How about streetlights?

[SpeechMan 7]

Let me start by saying even to me this sounds quite stupid at first. I mean, whole area is destroyed, there's nothing left of the civilization, so how could there be power for the lights? But then again, there are lot of things that doesn't make sense, so maybe it wouldn't be so bad to just one more. Just think about how it would change the gameplay.

First point is that I'm not talking about complete illumination here, instead just a few streetlights in cities and towns along the main roads. I actually got this idea one night when I was playing DayZ and went outside for a smoke. I looked around and saw areas illuminated by lights and deep shadows in between and started thinking about how easy it would be for someone to hide in the shadows watching me (a bit paranoid thought there).

Now, let me list how this would affect gameplay:

1) Night servers would be repopulated. Like it or not, currently night time servers are pretty empty, with just a handful of people with NVGs running around scavenging. People without NVGs tend to switch to daytime servers rather than scampering around without seeing a thing.

2) Night time scavenging would become harder. Currently during night scavenging is just too easy, especially if it's also raining you can just leisurely stroll around cities grabbing what you need. With streetlights it would become a whole new experience trying to stay in shadows while navigating through towns. As far as my gameplay experience goes, this would mean a lot, cause currently I spend daytime looking for camps and night time gathering supplies in towns with very minimal risk involved.

3) NVG would lose some of it's edge. During night, NVG gives players too much advantage. If towns would be illuminated by street lights, NVGs would be useless there, greatly reducing the edge. NVGs would still be extremely useful when wondering through the forests, so they wouldn't become obsolete.

4) Change the life of the sniper. Instead of just equipping NVG, the sniper would instead have to keep his/her aim in the illuminated areas trying to find a player straying away from the shadows or accidentally silhuetting against the illumination.

5) Flashlight would finally have some use. If you turn on your flashlight in the pitch black night it's like a beacon to everyone looking in your general direction. But if you turn on your flashlight in a town already having few light sources (and if you don't move while doing it), you might just make it without being spotted.

So in the end, although veering away from the realism standpoint, adding streetlights would IMHO actually add an interesting new element to the gameplay.

[silkyskills 59]

Heat vision should be affected when hiding in water or when raining, day time heat should also affect the distance, , there should be some sort of counter heat scope clothes with very little camo for balance.

I wouldn't mind the idea of making generators to turn on the street lights, maybe after you clean up the town and get it running it stops zombies spawning, then players can join the community or try to bring it down.

Edited September 8, 2012 by L1CKEYSPL1T

[dutch_miller 159]

I like the idea, and there are some suggestions about the ability to use power plants and the like, so you could use that in conjunction with this mod; you could get the power plant running and have it power some streetlights. As L1CKEY said the ability of using portable generators could be interesting as well.

[GlaciusTS 7]

Maybe if we could like, use generators and fuel to power areas and such. Maybe not an entire town, but maybe you could attach a generator to a streetlight, and wire it to a house or something. As a beacon to attract survivors, and maybe there could be some other benefits of electricity.

[TehKolo 10]

Great idea, all they would need (as you said) is a workaround for the power issue.

[joschaap 15]

just to kick this up:

rockets opinion on streetlights, and some screenshots:

http://www.reddit.com/r/dayz/comments/138gu2/streetlights_turned_on_in_dayz_whats_your_opinion/

[iphone@byvampdesign.com 0]

Not to bring this back from the dead, but I followed a thread and was able to get lighting in cities. Its actually pretty neat and helps with the bambis that want to play at night.

[PracticalTactical 164]

it would be neat if players could make it happen by starting a generator or something.

[BSB Jimmy 360]

only if it was limited to a small area

[koze 113]

1. Where are you getting the electricity to power the lights?
   
2. Towns that have light instantly indicate bandits that, that area has players, therefore turning into a PvP fest.
   
3. Think realistically, if you were in a zombie apocalypse how would you power an entire town or city? How exactly would you benefit from it? If you've watched doomsday preppers, in one of the episodes they say that the best time to move and scavenge is in the cover of darkness. That is, if you want to move around not rebuild a civilization. But you're trying to survive in DayZ, and having a town/city completely lit with lights indicates you are there, and will definitely attract alot of players.