First weekend playing and mixed opinion with a few questions for the expereinced players

[andysuter 40]

Im a new (mature UK) player, always fancied the game on pc but the reviews were always ‘it’s a dead game’ etc. When it came out on xbox I decided to go for it to play on my one X.

First weekend of playing it and im a bit mixed on it.

Things I like;

• Aside from lack of initial character customisation (more on that in the dislikes!), the range of options, clothing etc is great, even if they are just colour changes
• The map is huge and you can mix it with others in the larger cities or disappear off grid into the forests.
• There are some decent/friendly players (more on that in dislikes!)
• The tense experience of getting to a loot spawn point and hoping no one else is around

Things I dislike;

• The map is huge and without resorting to online maps, theres no way you are going to learn the map very soon.
• The majority of players are douchbags and KOS…. I mean im walking around not long after spawn with a kitchen knife and starter clothes and I get torn apart by someone with an assault rifle. Whats the point????
• The night is so black…. I thought I would use night to travel but theres no way of navigating at night.
• The perma death…. I get it, I really do as it adds to the tense feeling but with so many ways to die (mostly other players) I found myself stop caring what my starter looked like as it was going to die in an hour or so anyway.
• The serious bugs. – I managed to get 4 hours in with one character, looted a military base and got some good gear. I went to the middle of a forest to check my haul and wham ‘you are dead’. No warning, no sounds, full whites…. No one around. I actually gave up at that point. I was gutted.

Good experiences;

I did stumble into a power plant and got taken out by a guy in full camo gear. Screen went black and I came around on the floor, surrounded by 3 of them. Wasn’t sure what their plans were for me but it was quite fun. Unfortunately they didn’t realise I was bleeding out so soon pegged it. I could hear them cursing as I think it was going to be a good roleplay type moment. If those guys are reading this, hook me up (suter1972) as you guys were sound, (even though I did die!)

I have a few questions –

1. How long do your characters last? I have a feeling some last for days/weeks, given the amount of kit they have and others are like me and lucky to get past a few hours.
2. I think I need a group to run with. I like playing solo but its so hard and theres very little chance for roleplay moments as most players just KOS. (im learning that is actually a RP moment in itself!)

[aux7 234]

1 hour ago, andysuter said:

The map is huge and without resorting to online maps, theres no way you are going to learn the map very soon.

doesnt take too long to learn . .. some of us have been playing variants of the map for years because of the mod and arma2. The size adds to the experience

1 hour ago, andysuter said:

• The majority of players are douchbags and KOS…. I mean im walking around not long after spawn with a kitchen knife and starter clothes and I get torn apart by someone with an assault rifle. Whats the point????

 

stuff happens, adds to the experience. it would truly be boring without that edge. That and they prefer banditry to looting maybe. Dont really know, I never managed to talk to one. Most times they start shooting or chasing on sight (when I dont have a gun, I run. So far I havent killed a player  . ) . . . no discussion

 

1 hour ago, andysuter said:

• The night is so black…. I thought I would use night to travel but theres no way of navigating at night.

 

I do most of my long distance travelling at night. With the new nightlight its become even easier .. . just not so good for hiding in trees (tree lights up like a christmas tree (IMO))

1 hour ago, andysuter said:

• The serious bugs. – I managed to get 4 hours in with one character, looted a military base and got some good gear. I went to the middle of a forest to check my haul and wham ‘you are dead’. No warning, no sounds, full whites…. No one around. I actually gave up at that point. I was gutted.

 

if you think it was a bug, report it . . .

I am on pc so it wasnt me in the power plant, also I tend to live in the woods

character life depends, the server I am on had a wipe recently so I had to start from scratch . . .died to kos (as a fresh spawn) and am now on the path back to a good status .. . but before that it was easily a month. You just take it as it goes

The game is one of those vegemite moments, you either love it or hate it .. ..

[amadieus 316]

2 hours ago, andysuter said:

The serious bugs. – I managed to get 4 hours in with one character, looted a military base and got some good gear. I went to the middle of a forest to check my haul and wham ‘you are dead’. No warning, no sounds, full whites…. No one around. I actually gave up at that point. I was gutted

You got one-shotted. With instant deaths you don't hear the gun shots on some occasions. It feels strange when it happens, I had this experience as well. You just stare at the screen with a big what and how feeling.

