De-Evolution of the Human Race

[apolyonic 0]

De-Evolution of the Human Race

Recently I've been nothing but murdered in cold blood by other survivors. Multiple times. Save one experience.

Since this game is a apocalyptic scenario where surviving is the most important thing. Do whatever you have to do to survive. I've been playing for a couple days now. And I've only been able to make one friend who didn't immediately shoot me on sight. That is saying a lot for the human race as a whole. That in an end world event, it would be nothing but murder to the few survivors left.

I am a really nice guy in the real world. And the actions up to this point that I've taken in the game reflect that. In game I help people, and I don't kill others. But, every time (except for one) I've been murdered in cold blood. Not even aiming at the person, sometimes I didn't even have a weapon.

Can we call this game an experiment to see the ugly underbelly of a world gone infected? So I'm asking the community as a whole, to help me out here. Is every time I run into someone else in this game going to end up in death? (Can we see the statistics Rocket to suggest otherwise?) What course of action do you recommend in order to not be killed by other survivors. Avoid them at all costs? Shoot first? I have a hard time believing that I should Kill on Sight everyone I meet...

What do you do?

Discuss.

P.S. Does this bring to light the darkest of animal instincts in humans? Rocket has created a mod-game where we can use our fight or flight mechanics. And quite honestly, its depressing.

I would really hate to see something that could have rewarding experiences end up in me getting murdered and the entire community playing devolve into killing EVERYTHING that moves. Treat survivors as super deadly zombies?

=US 50 Seattle 14= Expect a Bad Day

[JustThatEpic 72]

If you've ever watched SideStrafe's DayZ commentaries, he says in one:

"Humans are complete jerks when their own lives aren't at risk"

I think that defines the situation pretty well.

[Techercizer 82]

This has nothing to do with evolution. You either have no idea how that works, or are willfully perpetuating ignorance via disinformation.

[DayZPvP.com 143]

In this game the natural human elements of fear, uncertainty, and doubt are prevalent. Combine those three with the idea that your "life" is digital and holds no real consequences for your actions. This makes people do things they would not do.

Sprinkle in liberal amounts of anonymity due to it being on the internet, and add a dash of penis envy and you have DayZ!

[apolyonic 0]

This has nothing to do with evolution. You either have no idea how that works' date=' or are willfully perpetuating ignorance via disinformation.

[/quote']

I'm not telling him how to develop a mod. I'm just asking how to cope best with this pathetic behaviour

---

Is it me who fails to realize that I should just shoot to kill every time and stop being a nice guy? Its just sad to think that way.

[ZedsDeadBaby 2287]

Am I inhumane if I block your shot during a game of basketball? Or box you out and get a rebound you were going for?

Am I inhumane if I distract you by endangering your queen with my bishop, only to advance with my rook and checkmate you?

Am I inhumane if I take advantage of your taking that last corner slowly in order to pass you on the inside and win the race?

DayZ is designed to pit us against each other. Tactical combat against human opponents is as important a part of the game as socialization, exploration and gathering of survival resources. You can no more call my humanity into question for shooting you in DayZ than you can for calling a fake punt in a football game.

Ruthless PvP is an essential part of the game.

Learn to enjoy it along with all the other parts.

[Techercizer 82]

This has nothing to do with evolution. You either have no idea how that works' date=' or are willfully perpetuating ignorance via disinformation.

[/quote']

I'm not telling him how to develop a mod. I'm just asking how to cope best with this pathetic behaviour

And from that non sequitur, I'm going to guess it's the former.

[apolyonic 0]

This has nothing to do with evolution. You either have no idea how that works' date=' or are willfully perpetuating ignorance via disinformation.

[/quote']

I'm not telling him how to develop a mod. I'm just asking how to cope best with this pathetic behaviour

And from that non sequitur, I'm going to guess it's the former.

Thanks for the help.

-.-

[frydspl33n 2]

De-Evolution of the Human Race

Recently I've been nothing but murdered in cold blood by other survivors. Multiple times. Save one experience.

Since this game is a apocalyptic scenario where surviving is the most important thing. Do whatever you have to do to survive. I've been playing for a couple days now. And I've only been able to make one friend who didn't immediately shoot me on sight. That is saying a lot for the human race as a whole. That in an end world event' date=' it would be nothing but murder to the few survivors left.

I am a really nice guy in the real world. And the actions up to this point that I've taken in the game reflect that. In game I help people, and I don't kill others. But, every time (except for one) I've been murdered in cold blood. Not even aiming at the person, sometimes I didn't even have a weapon.

