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DayZ free-to-play was considered
During his GDC talk chronicling the ascension of the DayZ mod, creator Dean "Rocket" Hall revealed that there was a time – albeit a brief window – when he considered turning DayZ into a free-to-play game. "Every one likes having four Lamborghinis parked in their driveway," Hall joked."When I looked at signing with a bunch of companies, some of them were interested in free-to-play. We're talking a lot of money, like stupid money. I felt like – I just knew it wouldn't work. DayZ is about survival and not buying your way into it. I still think there's room for free-to-play games – I've got one idea I think could actually work quite well as a free-to-play game – but it's like trying to cram a round peg into a square hole."Hall also touched on the infamous shops found in some free-to-play games, where players can purchase good gear or bypass certain mechanics by throwing down real money. "The DayZ experience is about what you find in the world, so introducing a shop and things like that, like cosmetic items. It's not about cosmetic items, there are no cosmetic items in DayZ – it's not like, 'I worked at Burger King for an hour and bought this hat,' you know; it's 'I found that hat in a barn fight.'"DayZ standalone is currently in development at Bohemia Interactive. The alpha build isn't expected to launch until at least June.
Dean Hall: DayZ standalone alpha won't launch until at least June
DayZ, the standalone zombie survival game spawned from the popular Arma 2 mod, will enter official review in June, with plans for a widespread alpha sometime after then, creator Dean Hall tells Joystiq."We're going to review the situation in June," Hall says. "So there'll be no release between now and June. And we're quite hopeful that we'll go then. I know that people get really frustrated because they want to play, but I just think this is the best option."DayZ is basically ready for an alpha run, but Hall and his team are waiting to perfect the client-server architecture. Hall currently has 25 people in a small pre-alpha, and he hopes to get a few hundred playing DayZ before opening the alpha. DayZ alpha keys will go live in batches, possibly 50,000 at a time, and Hall is looking at a possible Kickstarter-inspired distribution model, where players would pay certain amounts to opt into the alpha and snag other goodies, in tiers."We want to release the keys in chunks of what we have servers available," Hall says. "The idea is to very, very quickly try to release something out there, because that allows us to start capacity testing. We've got one final thing we're waiting for with the release date, which is the completion of our client-server architecture. It's basically making the game into an MMO, and pretty much the moment that's done, we'll release."
DayZ standalone teases new health system, overhauled zombies
Creator Dean Hall has offered up another video diatribe on the development on the standalone version of DayZ. One teased addition is an overhauled health system, one that features "longterm play effects such as poor diet affecting your long term health levels."There's a new inventory system, which supports "crafting, interchangeable clothing, degradation, tracking, weapon customization, and much more," the developer blog post says. Hall promises crafting will be different than how it's presented in other games, but says it isn't ready for the public eye yet.Meanwhile, zombie spawning and behavior is governed server-side, so the game client is less susceptible to foul play and hacking. It also means the undead are able to move around the island autonomously, rather than being summoned around active players. (They'll still enjoy your presence, though, so don't get reckless.)
DayZ's zombies are getting smarter -- and hungrier
Let us ask you a serious question: Do you like to read your dev blogs or watch them? Thanks to the Bohemia Interactive team, you can do both today! The devs have posted an article covering DayZ standalone's progress as well as a 21-minute video highlighting game footage. The team's been focusing on the inventory system, a non-traditional crafting system, zombie pathfinding, security improvements, a more complex health system, map expansion, and more sensible loot. Lead Developer Rocket urges patience as the team works to complete the standalone version: "We know that you want it released, and we know you want to know when this will be -- but we're 100% committed to making this a great game, and that means we are making sure to do things properly." You can watch the full dev diary video after the jump.
DayZ now on Steam, Hall goes behind the scenes for new mocap
It's time for another DayZ dev blog, and this time the camera follows mod guru Dean "Rocket" Hall as he goes behind the scenes at Bohemia Interactive's motion capture facility. The occasion is an excuse to talk up the new zombie animations in store for the mod, and Hall himself even gets into act, donning a mocap suit and stutter-stepping across a greenscreen stage environment. DayZ is now available directly through Steam, provided you have Arma 2: Combined Operations installed already. Click past the cut for the full video blog.
