I don’t play many PC Games.
There are many reasons for this, depending on the type of game. Mostly though it is time… I just don’t have enough time to play them as I spend most of my ‘spare’my time reading and writing.
When I do play games I tend to binge on one. I like strategy games so sometimes I’ll play Civilization IV for days on end. I also like Sims2 and will binge on that.
I like RPGs… but I’m afraid I rarely find anyone who Roleplays enough on those. I dread the phrase ‘I’ll get my other toon’… I used to have a lot of fun on Neverwinter Nights, there were a couple of great RP servers a few years back.
RPGs… it isn’t just the lack of RP but also the respawning and leveling gets on my nerves though.
DayZ though… Ooooo that hits some buttons.
It isn’t an RPG as such but it sure deels like one. The tension is great at times and it is mostly just in my head. So what is DayZ?
It is a Post Apocalyptic Zombie Survivors game. It is in Early Access Alpha stage on Steam. It is usually £22.99 but at the time of writing it is on sale at £19.54. So those playing the Early Access are funding the development of the game and have to understand that sometimes there will be bugs.
The game has been going since 16th December 2013. I started playing it, on and off in binges, since 9th October 2014 – it was a birthday present.
There is no leveling, no respawning (as the same character) after you die and no in-game purchases… Death of your character is permanent and can come suddenly.
You are a survivor of a Zombie Apocalypse on an island called Chernarus, an ex-Soviet State. Your game starts with you waking up, usually by the coast, alone and with barely enough gear to keep you from dying of exposure… though I’ve done that.
You need to loot the surrounding area to find food and gear to survive. Warm dry clothes are essential and so are food and drink. Then there is gear… lots of gear and you have to lug it all around.
Your clothing and body can only carry so much and beyond food and drink you will need to prioritise what you carry. A weapon is essential, there are Zombies out there and they WILL eat you. So a Machette, Fireman’s Axe or a Sub-machine gun… whatever you can find. Though finding a LOADED gun isn’t likely.
Zombies are scary on this game. They are fast, ravenous and just might spot you before you spot them. You have to use sound… that can be your only way of knowing you are in danger as some of them howl and grunt, most aren’t worried about moving silently either. It can take quit some effort to throw them off your scent and the more you run the more water you’ll use…
Scarier still is when you spot another survivor. Often it is you or them and this is where RP really can hot up. I’ve experienced lots of character death from being jumped by other players. I’ve also been knocked out and had my hear stolen but left with clothes and some food. You can’t see or hear ANYTHING when unconcious and cam sit for minutes seeing a black screen and the Odd update telling you if you are dying or not. If you aren’t getting messages you will wake up eventually… I once woke to see my attacker getting mauled by Zombies, I ran… Best RP I have seen so far is a man with a, I’m assuming loaded, gun who tol me to stand still, promptly bandaged my bleeding leg then told me not to follow him and ran away from me.
Humans is SCARY or nice… mostly I assume I’m in danger and turn tail if I see another survivor.
The gear comes in many states of repair and you can find yourself constantly trading up. You can break your gear and you can also mend it. And as I say you’ll have to prioritise but if you ever find a Can Opener guard that with your life! Yes a Machette will open a tin of Baked Beans but you’ll spill some! Oh a Can Opener is such a precious, yes it is.
You can interact with much of the environment depending on what gear you have in your hands. You can refill water bottles. You can plant seeds, you can probably do things that I haven’t found yet… Explore and try things out!
So far despite a friend buying me this for my birthday last year we haven’t teamed up to try to ‘win’…
Judge-Tutor Semple 
If you like DayZ, there are a couple of other Early Access games you try (if you have the time, of course!) ‘H1Z1’ is going to big (and worth buying before the 16th Feb- https://letsplaybadly.wordpress.com/2016/02/07/h1z1/), and Miscreated is in a similar vein. However, my favourite at the moment is a game called The Withering. You can see gameplay footage here: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLNqRgyWL1yJ6bOCtRT–wLjjfPBGlz0TC (apologies for posting 2 links, but I think they might interest you)
Thanks for sharing.
I’ll probably stick with DayZ for a while but always open to looking at another ‘Survivor’ style game.
The more interactive the environment the better.