[aux7 234]

3 hours ago, andysuter said:

• The serious bugs. – I managed to get 4 hours in with one character, looted a military base and got some good gear. I went to the middle of a forest to check my haul and wham ‘you are dead’. No warning, no sounds, full whites…. No one around. I actually gave up at that point. I was gutted.

 

 

1 hour ago, amadieus said:

You got one-shotted. With instant deaths you don't hear the gun shots on some occasions. It feels strange when it happens, I had this experience as well. You just stare at the screen with a big what and how feeling.

I tend to agree with amadieus, but it has never happened to me . . .. . yet

Edited May 7, 2019 by aux7

[andysuter 40]

58 minutes ago, amadieus said:

You got one-shotted. With instant deaths you don't hear the gun shots on some occasions. It feels strange when it happens, I had this experience as well. You just stare at the screen with a big what and how feeling.

If that's what happened, im ok with that. Id rather be taken out by a player than it being a game breaking bug like that. Just seemed strange that I was in the middle of a forest and it happened, no noise, nothing. It must have been some crack shot.

[pilgrim* 3514]

after a while you realise the map spits up into definite  areas, and it becomes much easier to find your way around - for instance "the coast road" is the most obvious one.. north end, south end, the road junction to Berezino (the orchards).. the two big cities, the wrecked cargo ship, the factory with the box girder railway bridge,  the islands, the quarry,  the damned village police station that everyone loots,  the 2 obvious routes inland (to the "midlands") and where they take you, the tower blocks on the hill, the great north road from east to west up towards the top of the map (if you are going north you cant miss that - if you are going east you cant miss the sea and the coast road.).. Then htere is the whole valley system south and west of the SW airfield.. if you follow those valleys south they bring you to the SE corner of the map.. there are various towns camps areas rivers, in that region e.g. "the far west camp"  - you soon get a sense for the lie of the land..  rail tracks are also a good method for getting your sense of direction, if you have an idea where the forks are and what key places are located along them.
taking shortcuts and crossing country you find villages and spot landmarks, you find places you didn't expect (but you remember next time)  - also a number of places like Green Mountain you cant ever mistake them again when you have seen them once.. and they show up from far off..   if you come across a medieval fortress on a hill (for instance) you dont forget it - and it shows up from pretty far away in various directions.. 

A compass is useful (makes life really easy) 
Binocs can be useful for overwatch on an area or a town, see what's going on (sitting in cover on a hillside for 10 mins you sometimes see amazing things..)  - you can also use a rifle scope with no rifle, to magnify the distant scenery.. so it's useful to carry one, even if you don't have a weapon for it. 

Myself, I call up the iZurvive DayZ map BEFORE I play, (I already know know where I logged out last time), so with the map open it's kind of like a mission briefing.  - I check out what Ive decided to do, pick an objective for the session.. whatever I feel or need   -   then put the map away, don't use it in game,  and just navigate by what I remember. 
Hell, why not ?  
Use the sun - it rises and sets exactly where it should in the real world, at Noon it is overhead but exactly SOUTH of you  (because you're in the Northern Hemisphere) .. so if you know how long a day is on the server you can navigate by your own shadow, pretty easily, from Sunrise to Sunset..   just remember the sun moves faster than it does in real life.    Even in cloud or rain you can get some faint  shadow off trees etc.. so when you're totally lost, at least you know you''re going in generally the right direction.  Easiest survival technique if you have NO idea where you are is head East until you reach the sea, forage on the way.. sooner or later you' will realise where you are even before you reach the coast.

At night there is the POLE STAR.. (if you can see it) .. it is there where it should be. Not very bright and often obscured, but, hell -  IRL it's the same.. 

Also (important) you soon get a feel for the places EVERYBODY hangs out - the danger places and routes - and you can avoid those, - or overwatch them - or use stealth and cunning if you are looking for trouble. In towns are plenty of places to hide and dodge when you know the back alleys, & the roofs, the wall angles, the houses with two doors,.

Or keep 20 yards off the side of the road in the trees when you're traveling.. you'll  often see other players who don't even notice you. 