DayZ standalone dev update flaunts new island, rehauled loot spawning
DayZ mod creator Dean Hall has been hard at work on the standalone retail version of DayZ since it was announced back in August, and even has dreams of console ports dancing around in his head. In this hefty development diary, he is joined by production assistant Matt Lightfoot and takes the time to check in with us on the improvements to the terrain of Chernarus, the enhanced UI and the new loot spawning system.A good deal of the first part of the video has to deal with clothing, but the real juicy stuff comes at the tail-end where the two go into how loot spawning has changed – specifically, items can spawn in odd places like behind an overturned chair or underneath a kitchen table. So in the standalone version, you'll need to poke around a bit more to find those tins of baked beans, whereas in the mod things are pretty much there in plain sight.On top of that, the world of DayZ has gotten a bit more damp with the addition of swamps to the island and even another small island off the coast of Chernarus. It's an island pulled directly from Arma 2, the original game the DayZ mod was built on.Sadly, Hall has no word on when we might get to play the standalone version of DayZ, but did say that the team at Bohemia Interactive are working to be more transparent during the development process, offering information in blog posts and (hopefully) more lengthy video updates like these.
Initial DayZ video blog shows new stand-alone footage
A lot of stuff has been happening in the world of DayZ here lately, and creator Dean "Rocket" Hall has uploaded a fresh video dev blog to bring all of you zombie sandbox survival sim fans up to speed. Hall is joined by production assistant Matt Lightfoot, and the duo have a quite a lot to talk about over the course of the dev blog's 15-minute running time. Topics include major map improvements, the new clothing system, a streamlined UI, and the newfangled ability to spawn loot inside buildings. See for yourself after the break.
DayZ standalone version jacks up graphics, player customization
The race to a DayZ standalone version release is on, and creator Dean Hall is feeling excited and confident about the progress being made. Hall posted a list of improvements that the team is currently working on, from graphics to customization, and gave an update regarding the testing process. DayZ standalone's graphics are clearly improved from the ARMA II-modded version, and Hall includes side-by-side comparison photos of a town to show just how big of a difference the new engine makes. He said that the team is working on vehicle, character, and weapon customizations, although players will find that the real avatar customization will come while engaging in the game proper. One notable entry on Hall's list is the fact that the team is building the servers to be "MMO-like" so that hacking and cheating will be markedly more difficult. He also said that while external testers haven't been invited into the beta yet, this will happen once the full server/client architecture is completed.
DayZ standalone version should arrive by April
What everyone seems to be clamoring for these days is a standalone version of DayZ, the hit zombie survival game by Dean Hall. The creator opened up to Reddit on the progress of the version and his feelings on being confused for the maker of The War Z. Hall says that DayZ's standalone version should come out before April, although he allows for wiggle room if something comes up between now and then. The team is being cautious about pulling the trigger on testing, too: "Slowly we'll hand out the first keys and get a few servers running. Then we will reassess. It could go really well and we open up quickly, or it could go badly. Don't expect the tech test to be fun, or very pretty." Past the release of the standalone version, Hall said that he has plans to create a new map that centers around a western city. Hall also addressed his frustration at being confused with The War Z: "I am angry about The War Z. I'm very angry. I'm quite hurt personally because anyone can see how similar the words are, and while the average gamer knows the difference, individual people don't. I've had family members and close friends mistake the difference and confront me about what they believed was unethical behavior they thought I was making."
DayZ standalone ambition expands, imminent closed test to dictate public release
DayZ creator Dean Hall acknowledged this morning that the standalone version of the hit mod missed its planned 2012 launch, and explained the reasons for the delay."The plan from here is straightforward. We will be releasing a closed test imminently, during which approximately 500-1000 people will assist in ensuring our architecture is correctly functioning," Hall wrote on the DayZ development Tumblr. "This closed test will be focused purely on architecture, not the game design. Once we have confirmed fixes for issues arising from the closed test, we will then reschedule an internal date for our public release."Hall also said the inventory system has been overhauled to make it more intuitive. Changes include use of drag-and-drop on "3D models rather than 2D pictures, and being able to add items/clothing to your character in 3D in the inventory screen."DayZ taking the "it's done when it's done" approach may be in its best interest from a couple angles. Given the title's similarity and proximity to the War Z debacle, distance and a polished product can only help the game when it's ready for public consumption.
