Why just watch a zombie movie when you can experience it yourself? The cool guys at RoosterTeeth reviewed DayZ, a mod for ArmA 2 for the PC. It creates a world in the aftermath of a zombie apocalypse with a high degree of realism. In this world, the player and other survivors have to .... survive. The other players are all other players on the same server. Non-player characters are zombies of several kinds. This is not a game where you shoot anything that moves. In fact, you should really think about how not to shoot because the noise attracts zombies. And you should worry about dying because there is no respawning. You come back as someone else and whatever you had is gone. So basicaly, re-living the world of The Walking Dead. In this clip, Burnie from RoosterTeeth provides a comprehensive introduction to the game/world.
There are so many cool feature is this game which takes it to the next level. Health management effects gameplay and game experience directly. If you are shot and bleeding, your character is shaking. And when you are shaking, you can't shoot straight. You have to bandage yourself and take something to calm your nerves down. Worse is that resource management is critical as provisions are few. You may not have that injection, only bandages.
One of the unique aspects of this game is taking action (or not) living with the consequences. Since players cannot re-spawn and dying means starting fresh, the approach to gameplay changes significantly. The game world is huge, slightly over 100 square miles and the main transportation is your own two feet. What strikes me is how just walking in the game resembles the posters for the Walking Dead TV series. It is not uncommon to walk around and find the remains of other players. Remember to loot.
There are problems. Mostly communications. Communications is limited at the moment because players are not individually recognizable. There are no identifiers on the players nor and there is a limited way you change how you look. Communication within a game server covers all the players so you can basically see other people talking to each other even though you cannot see them. Nor can you be sure the person you are chatting with is actually the person in front of you.
There are a number of people who have posted their walkthrus. They are really "experience" really because the game has no specific path or goals or end game. Right now, it seems that it is about survival. There is an uncanny resemblance to the Walking Dead TV series in it's atmosphere and tensions. The drama can come from the zombies or from other survivors.
The clip I included here is compelling because it tells of the player SideSwipe's experience in a night-time excurion. He deals with other players and their actions. Warning: This clip is dark and can be disorientating for some. Although I used to play 3D first-person shooters, at the end of this clip, my head was spinning. But the drama of the clips story is unbelievable. Especially, it occurred organically and not scripted like in most games.
Invitablaly it will be compared with Walking Dead the Game. The offical game offers a storyline and a more cinematic experience. However, it does sometimes feels like it's the path you choose are predestined and that your options will always be limited to what the game designers set up. With DayZ, it truly feels like a sandbox. Do what ever you want as long as you are willing to bear with the consequences.
As a member of the audience, since I don't play games myself, Walking Dead the Game is closer to watching a movie. There is a clear protagonist and story that is being told. Watching DayZ on the other hand, is very much watching someone play but at a different level. It feels like Walking Dead the Game is on rails and that your options will always be limited to what the game designers set up. With DayZ, it truly feels like a sandbox. The player is more drawn into the game and ends up facing realistic decisions because quite often they have only one opportinity to make it. Either way, the experience is unique in their own way.
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