Unless you're simply looking for fast gear-up & straight PvP kicks, you soon realise it is the other SMART players you have to look out for, the CRAFTY folk .. and some of them can be REALLY interesting.. 

Enjoy

[aux7 234]

16 minutes ago, andysuter said:

If that's what happened, im ok with that. Id rather be taken out by a player than it being a game breaking bug like that. Just seemed strange that I was in the middle of a forest and it happened, no noise, nothing. It must have been some crack shot.

at a guess, I would say they were directly behind you . . . they saw you loot the base and thought, lets see what hes got . ..

every now and then I tend to do a "crazy ivan" . . . to check for such followers

[Man Parts 241 686]

4 minutes ago, aux7 said:

at a guess, I would say they were directly behind you . . . they saw you loot the base and thought, lets see what hes got . ..

every now and then I tend to do a "crazy ivan" . . . to check for such followers

You have to stay on a swivel at ALL times. This is very true, OP. 

 

[GolemNo9 51]

Check out dayz.xam.nu , it's a way better detailed satellite map in my opinion that allows you to add what type of land Mark's you wish to see. Being able to to so allows you to travel just by using natural land features. For example I am able to travel at least half the map just by using natural waterways as limiting boundary features when heading in certain directions. The same goes for railroads. You can travel on them while looking for Venetian features in towns like cranes and churches to help give you a que when you should turn off and head in another direction. That map I mentioned also allows you to place a line that will tell you the distance and actual direction when you have a compass like go northwest at 317degrees for 1740 meters. 

[Nayte 503]

There’s absolutely no shortage of kos players. There are however very solid and unique moments in between those instances, that makes dying frequently feel worthwhile.

Dying constantly is something one has to not only expect, but accept. Once you become one with that fact it makes losing a decked character sting a little less each time.

Personally, I’ve found that when I open up a dialogue with another player, typically (and I use that word lightly), folks have been receptive to being friendly, when they otherwise may have kos. Some have said that to me shortly after speaking to them, mentioning if I didn’t say anything they would’ve shot.

A big issue I’ve found is that most players who are running with another tend to be in a party chat, and usually don’t want to take the risk of switching to game chat, which is a bit clunky currently. Be weary of approaching more than two players..

@pilgrim* gave you some sound advice when it comes to navigation. The more time you put in, the more familiar and easier it’ll become. I can’t stress the use of iZurvive enough.

As far as survivability goes, it really comes down to a number of factors. What your play style is like, do you want mil grade gear, do you want to try and interact with others or become a hermit in the woods, and of course luck, among many others. I’ve had characters last from 15 seconds (watch out along the coast road by Elektro) up to around 50 hours of play time.

I’m usually on quite late EST if you’d like to team up some time, feel free to message me.

[Stagman70 210]

11 hours ago, andysuter said:

How long do your characters last?

My longest was about a month, and that was with me playing about 3 hours a night during the week and, I hate to admit it, about 16 hours on the weekends (this WAS during last winter, so it wasn't like there was anything else to do anyway).

 

11 hours ago, andysuter said:

I think I need a group to run with

DayZ is DEFINITELY better running with a friend/friends.

[Zalic 41]

This games just not for you. Stick to solitare.

[andysuter 40]

10 minutes ago, Zalic said:

This games just not for you. Stick to solitare.

Glad you took time out of your busy day to provide such a helpful reply. Nice one 👍

[Zalic 41]

Its usually the last half hour of my day 🙂 all jokes aside maybe you ought to just play a little more. The best part of the game is it's a choose your own adventure. For me it's finding dry back packs and a berrel on different parts of the map. Then i Burry the packs with ammo, guns and a gillie inside. (Gillie supplies are an adventure in and of itself) i put food, water, military clothing and lesser supplies in a well hidden berrel around the same area but not close by to the packs. Then i explore the area for a few days and see what i could find. It helps me to learn the map. And if i die i always have plenty of stashes to come back to. And trust me plenty of crazy stuff happens while doing all that. Ive had run ins with ppl and creatures. Some good and some very bad. I play on WD4251. Ive also looked past all the glitches, dupers, lag and other bad stuff that plagues the game. Ive played it since game preview and have grown used to it. Good games take time to perfect and i trust all will right in time. Ahmen.