Why DayZ isn't a standalone title yet
You may have noticed that it's no longer 2012. (If not: Hello and welcome to the world of tomorrow!) You may also have noticed that, despite all expectations to the contrary, a DayZ standalone game has not yet been released. That's because, according to creator Dean Hall, the dev team "had the chance to go from making a game that was just the mod improved slightly, packaged simply, and sold -- to actually redeveloping the engine and making the game the way [the team] dreamed it could be." The new plan is for a closed test of 500-1000 participants to happen in the near future, after which the internal release date will be adjusted as the team feels necessary. As the team has taken extra time to polish things up, a great deal has changed. Items have more complexity now -- picking up a shirt from a player who suffered from cholera may well get you infected, and shooting a player in the head in an attempt to get his night vision goggles may result in damage to the goggles themselves. The UI is being streamlined and simplified to be "straightforward and functional just like in Minecraft." Map redesign and refinement is being slowed down by the continued imprisonment of the team's lead architect.
DayZ creator Dan Hall 'depressed' about The War Z controversy
The gaming community has had itself in a frenzy as of late thanks to the drama-ridden debacle of The War Z's "launch" on Steam. In case you haven't been following this particularly juicy little chain of events, here's the story so far: The War Z launched on steam (still in beta, though not marked as such) with a number of features listed on the store page that, surprise, weren't actually in the game. The interwebs went into full torch-and-pitchfork mode, and after an "apology" from the game's developer wherein the studio apologized "to all players who misread information about game features," the game has been yoinked from Steam for the time being. But what does Dean Hall, creator of the similarly named ARMA II: Combined Ops mod DayZ, have to say about all of this? Not much, apparently, but in a post on the DayZ subreddit, he revealed that he has "been pretty depressed about the whole situation." He also confides that the entire debacle caused him to "seriously consider" whether he wanted to be involved in the game industry at all. Thankfully for the many DayZ fans, he hasn't thrown in the towel and development on DayZ continues. Whether this is the end of the whole The War Z debacle or just the beginning, however, remains to be seen.
DayZ creator on game's 'delay,' console ports and why he's holding back on showing it
Dean Hall has been on a roller coaster of 16-20 hour days since his highly successful ArmA 2 mod, DayZ, broke free and was officially announced as a standalone project in early August. Hall had previously expected the standalone version to launch in December, but that release window was cast in doubt yesterday. "We really don't know, it's still our target," Hall told us when we got in touch late yesterday to discuss the state of DayZ. "But the architectural changes are scheduled to be complete next week. These are still on track to be completed then. But we don't entirely know what effect these changes will have, if any, on everything else. So there could be a massive amount of unforeseen work that comes out, we just don't know until it's done and we test." According to Hall, "The changes we've been making are so fundamental to the game that estimates can be a bit of a stab in the dark. The lucky thing is, so far nearly everything has taken less – even much less – time than we expected. So we won't know until next week, and we'll let people know the plans from there. Regardless, we'll be into some open testing this year anyway, as we need to capacity test. So the likelihood of seeing something is high even if we did push our release date." DayZ has not been delayed, but it may be pushed back if development doesn't proceed to Hall's satisfaction. "We haven't announced a delay yet," he said. "We're just saying, if it comes down to it, we will slip the date no matter what effect it would have on sales - rather than ship something we believe is not ready as a first step. We're also trying to be honest about the uncertainty over the impact of these major architectural changes. Initially, this was just going to be 'mod on steroid'. This is now really a refurbishment of the engine specifically to suit DayZ."
DayZ standalone features new engine, moving to MMO client-server model
DayZ creator Dean Hall has updated the mod's dev blog regarding potential release dates for the standalone client. Hall and his team initially targeted a late 2012 street date, and that's still on the table. However, "we will slip the date if needed," Hall says. "We will not compromise the project for the short-term gain of meeting this date." His blog entry details the expanding scale of the DayZ project, which is more or less running on a new engine. "We are moving to the server-client MMO architecture model. We are making weapons and items 'entities,' meaning we can support customization and variables assigned against items," Hall explains. "This is a massive departure from the previous engine. In many ways, once this phase is completed -- one could effectively say that DayZ is running on a new version of the engine. While the graphics may look the same (for now), under the hood so much is being completely rewritten."