Can we call this game an experiment to see the ugly underbelly of a world gone infected? So I'm asking the community as a whole, to help me out here. Is every time I run into someone else in this game going to end up in death? (Can we see the statistics Rocket to suggest otherwise?) What course of action do you recommend in order to not be killed by other survivors. Avoid them at all costs? Shoot first? I have a hard time believing that I should Kill on Sight everyone I meet...

What do you do?

Discuss.

P.S. Does this bring to light the darkest of animal instincts in humans? Rocket has created a mod-game where we can use our fight or flight mechanics. And quite honestly, its depressing.

I would really hate to see something that could have rewarding experiences end up in me getting murdered and the entire community playing devolve into killing EVERYTHING that moves. Treat survivors as super deadly zombies?

=US 50 Seattle 14= Expect a Bad Day

[/quote']

It has gotten to the point that I must shoot everyone I see. Because not only does everyone shoot in cold blood, they fake friendship and stab you in the back. I now resort to being as quiet around people as possible and never trusting a thing that moves.

[apolyonic 0]

*edit clean up

It has gotten to the point that I must shoot everyone I see. Because not only does everyone shoot in cold blood, they fake friendship and stab you in the back. I now resort to being as quiet around people as possible and never trusting a thing that moves.

I would just really hate to have my game-play come to this. Since I really enjoy interaction with other players, (The good kind) lol.

[ZedsDeadBaby 2287]

But the behavior that you have in game does reflect on the type of people playing?

I believe it draws some interesting behavioral studies. The effects of the anonymity of the internet and human behaviour.

I'm not sure it does. At least, not in the way you imply.

If I break down what I spend my time doing in DayZ, the main activities look like this: traveling to meet up with friends, gathering vehicle parts to repair vehicles, setting up camps to store excess equipment, gathering basic survival supplies, checking vehicle spawn locations, and searching for crashed helicopters for high-value military loot.

None of these activities on their own or in combination are particularly thrilling. With a partner or two (I never play alone) zombies can be easily dealt with and now that I know the map just getting around successfully is no longer a great challenge.

So why do I continue to play DayZ hours a day, every day, over 500+ hours in game already? Well, because each and every one of those activities is made incredibly intense, stressful and emotionally charged because I know at any moment my "plan" could be interrupted by an enemy player who has other things in mind for my evening.

So why would I be angry with these people? Why should I hold ill-will towards them when they are the very people who make the things I do in the game interesting and fun? The reason I need powerful weapons, trusted friends, intimate knowledge of the map terrain and a keen understanding of the effective ranges and behaviors of various weapons is because these people exist and I have to deal with them occasionally. They are why the game is fun. They make DayZ what it is.

You should be thanking them, not decrying their existence and calling into question their humanity and "treatment of other people."

If dying "ruins your fun" or spoils the game for you, then I submit that you're just not quite thinking of DayZ in the right light. Dying is part of the fun, and the threat of death is the soul of DayZ's intensity and challenge.

Still no suggestions on how to cope with this though. =\

How you deal with it depends on what your goals are.

I suggest finding at least one trusted friend to play with. Preferably 2-3. If you don't have any friends in real life who are playing the game, try to find a clan recruiting here on the forums, or look for servers with active Teamspeak channels and join those. Playing in a small, tactical team and cooperating is the single best thing you can do to increase your chances of survival.

If you just want to survive as long as possible, then I reccommend a strategy of tactical avoidance. Scout ahead, remain aware, and if you spot players simply stay put and quiet and let them pass and go on their way. 90% of PvP situations can be avoided entirely just by staying where you are and not exposing your position to players.

Read my treatise on the groundhog here for more information on the value of awareness and avoidance-style game play.

But, that's not the only way. You can take a much more direct approach and try to eliminate your competition. Take the war to their soil. Find their camps and raid them. Steal their stuff. And if you see them, put holes in them. It's a more dangerous style, but it works too.

To each their own in Chernarus.

Best of luck out there, mate.

[LaurenDanger 100]

Why does "Ruthless" PvP have to be part of it? PvP I get, but why ruthless? I am still holding on to my ideal of not shooting first and will keep doing that.

The best way to win a fight is to avoid the fight in the first place. That's how I'm going to play it. Will I die a lot? Sure! Will I care? Probably not. Loot respawns, and so will I. Just because other players want to be jerks doesn't mean I have to play it the same way. ;)

[Sonblade (DayZ) 11]

...never trusting a thing that moves.

Kill da wabbit, kill da wabbit!

[Jack Lz 24]

There are multiple posts on this subject, Bandits will be bandits, some people will panic and shoot first, and some will walk away.There are people who are setting up trading posts and medics who will come to you to heal you, all without direct assistance from the game.

