Implement a leveling system

[porkyham 4]

This is my first post here guys, have been playing dayz for a week or so, probably clocked up around 40 hours and the main gripe i have about the mod, aside from some bug issues etc is there is no leveling system.

Hear me out for a second, i hate COD, bf series were slightly better, i never played wow, any mmo for that matter as the content never interested me. However i believe dayz has great potential to hit that perfect balance between an mmo style game with fresh content that isnt just 'collect x wolves teeth to gain 50xp'

The perma death idea in my opinion is flawed, you already lose all your gear that you worked so hard to find so the idea of a perma death ads nothing to the punishment of losing. Adding a subtle leveling system that leveled up from time played + zombies/bandits killed etc would be a small reward for the time and effort you put in, you still sttart out with a torch, bandages etc, so you still lose all your gear when you die, but you are not left feeling your entire time was wasted.

The leveling system might just be a number, or perhaps a new ranking system akin to army rankings, corporal, major etc. Much like in bf1943 which i played abit of, you ranked up to level 50, there were no perks, stats etc, just a number and a badge, but somehow it made you feel like you were getting somewhere.

I believe the implementation of something like this would have a positive impact on player numbers and those players who lose interest, i dont think it would ruin the immersion to any great extent, as long as there were too many 'perks' and stats, a simple number or rank to show how long you have played and how good you are is simple enough. But it shouldnt be reset on death, you already lose your entire load of gear, so keeping hold of your rank/level that has no bearing on the game will have no effect on your new start up character as you still start with the same thing as a level 1 person would start with.

Thanks for reading, i know many on here despise the idea of a leveling system, but if well implemented, such as a region specific ranking system or russian army ranking etc i think it could work.

[osiriszoran 33]

no & seems pointless

[porkyham 4]

no & seems pointless

depends what perspective you are looking at it from i guess. From some perspectives the entire premise of the game is pointless, but i believe it can add something that would keep alot of players and stop it from being just another FOTM.

[fundan@gmx.de 82]

Skill system based on how long you live and your actions (good/bad/hunter/builder...whatever) sounds like an really interesting concept.

[iStP 8]

I too, think it seems a bit pointless. Like cmon, levelling up. If there are no benefits, then whats the point apart from other players and you knowing how long you've played. you also mentioned using the levelling up as a way of tracking your accomplishments and stuff but is the debug monitor not that exactly ?

Now, if there are "perks" to ranking up, you will have virtually turned the game into an RPG with zombies (like skyrim/oblivion) where you will have people grinding for xp or awards and level 1's getting destroyed by higher levels.

Also the thing with permadeath is, its SUPPOSED to be a punishment for dying.

[porkyham 4]

Skill system based on how long you live and your actions (good/bad/hunter/builder...whatever) sounds like an really interesting concept.

That sounds cool too, im sure rocket is already looking into skills in relation to a leveling system so its up to the community to shape that system around what they want. Eventually it will be implemented i think, my opinion though is that it shouldnt just be wiped when you die, it should carry over to imbue a sense of progression, you already lose everything, losing perks/skills and levels would be too far imo.

[enforcer1975 1111]

If i happen to survive a week and get good equipment i don't need a dog tag, badge or anything of that kind to see where it got.

[porkyham 4]

I too' date=' think it seems a bit pointless. Like cmon, levelling up. If there are no benefits, then whats the point apart from other players and you knowing how long you've played. you also mentioned using the levelling up as a way of tracking your accomplishments and stuff but is the debug monitor not that exactly ?

Now, if there are "perks" to ranking up, you will have virtually turned the game into an RPG with zombies (like skyrim/oblivion) where you will have people grinding for xp or awards and level 1's getting destroyed by higher levels.

Also the thing with permadeath is, its SUPPOSED to be a punishment for dying.

[/quote']

I tend to agree with the skills perks thing, it would be hard to implement without people grinding, which i agree would ruin the game for lower levels etc. But i see nothing wrong with a simple visual leveling system or rank, its only my opinion of course, but its something that would have greatly improved the replayability of the game for me rather than just a massive rage quite when i died after 10 hours of game time from a zombie glitch through a wall lol, at least with a rank, i may have ranked up 1 or 2 ranks.