The Firing Line: On Star Citizen, DUST 514, and DayZ
Welcome back to The Firing Line, folks. While I don't have any nifty sequel announcements or contentious community issues for you this week, I do have some interesting tidbits on three upcoming shooters that you might have missed. Join me after the cut for a chat about Star Citizen's hardcore aspirations, DUST 514's PC potential, and DayZ's upcoming standalone client.
First DayZ standalone screens take a trip to the country
A standalone version of DayZ, the little Arma 2 mod that could, is currently in development and project lead Dean Hall has shared the first images today. They're not exactly what you might have expected. There are no zombies, no humans-slash-backstabbers to look at; just a quaint country house untouched by the plague affecting the outside world.The standalone version of DayZ will launch in an alpha version this December. Project lead and mod creator Dean Hall has said DayZ will follow the Minecraft model with quick, incremental updates.To see more shots of the DayZ country manor's interior, check out the source link below.
DayZ alpha build to drop in December
The standalone version of Arma 2 mod DayZ will launch before the end of the year, most likely in December, creator Dean Hall said at the Eurogamer Expo.DayZ isn't just going to release in December – it has to. "It has to be out before the end of the year," Hall said. "Not just because we've committed to it, but in order to achieve what we have to do. It has to be. There's no 'we hope it is;' it has to be. And it's going to be cheap."Hall continued, specifying that by February the DayZ team should have a solid foundation and can work on more intensive gameplay aspects. "I like to think we're taking cautious and sensible steps at the moment. I don't really like cautious and sensible. DayZ as a mod wasn't cautious and sensible. But our first few steps have to be that. And if we can achieve that in December, then in January and February we can start to do all the cool stuff, move to more ambitious features."Hall expressed a sense urgency with DayZ largely because of potential clones, citing Hammerpoint Interactive's The War Z. "Maybe what they're doing is not cool to me, but the way I look at it is what are my options? What could I do? I could stand up here and be very critical of anyone who does a clone copy of the game. What would that actually achieve other than making me look like a dick? It's not going to result in a better game."The DayZ team saw a setback with the imprisonment of two Bohemia Interactive developers in Greece: They were creating the Chernarus Plus map for DayZ. "I just want to see them home," Hall said. "Whatever I do to see them back is important."
Massively Interview: Bohemia's Matt Lightfoot on DayZ, modding, and zombie survival
Thanks to viral content, word-of-mouth praise, and a passionate, growing fan base, Arma II mod DayZ has become one of the most talked about games in the industry. We sat down with Bohemia Interactive's Matt Lightfoot to get an idea of how exactly this game came to be, why it has exploded in the way it has, and how he'd attempt to survive a real-life zombie apocalypse: Massively: Could you give us some idea as to how DayZ came to be? What was the inspiration for the game? Matt Lightfoot: DayZ was created by Dean Hall, a former soldier in the New Zealand Armed Forces. He originally came up with the inclination to make a survival game when he was doing survival training in Brunei. The zombies come from Dean's discussions with his brother Richard, who is a world expert on influenza. Dean created it in his spare time after moving to the Czech Republic to work for Bohemia.
The Firing Line: What DayZ means to core gamers
The death of the core gamer has been greatly exaggerated. Yes, MMORPGs (and gaming in general) have kowtowed to the influx of new-school players flush with cash but lacking time, and the genre has reinvented itself and turned its back on virtual world enthusiasts in the process. There's still hope, though, and so far it's not coming from any of the usual sandbox suspects in the MMO space.
DayZ lead wants game on consoles, 'having meetings' about it at Gamescom
DayZ project lead Dean Hall "really hopes" the game is successful enough to justify a console version. Speaking to us today at Gamescom, the developer, who has been thrust into the spotlight thanks to the incredibly successful Arma2 mod, told us the only stumbling block is DayZ needs to be successful enough to justify a console version."You're not going to put it on the consoles if you're only going to sell 100,000 units or something like that," he said. "DayZ will be driven by its PC development and it will innovative on that. And, once we're at a point, we'll take it and do a Mac version, 360 and PS3."Asked if he's met with any of the console developers, he immediately chimed back, "We're meeting with them here."DayZ's publisher, Bohemia Interactive, does have a console background, and Hall has been a producer on console games in the past and knows "the pitfalls and horror that's involved with it."