And to quote zeds posts

"Am I inhumane if I block your shot during a game of basketball? Or box you out and get a rebound you were going for?

Am I inhumane if I distract you by endangering your queen with my bishop, only to advance with my rook and checkmate you?

Am I inhumane if I take advantage of your taking that last corner slowly in order to pass you on the inside and win the race?

DayZ is designed to pit us against each other. Tactical combat against human opponents is as important a part of the game as socialization, exploration and gathering of survival resources. You can no more call my humanity into question for shooting you in DayZ than you can for calling a fake punt in a football game."

I would go a little further and say when i play real money poker i cannot feel sorry for my opponent,and day z portrays that same feeling in the game.

[ZedsDeadBaby 2287]

Why does "Ruthless" PvP have to be part of it? PvP I get' date=' but why ruthless?[/quote']

What other kind of PvP is there?

Killing for survival is not really legitimate. There are always safer ways to acquire the basic necessities of survival such as hunting game and visiting remote lakes for water.

Killing for "loot" is likewise unwise. Crashed helicopters are not difficult to locate, and they have all the loot you could ever want and they don't shoot back at you!

Killing in self-defense is forgivable, I assume? But self-defense implies self-offense. You must have an aggressor attacking you in order to defend yourself, so the only "kind and gentle" form of PvP is predicated on the existence of the ruthless sort.

When I kill players in the game, I do it because it's incredibly thrilling. Pitting my strategy and intellect against another human (or a group of them!) and emerging victorious gets my heart racing in a way that facing off against scripted AI never could. I'm not doing it to survive or steal their items, I'm doing it because squeezing the trigger spreads a grin across my face like butter on hot toast.

The best way to win a fight is to avoid the fight in the first place. That's how I'm going to play it. Will I die a lot? Sure!

Actually, you will probably survive longer than anyone else if you truly take that approach. Despite the joy I take in it, I also tend to avoid combat because unless I am absolutely sure I have the upper-hand, engaging is not strategically justifiable.

I have survived for 18 and 22 days respectively on my last two survivors, and had a partner make it to Day 40 before meeting a rather unfortunate end.

It sounds like you and I play the game in much the same way, but just have a slightly different take on the value of PvP in the process. ;)

[apolyonic 0]

Thank you Zed for helping have insight on these things. It helps me understand the motivation behind the actions. I've never really gotten into pvp in any game where it is an option. If I'm forced to than I will and I will enjoy it. I never said dying made me mad or angry at another player. I was just not understanding the motives. I have figured out that my biggest issue is not playing with someone. I have 5 and soon 6 friends that play. But not together due to time. I guess I will avoid other players like the plague. Its nice to see where the community stands on this though. Thank you everyone for your input. :)

[LaurenDanger 100]

[

What other kind of PvP is there?

It sounds like you and I play the game in much the same way' date= but just have a slightly different take on the value of PvP in the process. ;)

we do play the game in a similar way, except for that one difference. It makes sense, though one missed step and it's sniper's bullet to the head for me, as I have learned.

There are other kinds of PvP. What makes sense would be a tactical style, as in, someone is getting too close. Or an aggressive style, you'll track someone for a minute and if they might have something useful, you'll kill to get it.

Ruthless is kill everything, even of the player is not running toward you. Anyone who likes to camp and snipe would be ruthless, but others would be aggressive or tactical.

I might turn into a tactical PvP player if I ever get a decent set up of gear. Which might mean having to play more than four hours a week.

[sfeza 19]

In real life situation 99% of people playing this game would be dead in the first 10 mins. Probably would faint if they saw blood and zombies would eat them unconscious.

[Survivor-Kyle 148]

De-Evolution of the Human Race

Recently I've been nothing but murdered in cold blood by other survivors. Multiple times. Save one experience.

Since this game is a apocalyptic scenario where surviving is the most important thing. Do whatever you have to do to survive. I've been playing for a couple days now. And I've only been able to make one friend who didn't immediately shoot me on sight. That is saying a lot for the human race as a whole. That in an end world event' date=' it would be nothing but murder to the few survivors left.

I am a really nice guy in the real world. And the actions up to this point that I've taken in the game reflect that. In game I help people, and I don't kill others. But, every time (except for one) I've been murdered in cold blood. Not even aiming at the person, sometimes I didn't even have a weapon.

Can we call this game an experiment to see the ugly underbelly of a world gone infected? So I'm asking the community as a whole, to help me out here. Is every time I run into someone else in this game going to end up in death? (Can we see the statistics Rocket to suggest otherwise?) What course of action do you recommend in order to not be killed by other survivors. Avoid them at all costs? Shoot first? I have a hard time believing that I should Kill on Sight everyone I meet...

What do you do?

Discuss.

