Dwindling player base already

[TheYetiBum 790]

Firstly I love this game, even with reduced mechanics, items, button availability and bugs galore.

but today is the first day I loaded the game up and there hasn't been even 1 single full NL server all day!

even US has only one full server at the time of writing this, I understand that development takes along time & you can't click a magic button and add stuff back into the game. But this is the experimental build designed for game testing for bugs and balancing & if no ones playing it's gonna take even longer to gather the data and bug reports needed to   Add stability to the game, at this point if either suggest adding a handful of cosmetic clothing choices back into experimental to draw people back or remove 75% of the servers so people are forced into higher population servers. I know some people like low pop but that doesn't help stress test servers or the game. 

If it take another month to even get a controller update or any form of content update , going by recent player base figures there won't e anyone playing the game in a month

[Baker. 1484]

It's as though DayZ creates the same emotions in players regardless of platform, I was wondering how it would take for the Xbox folks to start the 'ERMAGERD DAYZ IS DYING!!11!" threads. What a a wonderful little sociological event. 

[TheYetiBum 790]

10 minutes ago, Baker. said:

It's as though DayZ creates the same emotions in players regardless of platform, I was wondering how it would take for the Xbox folks to start the 'ERMAGERD DAYZ IS DYING!!11!" threads. What a a wonderful little sociological event. 

True dat. I feel Like I'll be the only left playing soon lol, out of 7 friends who bought it I'm the only one who plays anymore. And after having the game freeze and crash on me in the inventory screen three times in a row on a half full server with a pretty much empty inventory I'm beginning to feel like I might be the idiot lmao

[Baker. 1484]

5 hours ago, TheYetiBum said:

True dat. I feel Like I'll be the only left playing soon lol, out of 7 friends who bought it I'm the only one who plays anymore. And after having the game freeze and crash on me in the inventory screen three times in a row on a half full server with a pretty much empty inventory I'm beginning to feel like I might be the idiot lmao

Yeah, its a weird little expermient they got going here. They do pretty good considering the resources the team has though. 

Edited October 16, 2018 by Baker.

[pilgrim* 3514]

1 hour ago, TheYetiBum said:

If it take another month to even get a controller update or any form of content update , going by recent player base figures there won't e anyone playing the game in a month

Check Steam tracker - on Saturday 13 Oct at 19:00  Central European Time (GMT + 1)  the"re were ZERO DayZ players online, Worldwide.  Unfortunately I logged in just too late to be the only person on the planet playing DayZ.

[awalsh47 200]

I find there's always a few 40 plus player NL servers and just stick to those

[Nayte 503]

We do have to take into account the casual style players who tilt the statistics early on when a game releases to a new platform (or in general).

Once DayZ filters them out the core player base remains. 

Not to mention the fact we can all rejoice as the cod players have moved on to bo4. \o/

Also, it’s the time of year kids are back to school, and us adults are busy adulting. Not sure how it is in NL, though servers in the states usually don’t pick up until the evening, and of course weekends have a number of full servers.

Quality over quantity!

[Dopplerman 55]

I knew from the start DayZ wouldn't do so good on xbox, regardless if there was bugs or not. Purely because of the fact that xbox players are lazy. They don't wanna loot around and meet people, they wanna find a gun as fast as possible (hense all the server hopping) and kill anyone they can find. Why do you think PuBG, Fortnite and Blackout are doing so well? DayZ will never die though, there's too many die hard fans including myself that want to see the game grow and become something amazing. I don't see it ever having a huge player base either though, until at least beta is released, and who knows when that will be.

[Lukemayhem 1]

Recent server timeout problems may be why lobbies seem empty. Also, I find it weird that the last patch has said it fixed timeouts. Which(for me atleast) were never happening until after the update? Now I get timed out even if im the only one in the server.

Last time it happened, the server didnt seem to have the rain approach as the day progressed. Then the server timed out, I jumped back in and the clouds started to form. So maybe the weather might be bugged?

[Man Parts 241 686]

Lol xbox players are lazy.

[Lexman61 78]

DayZ is a niche game on PC and will end up being a niche game on Xbox and PS4. Difficult and demanding survival games do not really appeal to large numbers of players.

BI decided to port the game from PC to console only taking into consideration hardware limitations of the latter without the intention of "adjusting or tailoring" the actual game play experience to suit what clearly is a different type of end user/gamer than on PC. Obviously a conscious choice on the part of BI to stay true to their DayZ principles of a "gritty, authentic, open-world survival horror hybrid-MMO (and very challenging), game".