Maybe even a visual rank up instead of a number, would make it more realistic perhaps, see the link for examples of russian badges etc

http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/world/russia/images/rank-army.gif

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And maybe it could be used to reduce the number of pvp kills, if you kill a player without being fired upon first you reduce your rank etc.

Its kind of nice its in alpha dev, we can put ideas out like this, and they either work or dont, even implementing it in a patch update for a few weeks to see how it goes cant hurt really, even if its based of something simple such as time spent alive etc.

[Womb Raider 92]

Never going to happen. Don't mean to be rude, but Day Z isn't the thing for something like this. You will die, the game isn't going to hold your hand. In a day and age of such hand holding games, Day Z is very different and that's why it is so special.

This isn't CoD, BF3, etc, there are no ranks and there never will be. Also there will never be any perks, specializations, skills etc, when will you people learn.

[porkyham 4]

Never going to happen. Don't mean to be rude' date=' but Day Z isn't the thing for something like this. You will die, the game isn't going to hold your hand. In a day and age of such hand holding games, Day Z is very different and that's why it is so special.

This isn't CoD, BF3, etc, there are no ranks and there never will be. Also there will never be any perks, specializations, skills etc, when will you people learn.

[/quote']

giving players a sense of progression is not hand holding, giving them a rank based on time played and zombies killed etc without perks and skills isnt hand holding. We all know its not cod or bf, it never will be, but drawing similarities to cod and bf based on rank is like saying they are similar because they both use guns.

I agree there is too much hand holding in games, however implementing a leveling system would ad nothing more than a sense of progression and will provide a visual element to others on your rank. Like i said earlier, its shouldnt be a traditional system like those found in rpgs or cod etc, dayz has the oppourtunity to put something in there that breaks the mold, yet still provides a sense of progression without breaking the immersion.

Not all change is bad, dont be afraid.

[Cormac McCarthy 15]

how to thumbs down , lameface.jpg

[Stoop_Kid 2]

Ooh! And then, after you hit level 70, you can push a button, which gives you a new emblem to let everyone know how 1337 you are! But you start over at level 1, just with a new emblem.

Sounds dumb, I get no satisfaction from seeing a number with a badge next to my name.

[logan23 118]

The problem with leveling is that it will create more frustration when a player dies.

Sandbox games are very open ended plus add the Perma-death- Perma-Death means that the design of the game needs to be very flexible in a way a player can progress without placing a structure leveling system. Players need to be able to die and jump back in the game and still be able to progress in a few hours so the lost is not so great where they want to not play. THis happens if you place a structure Leveling system since no matter how the player plays they know they must have XYZ experience to = Level ( Blank).

You can create levels in the area of skill progression that helps to make you more valuable in a team. I'm not talking about skills that lead to combat since those should never be added because if you did you would one make the main key focus of the game is to kill players and second all players need to be on as close to an even playing field from start to finish. The game should be around skill and survival not you Level.

I hope this clears up some of the confusion on the topic.

[lukewishere@hotmail.co.uk 7]

so you still lose all your gear when you die' date=' but you are not left feeling your entire time was wasted.[/quote']

You are punished for dying, you're a fool for being so reckless and getting yourself in a situation which caused your death (unless it's caused by an uncontrollable bug). The game shouldn't reward you for dying in ANY way. You don't need skills to be scripted, if you want to be a hunter, then go hunt. If you want to be a mage... Oh, whoops.

This game is not for you if you enjoy seeing what they achieved and constantly being reminded how long they've played with pretty little pictures and unfair advantages. This game prefers to laugh at you as your achievements all die away with your character. It's the apocalypse, your name means nothing, you're a pawn on a giant chessboard trying desperately to stay in the game. If you like games with leveling and stats, there are plenty out there now, since large companies love to monetize the living shit out of rehashed ideas.