P.S. Does this bring to light the darkest of animal instincts in humans? Rocket has created a mod-game where we can use our fight or flight mechanics. And quite honestly, its depressing.

I would really hate to see something that could have rewarding experiences end up in me getting murdered and the entire community playing devolve into killing EVERYTHING that moves. Treat survivors as super deadly zombies?

=US 50 Seattle 14= Expect a Bad Day

[/quote']

I think it's important to keep in mind that most players of the game have no imagination. That is why there are so many "lol DayZ is boring now" threads. If you put them in front of a computer, give them a first person view, and a weapon, they will play it as a FPS. It's not a comment on human nature, just learned behavior.

[Koori 0]

It's really saddening that shooting on sight has became a standard behaviour. Most people play dayz not as simulator but just another shooter. They don't connect their usual morality with game world.

I think that the main reason people are shooting each other so eagerly is that this is the main thrill of this game. Zombies can be easily dealt with even solo. You are only "afraid" of them just after respawn when you have no means of defending yourself and healing your wounds.

I've been thinking alot about what can be done prevent this KOS way of thinking and only thinigs I can think of are: Making zombies A LOT harder. So hard that it's very unlikely that you will survive the encounter (after you aggroed them) when playing solo. The other thing is making simple wounds more of a concern. Not something that you can heal in seconds.

As you can see both changes mentioned above would make the game as a whole a lot harder to the point that playing solo would be pretty much impossible. While it would force people to stop shooting each other and start working together it would also make many players (me, as a soloer, included) "lives" very hard. Rocket said that its anti-game. Who knows then :-)

[LaurenDanger 100]

In real life situation 99% of people playing this game would be dead in the first 10 mins. Probably would faint if they saw blood and zombies would eat them unconscious.

Now I want zombies to be real, I'd finally be part of the one per cent! Okay I am kidding, I do not want there to be any kind of apocalypse or society changing event. But I do have some emergency preparedness supplies and I am sure I would last a few days at least. I'll die when I get bored and go out hunting zombies to solve the problem on my own. Sword in hand, that's the way to go.

[Poofus 1]

There really isn't anything that can be done about the pvp issue except to add factions. That would significantly reduce the problem.

No matter how many realistic features rocket adds, the game will never be truly realistic in that you cannot put value on a human life in a game. We all know about how horrible the mental state of our returning soldiers can be after they've taken a healthy humans life, or have witnessed the taking of a life. Without remorse, there is no hesitation. The exception are weathered special forces guys, and sociopaths. Which none of the characters in this game are.

So go ahead and keep crying, or realize nothing can change the state of pvp unless rocket just adds bandit skins again or adds factions.

[Lukio (DayZ) 24]

People are not shooting at other people, they are shooting at 3D models - pixels on the screen. There is not enough emotion involved with shooting at other people, not as much as there would be involved in real life. There are no moral consequences or sanity checks if you kill several people. Technically we are all playing in a virtual landscape thats full of sociopaths.

[Survivor-Kyle 148]

But bandit players already play as teams, that is why they are so good at killing others. Making the environment more difficult would not change their play style; it would reward it, since they effectively just force others to take all the risks of supply gathering.

[ZedsDeadBaby 2287]

There really isn't anything that can be done about the pvp issue except to add factions. That would significantly reduce the problem.

Factions are in the game right now. You can go join one any time you want. Why should the team spend hundreds of hours coding a system to support something you can already do in the game? Go join a clan' date=' hop in the game with them and get to work!

Why you think this would reduce the occurrence of PvP is beyond me, though. If you're not in my faction, you're a target. Factions will be far more efficient killing machines than small groups or individuals. So, if anything, this would increase the rates of PvP as faction vs. faction combat became more common.

No matter how many realistic features rocket adds, the game will never be truly realistic in that you cannot put value on a human life in a game.

I'm interested in what makes you think that rocket is interested in making the game "truly realistic."

The exception are weathered special forces guys, and sociopaths. Which none of the characters in this game are.

...How do you know? You just got done talking about what effect witnessing atrocities can have on people. Well, guess what? Most of us in Chernarus have watched our friends, family and loved ones torn asunder and consumed by flesh-hungry zombies. Some of us probably had to turn weapons on our own family when they became infected.

Do you think it might be possible a few of us were affected by these experiences?

And how do you know some of us aren't partially infected by the zombie virus?

Why do you get to tell me who I am and am not allowed to BE in the game?

Isn't that MY choices?

of pvp unless rocket just adds bandit skins

Life expectancy was lower when bandit skins were in the game, and murder rates haven't really increased significantly since they were removed. Calls for their return expose you as being out of touch with the reality of DayZ.