But, ignoring the more "casual" nature of the player base on the console platform, does have its downsides. No need to start lengthy and somewhat academical  disputes about what the word "casual gamer" actually  means (plenty of good definitions out there). What we all do know and should recognize, is that, there ARE differences between the two groups which go much beyond just hardware and technicalities (no offense whatsoever intended). "Different strokes for different folks" (or customers) one might say.

Now, before some will cry foul! 

Nobody in their right mind thinks that the DayZ console version should mimic or adjust itself to COD, Battlefield, PUBG or to the more action filled horror survival console games, this is not the point. But unless you purposely want to limit your player base and earnings (BI is after all not a nonprofit organisation), than some changes should have been made to differentiate the game play experience from the PC version.

What actual modifications should have been implemented is up for debate. Let's see what direction this discussion takes.

 

 

[TheYetiBum 790]

14 minutes ago, Lexman61 said:

DayZ is a niche game on PC and will end up being a niche game on Xbox and PS4. Difficult and demanding survival games do not really appeal to large numbers of players.

BI decided to port the game from PC to console only taking into consideration hardware limitations of the latter without the intention of "adjusting or tailoring" the actual game play experience to suit what clearly is a different type of end user/gamer than on PC. Obviously a conscious choice on the part of BI to stay true to their DayZ principles of a "gritty, authentic, open-world survival horror hybrid-MMO (and very challenging), game".

But, ignoring the more "casual" nature of the player base on the console platform, does have its downsides. No need to start lengthy and somewhat academical  disputes about what the word "casual gamer" actually  means (plenty of good definitions out there). What we all do know and should recognize, is that, there ARE differences between the two groups which go much beyond just hardware and technicalities (no offense whatsoever intended). "Different strokes for different folks" (or customers) one might say.

Now, before some will cry foul! 

Nobody in their right mind thinks that the DayZ console version should mimic or adjust itself to COD, Battlefield, PUBG or to the more action filled horror survival console games, this is not the point. But unless you purposely want to limit your player base and earnings (BI is after all not a nonprofit organisation), than some changes should have been made to differentiate the game play experience from the PC version.

What actual modifications should have been implemented is up for debate. Let's see what direction this discussion takes.

 

 

 

The main issue my friends & I have had is that the games not difficult or hardcore in the slightest, the 0.63 build has too much food, water sources everywhere. Even on full pop servers you can be fully geared within an hour easily. No temperature effects or wetness to damage health. No brain prion and very limited effects for food poisoning. 

Obviously the games alpha and 0.63 build on xbox is the experimental build so Lots of items, mechanics & weapons are missing temporarily. So this easy mode version is to be expected.

i just feel that if the devs want to draw back players and retain the current player base they should test the beta build on console simultaneously with PC. Let's face it, when any game studio says something will be done in a month, what they realistically mean is three months. I'd rather play a broken messy beta build on xbox helping iron out bugs along with PC players ,rather than having to wait for the PC player base to test it for 6months which turns into 12months before we even get a sniff of new mechanics, items , etc.

we don't want EZ DayZ , we want a DayZ that's so busy kickin your ass that other players are background noise in a world trying to eat you.

 

[Derleth 1357]

6 minutes ago, Lexman61 said:

DayZ is a niche game on PC and will end up being a niche game on Xbox and PS4. Difficult and demanding survival games do not really appeal to large numbers of players.

BI decided to port the game from PC to console only taking into consideration hardware limitations of the latter without the intention of "adjusting or tailoring" the actual game play experience to suit what clearly is a different type of end user/gamer than on PC. Obviously a conscious choice on the part of BI to stay true to their DayZ principles of a "gritty, authentic, open-world survival horror hybrid-MMO (and very challenging), game".

But, ignoring the more "casual" nature of the player base on the console platform, does have its downsides. No need to start lengthy and somewhat academical  disputes about what the word "casual gamer" actually  means (plenty of good definitions out there). What we all do know and should recognize, is that, there ARE differences between the two groups which go much beyond just hardware and technicalities (no offense whatsoever intended). "Different strokes for different folks" (or customers) one might say.

Now, before some will cry foul! 

Nobody in their right mind thinks that the DayZ console version should mimic or adjust itself to COD, Battlefield, PUBG or to the more action filled horror survival console games, this is not the point. But unless you purposely want to limit your player base and earnings (BI is after all not a nonprofit organisation), than some changes should have been made to differentiate the game play experience from the PC version.

What actual modifications should have been implemented is up for debate. Let's see what direction this discussion takes.

To be fair, the purpose of the console versions (beyond increased revenue) is to meet the demand of console players who want exactly the type of game that DayZ is. More casual gamers try it and are puzzled by alien concepts such as no floating player names, squads, in-game map with built in gps etc etc, and so they quit. That is okay, DayZ is not for everyone.

