As we move forward with January’s stable branch update (0.53) the focus of the gameplay programming and production teams is primarily on security. As mentioned prior in the September 15 Status Report - only so much can be done in tandem with engine and gameplay changes coming with every update (and maintain a rapid update frequency to stable branch). That said, as the primary vulnerability on the security side for DayZ right now is less on engine and/or scripting and more on modifying/accessing the process memory we have several Q1 goals we are aiming to complete.
Deployment of a new form of BattlEye
This has been delayed to allow testing/regression around any potential bugs and/or compatibility issues so as not to cause any major issues to those participating in Early Access
Server side sanity checks and protection against certain currently exploited methods
Closer work with Valve and the VAC team
This will initially be seen by allowing players to report in-game suspected cheaters and will expand from there to a program that best fits DayZ and how it operates
Expanded vigilance in reporting all known tools and methods currently used to access the DayZ process for less than honorable methods.
Beyond that, Q1 has a good deal of exciting work for DayZ. Be it work on the new infected AI, to implementation of the central economy or diseases - this should be an exciting few months. On the note of work to come, I’d like to expand upon confusion around persistence - how it is intended to operate, and the role that weekly persistence wipes currently serve.
Persistence is a core pillar of DayZ and its design. Currently persistence functionality is tied to the incomplete economy functions. As we expand upon the systems surrounding the central economy - What is saved/How it is saved, Cleanup, Respawn, etc will be handled properly. In addition to that, the secondary cause of persistence wipes (issues with reading modifiers on saved items, improperly saved items, etc) can be addressed. Once we have addressed these two issues, persistence can and will be moved from an “opt-in” feature, to a core function of DayZ - and something that is universal across all servers. Once this is complete, I personally look forward to truly seeing the “camp/base building” side of the title start to be more universally adopted. Be it vehicles, barricaded buildings, tents, containers, or even farms setup via horticulture.
In addition, if you have any questions surrounding this topic (or any others) - I encourage you to head over to the Developer Discussion subforums at the official DayZ forums. Eugen and myself both are accessible via the Service section.
I wish I could bundle a microphone with every copy of DayZ. - Brian Hicks / Lead Producer
We live in the future people. 2015 looks to be a pretty awesome year for DayZ, I’d like to kick off this months Status Reports by talking a bit about how the team has settled in during our first week back, as well as some awesome points of inspiration for us.
First off, I was forwarded a link to Eternum Pictures DayZ fan film - which has some outstanding emotional points about friendship, and loss. The loss that the main character in this fan film experiences is something that resonates with me. I can recall how it felt to meet, befriend, and then lose a stranger in my early DayZ mod days. As the option to instantly respawn after death somewhat limits this experience, it brought to the discussion table some server options that we’ve had on the drawing board for awhile. Speaking of servers…
Over the next few months we’ll be rolling out some expanded server options to extend support for administrators, and introduce more customization options for private shards.
- Admin Logs, covering: Connections/Disconnections, Chat, Player Deaths (Env & PvP) - Hardcore Mode: Initially we’ll only support this on Private Shards, while we see how the mechanics impact gameplay - However the intent is to offer server operators the choice to restrict how long since a players last death they can respawn. Eg: A hardcore server could conceptually restrict players from respawning until 12 hours after their last death. We’ll gauge how much impact this has on the design, and decide if it stays restricted to private shards, or we open this up to all public (consumer rented) hive servers.
Now that the team have returned back to the office we’ve begun going over data compiled from stable branch since Christmas, and looking at what is left to do for the 0.53 release at the end of January. We’ve got some awesome stuff on the table for 0.53 and 0.54, and as always we’ll be pushing to experimental to test things out as development on the update progresses.
Speaking of the end of January, PAX South in San Antonio is coming up and we have some awesome things in store for the first Penny Arcade Expo in the great state of Texas. We’ll be sending out information on that via our twitter and facebook channels next week. In addition, the finishing touches are being put on the DayZ website - as we look to centralize where you all get the latest news on DayZ development, and interact with the DayZ Dev team. Over on the Official DayZ forums the team leads have begun using their new sub forums to interact directly with you, the Survivors of Chernarus. Head over and take a peak, we’ll start to use these more and more - giving you guys a direct line to the people that guide the vision that is DayZ.
forums.dayzgame.com
I look forward to increasing visibility into DayZ development in 2014, and evolving what it means to survive in Chernarus as we march forward to DayZ 1.0.
Chocolate Milk Bath, do it. - Brian Hicks / Lead Producer
Peter / Lead Game Designer
“Welcome to the first devblog of the 2015, I hope you enjoyed the holidays and spent some quality time with your families, friends and DayZ!
I will keep it really short. We all know that this year will be very important for DayZ. With all these big ongoing and upcoming changes it will be quite tough but the outcome will be splendid.
