H1Z1 takes out starting axe based on player feedback
This past month's conventions and player hands-on have been influential to the development of H1Z1, according to a new post today by Senior Game Designer Jimmy Whisenhunt.
"After much discussion and some debate, we decided to make several targeted and deliberate changes to how the player will be dropped into our world," Whisenhunt wrote. "One of the biggest changes we've made is to the starting equipment your character spawns into our apocalypse ridden world with. Being a massive sandbox MMO without XP patting you on the back, progression mechanics have to feel solid and early game combat needed to be more challenging."
The biggest change revolves around the removal of the starting axe in order to get players more involved in crafting, exploration, and combat paths. Instead, players will fight with their fists, which can actually trigger combos if done right. Another significant change is the decision to spawn weapons on top of counters and crafting items inside of objects so that finding weapons on the fly is easier to do.