Personally I believe this is the right way to go. Trying to compete with a never ending stream of shallow, aggressively marketed triple-A shooters would be doomed to fail, while at the same time alienating the players who want the "gritty, authentic, open-world survival horror hybrid-MMO". If DayZ stays true to itself it will gain a stable fan base on consoles too. My hope is that they will rethink the stance to not have cross play. I believe the advantage of M+KB vs Controller is greatly exaggerated, and the DayZ community would benefit from being unified instead of split in three parts.

I also dearly hope that they will consider offering successful mods on PC as DLC:s for console players, even if they can't have access to the actual modding.

[Derleth 1357]

4 minutes ago, TheYetiBum said:

I'd rather play a broken messy beta build on xbox helping iron out bugs along with PC players ,rather than having to wait for the PC player base to test it for 6months which turns into 12months before we even get a sniff of new mechanics, items , etc.

we don't want EZ DayZ , we want a DayZ that's so busy kickin your ass that other players are background noise in a world trying to eat you.

The first Xbox build was the same as the PC build then being stress tested, so Xbox actually had the current version before it went to experimental branch on PC. When the next content patch hits PC stress tests, I would expect that it is released on Xbox as quickly as they can get it ported, I very much doubt they will wait until it is pushed to PC stable.

[TheYetiBum 790]

12 minutes ago, Beavis3D said:

The first Xbox build was the same as the PC build then being stress tested, so Xbox actually had the current version before it went to experimental branch on PC. When the next content patch hits PC stress tests, I would expect that it is released on Xbox as quickly as they can get it ported, I very much doubt they will wait until it is pushed to PC stable.

The time scale wasn't touched on in the status report. When I hear a dev say 'as soon a possible after beta testing has begun on PC' I fear the worst. 

I will keep my fingers crossed, I'd settle for being able to button bind my own controller so I can hold breathe and free look right now.

[Derleth 1357]

28 minutes ago, TheYetiBum said:

The time scale wasn't touched on in the status report. When I hear a dev say 'as soon a possible after beta testing has begun on PC' I fear the worst. 

I will keep my fingers crossed, I'd settle for being able to button bind my own controller so I can hold breathe and free look right now.

The controller update will most likely come earlier since it is entirely Xbox-specific and sorely needed. No reason to bundle that with the content patch...

[Lexman61 78]

Both of you (TheYetiBum + Beavis3D), belong most likely to that smaller minority of players who appreciate and enjoy the more challenging difficulties that DayZ can and will offer compared to other similar titles. But, the fact that even within the more dedicated and specialized PC gaming community DayZ has become a niche game, says a lot about the probable future of this game on Xbox/PS4. 

Yes, there are some console players who might enjoy a game like DayZ on their platform but they will be a minority within a minority and, if you truly want the full DayZ experience, PC is always the better choice.

So this goes back to what I mentioned earlier about the more casual nature of console players. Why not strive for a potentially much larger player base on console - which I believe would be better in the long run for DayZ - rather then limiting yourself from the start by offering a game which will appeal to few.

In any case, even if the developers decided to "adapt" the DayZ gaming experience for the typical console gamers/customers, it would still offer a completely different and original game concept compared to the standard FPS and/or survival horror games they are used to. 

I'm afraid that the long time dwindling player count numbers from DayZ PC (https://steamcharts.com/app/221100), do not bode well for the console version.

 

Edited October 17, 2018 by Lexman61

[Derleth 1357]

20 minutes ago, Lexman61 said:

Both of you (TheYetiBum + Beavis3D), belong most likely to that smaller minority of players who appreciate and enjoy the more challenging difficulties that DayZ can and will offer compared to other similar titles. But, the fact that even within the more dedicated and specialized PC gaming community DayZ has become a niche game, says a lot about the probable future of this game on Xbox/PS4. 

Yes, there are some console players who might enjoy a game like DayZ on their platform but they will be a minority within a minority and, if you truly want the full DayZ experience, PC is always the better choice.

So this goes back to what I mentioned earlier about the more casual nature of console players. Why not strive for a potentially much larger player base on console - which I believe would be better in the long run for DayZ - rather then limiting yourself from the start by offering a game which will appeal to few.

In any case, even if the developers decided to "adapt" the DayZ gaming experience for the typical console gamers/customers, it would still offer a completely different and original game concept compared to the standard FPS and/or survival horror games they are used to. 

I'm afraid that the long time dwindling player count numbers from DayZ PC (https://steamcharts.com/app/221100), do not bode well for the console version.

