio meter.  I like the status trend icons, though.

6 minutes ago, Bororm said:

Any ways, I don't want to clog this thread up any more.  We have differing opinions obviously, and I was just hoping Hicks or the devs could address some of my concerns by elaborating on the reasons for some of these decisions.

Right on.  Happy New Year!

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2017 with a big bang, we need to leave 2016 alone and forget it existed, bad year for many countries.

Let the development take us to the future of a once great idea, theme, concept. It is looking rather nice the dayz environment, i am looking to the future.

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On 21.1.2017 at 6:24 PM, sneakydude said:

2017 with a big bang, we need to leave 2016 alone and forget it existed...

This, imo 2016 was the worse year in whole dayz development.

Looking forward to play the game when it`s done, but jeeze you guys take ages, i lost hope tbh.

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22 hours ago, Valdenburg said:

This, imo 2016 was the worse year in whole dayz development.

Looking forward to play the game when it`s done, but jeeze you guys take ages, i lost hope tbh.

Man van, we had such a great night last night. We went to war, defending riffy boat with 4 squads, while an onslaught of people rushed us. Ended up a full 3 hr event in the end. Took 3 days to plan it right, but in the end this is what dayz is about.

Not just war but survivor bands all trying to take over.

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Having to resort to "dynamic spawning" of zeds is supremely disappointing. 

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2 hours ago, klesh said:

Having to resort to "dynamic spawning" of zeds is supremely disappointing. 

This is one of the few major issues I have with DayZ.

For me it's not that they implemented dynamic infected spawning it's that it took so long for them to realize that they needed to use a dynamic spawn system which cost time developing said system.... Now if I see pop in of infected and empty cities from a distance in 1.0, I will be disappointed.

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On 2/15/2017 at 0:52 AM, ☣BioHaze☣ said:

This is one of the few major issues I have with DayZ.

For me it's not that they implemented dynamic infected spawning it's that it took so long for them to realize that they needed to use a dynamic spawn system which cost time developing said system.... Now if I see pop in of infected and empty cities from a distance in 1.0, I will be disappointed.

Wasn't there two methods not just static but dynamic?

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