[Levias 28]

Never implement a leveling system please... I can't see every fucking game anymore that includes a leveling system. It's good as it is.

[porkyham 4]

Fair enough, it would seem most dont want this implemented, would be interesting though in a patch update since thats what alpha is all about.

However if the majority of the community doesnt want it, it shouldnt be in the finished product.

[Meepo (DayZ) 13]

Porkyham, I couldn't have said it better myself.

"Not all change is bad"

I see absolutely nothing wrong with having a little "rank" indicator as long as it's merely aesthetic and I think it would definitely keep people playing for longer. Just because it's an idea that's similar to ones used in other games doesn't mean it's gonna turn DayZ into BF3/CoD; calm down. You're all so quick to jump to "NO THIS ISN'T BF3/CoD! DAYZ IS HARDCORE, STOP RUINING MY GAME" that I'm starting to think you don't even consider the ideas.

Death would still be permanent and you would still lose all your stuff. Ranking up won't present any sort of bonus skills or otherwise advantages. Purely aesthetic. The game will still be as "hardcore" as it always is.

[ZomboWTF 527]

oh god please no....

this sounds terrible, i dont want dayZ to tirn into a f***ing second WoW with zombies...

there are allready post apocalyptic games with rpg elements, please play those games but leave dayZ alone with that

[Meepo (DayZ) 13]

' pid='275287' dateline='1341785912']

this sounds terrible' date=' i dont want dayZ to tirn into a f***ing second WoW with zombies...

[/quote']

Zombo, please explain to me how adding an aesthetic "rank" system will suddenly transform DayZ into "World of Warcraft with zombies". Enlighten me as to how the addition of an indicator of time spent playing/etc will turn DayZ into a fantasy MMORPG with magic spells, dungeon raids, etc. I seriously want to know how you came to this conclusion.

This is exactly what I was talking about when I said people completely overreact to the idea of change.

[porkyham 4]

Porkyham' date=' I couldn't have said it better myself.

"Not all change is bad"

I see absolutely nothing wrong with having a little "rank" indicator as long as it's merely aesthetic and I think it would definitely keep people playing for longer. Just because it's an idea that's similar to ones used in other games doesn't mean it's gonna turn DayZ into BF3/CoD; calm down. You're all so quick to jump to "NO THIS ISN'T BF3/CoD! DAYZ IS HARDCORE, STOP RUINING MY GAME" that I'm starting to think you don't even consider the ideas.

Death would still be permanent and you would still lose all your stuff. Ranking up won't present any sort of bonus skills or otherwise advantages. Purely aesthetic. The game will still be as "hardcore" as it always is.

[/quote']

Very well put, i also see no harm in trying.

Just finished playing, ragequite after while, devs really need to give you a starting melee weapon and turn down the sensetivity of zombies, how are you meant to get supplies if zeds spawn right next to them and its nearly impossible to get past them lol. Rocket has said these will be changed though in the next update so hopefully it gets implemented.

[DemonGroover 8836]

You wont live long enough to level up, so dont worry about it.

[Caviano 287]

WILL NEVER GET IMPLEMENTED.

STUPID IDEA.

GET OVER IT.

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Reasons:

Too many to name.

Skills? The skills you gain in this game come from experience... Experience isn't gauged on a white bar of numbers... no its gauged by time spent learning how to survive. Every life you live, you live it longer, harder, and more efficiently. Every death, brings a longer life.

This leveling system idea is -for lack of a better term- FUCKING STUPID.

[porkyham 4]

God the community in this game is terrible, some of you guys act like complete basement dwelling, autistic inbreds who are so caught up in a mod that any idea of change sets you frothing at the mouth like a rabid zombie.

And i thought the casual fps gaming community was bad!

[osiriszoran 33]

porkyham, yet here you are standing on your "moral highground" Being the hero that Dayz deserves. lol.

[chrismgtis 55]

Without even reading this: Absolutely NOT. This is not an RPG and it would make the entire point of this game irrelevant.

Again: hell to the NO.