 

Well the dwindling player numbers are not surprising considering the lengthy update and content droughts. At the moment the most die-hard players are as active as ever, some fooling around with modded servers, while everybody else are just playing other games and waiting for beta. If beta and 1.0 come without active players increasing tenfold then there might be reason to worry, but now I would have been surprised if numbers did not dwindle.

[Man Parts 241 686]

4 hours ago, TheYetiBum said:

 

The main issue my friends & I have had is that the games not difficult or hardcore in the slightest, the 0.63 build has too much food, water sources everywhere. Even on full pop servers you can be fully geared within an hour easily. No temperature effects or wetness to damage health. No brain prion and very limited effects for food poisoning. 

Obviously the games alpha and 0.63 build on xbox is the experimental build so Lots of items, mechanics & weapons are missing temporarily. So this easy mode version is to be expected.

i just feel that if the devs want to draw back players and retain the current player base they should test the beta build on console simultaneously with PC. Let's face it, when any game studio says something will be done in a month, what they realistically mean is three months. I'd rather play a broken messy beta build on xbox helping iron out bugs along with PC players ,rather than having to wait for the PC player base to test it for 6months which turns into 12months before we even get a sniff of new mechanics, items , etc.

we don't want EZ DayZ , we want a DayZ that's so busy kickin your ass that other players are background noise in a world trying to eat you.

 

Qft!

Lol DaeZ

[bent.toe 529]

23 hours ago, TheYetiBum said:

Firstly I love this game, even with reduced mechanics, items, button availability and bugs galore.

but today is the first day I loaded the game up and there hasn't been even 1 single full NL server all day!

even US has only one full server at the time of writing this, I understand that development takes along time & you can't click a magic button and add stuff back into the game. But this is the experimental build designed for game testing for bugs and balancing & if no ones playing it's gonna take even longer to gather the data and bug reports needed to   Add stability to the game, at this point if either suggest adding a handful of cosmetic clothing choices back into experimental to draw people back or remove 75% of the servers so people are forced into higher population servers. I know some people like low pop but that doesn't help stress test servers or the game. 

If it take another month to even get a controller update or any form of content update , going by recent player base figures there won't e anyone playing the game in a month

Just wait til 26th..... RDR2.

That Will surely empty most games servers.

[Los Bandito 29]

Its simple, once you are looted the game is boring and the servers are so empty I ran around the map for 3 hours in a mid pop server and didnt see anyone.

 

Dayz has gotten boring, unless theres new content i will no longer play this game.

[Tarkules 153]

Yep.

Getting attacked by wolves is fun now. Too bad I can't call them to play a little.

[Skruffy 167]

I play of the mindset where I want to keep my gear as long as possible and only lose it in a PvP encounter. There is only so many times I can run around city to city. Ive done what I can. I left as it cant sustain me for longer than what I already have done. To be fair, 150 hours on DayZ wasnt what I was expecting. I was hoping for more along the 400 hour mark by now. But I need more content before I come back.

My friend on the other hand, who suicides multiple times a day sometimes, and actively tries to talk to people even if she gets shots, still this is her exclusive game.

I think it is dependent on the roles you played, but i noticed this last week, around 2k players. And its going to continue to go down. There will be surges of people from time to time, but until the game becomes more complete, the xbox version is only going to sit between 1000-2000 people at a time. Most of which are in servers with less that 10 people.

[j prosper 6]

On 10/16/2018 at 10:45 AM, pilgrim* said:

Check Steam tracker - on Saturday 13 Oct at 19:00  Central European Time (GMT + 1)  the"re were ZERO DayZ players online, Worldwide.  Unfortunately I logged in just too late to be the only person on the planet playing DayZ.

ur a fool. steam tracker? this is xbox we are talking about. and the servers have not been even close to empty since initial preview launch.

[pilgrim* 3514]

8 hours ago, j prosper said:

ur a fool.

https://steamcharts.com/app/221100#7d

Was just trying some friendly conversation to make you all feel better about your lives
but yeah - I guess Xbox owners count (for something) too.. sorry, dude -  ya know ? A little weeny slip like ignoring Xbox could happen to anybody .

Still, like the big bad BI says:  its interesting to look at BOTH sided of the same game, and pick up info where you can.
Folk used to be able to work out from Steam how many copies of a game Steam had sold, total.  But since this year, looks like they put a stop to that.
(it's all getting big business now -  far too important for the players to know).

*

By the way - I'm JOKING about Xbox players. Just a little friendly JOKE from an old old PC dude, that's all. 
Would be interesting to KNOW how many copies sold, and how many players online, average.. but really.. WTH..

xxP

(& please please don't chase back over to my own half of the Blog - they is all crazy as coots over thar'  I swear)