Currently we are focused mainly on new controls/interactions. We would like to use them before we start switching character to the new animation system so we can identify possible issues with the old one and address them. Apart from that we are looking forward to the new scripting language which should be ready as soon as possible so we can start rewriting currently used scripts with it, optimize and polish them which also bring some performance boost (server side, yay!). Design for manual transmission for vehicles is ready for the review and when we settle down on last little things after discuss it with programmers its implementation will begin. We are also making a prototype for non intrusive group identification so that you can easily identify your companions.
Have an amazing new year and don’t forget… see you in Chernarus folks!”
Chris / Lead Artist
“Character Art:
We’re still working on new character clothing and new zombie templates.
This is ongoing, long term work that occurs during luls when the art team isn’t needed to support new features being added by design. We’ve finished the quilted jacket and a new batch of zombie templates. An M65 Field Jacket is also WIP.
Environment:
Work has begun on a school building. Its giving me flashbacks to my days dodging balls in the gym. We’re working on desks, chairs, bells, and gym equipment. This is a piece I’m personally excited about.
Weapons:
We’re nearly done with a new pump-action .22LR rifle based on the FN Trombone. We’ve also recently completed a Winchester Model 70 and two new guns I think people will be excited about are currently WIP. In addition, over the last couple of weeks, we’ve churned out a series of new melee weapons for people to try out.
Community:
Some of you may have noticed that we’ve introduced a new area on the official forums where it is possible to interact with the team and I’ve been busy this week visiting and answering questions. I’d encourage you to drop by and check it out.”
Standup Notes for the week of 05 Jan 15 (Note: Standup notes are not a change log - they are a quick high level look at tasks the teams worked on throughout this week)
Art: • M65 Field Jacket • FN Trombone • Vehicle design standup • School structure • Winchester Model 70
Animation: • Bugfixing • Hand poses for weapon attachments • Hand Poses
Design: • Bugfixing • V3S Changes • Cooking • Diseases • Independant content of canisters • New scripting language • Traps
Programming: • Security vulnerability fixes • Vehicle persistency • Loot distro per building for new system • Close range weapon sound fixes • Suicide fixes • Zombie/Animal AI • Vehicles - Manual transmission • Server side logging
Happy Holidays everyone! As some of you may know, DayZ just recently celebrated its first year in Steam’s Early Access program. The Early Access experience has been both challenging and rewarding for everyone on the development team. With that in mind, we have put together a high level document looking at what we have accomplished together in 2014. Pairing that with our goals ahead for 2015, we all have a lot to look forward to.
With 0.52 hitting stable branch today, the holidays should see some interesting gameplay. I for one look forward to the expanded options for the roleplaying communities, as well as the outstanding changes to player versus player engagements I plan to have on first person only servers (when rescuing innocents from bandits, of course!). Suppressor support, hotfixes to address the majority of the gunshot audio issues, new animations, the first iteration of the chainsaw, and of course who could forget the seasonal festivities. I hope to see you all around the Christmas tree in Novod. I’ll be looking for the bear that has my name on it.
Red Water is not always a bad thing - Brian Hicks / Lead Producer
Celebrating DayZ’s official release on 16th December last year, Bohemia Interactive has released a special anniversary video on DayZ’s official YouTube channel. The video provides a unique insight into the some of the challenges DayZ faced throughout its development, and what DayZ means to various members of the development team.
The standalone Alpha version of DayZ was officially released using Steam’s Early Access program, on December 16th 2013 - very early on in its development cycle. Since then the DayZ development team has continued developing the game with a continuous flow of updates, including new weapons, new items, diseases, harvest-able resources, private shards, persistent objects, initial vehicle testing, and various platform improvements.
Over the next 12 months, the team will be looking to expand the options for basic ground transportation, aerial transport, expanding on basic survival features, such as animal predators and traps. On top of these the DayZ team is implementing an improved rendering engine, which will expand upon the graphical fidelity and depth in game.
Since the game was released into Early Access 12 months ago, the development team has grown significantly. David Durcak, the new Project Lead on DayZ, stated:
“Firstly, I’d like to thank Dean Hall for leading the team for the past two years, and I wish him the best with his new studio. The growth of the DayZ team over the past 12 months will be integral to the prolonged success of the game. With the additional team members, we hope that throughout the upcoming year we will be able to create more content and a deeper experience for the DayZ audience. Plus, it will also enable us to significantly improve the technology for the standalone, and polish the features that we have. All in all, it is our goal to create the best experience we can, in terms of frame rate, visual quality and the overall gameplay.”
In support of DayZ’s first anniversary, the team has also released an updated development roadmap for 2015. The roadmap contains a list of the feature goals for 2015. Please note that the DayZ development roadmap is not a fixed document, and the schedule and content always remain subject to change:
First Quarter
Basic vehicles
Advanced loot distribution
New renderer
New Infected AI
Basic stealth system (infected and animals)
Diseases
Improved cooking and horticulture
Advanced anti-hack system (Dynamic BattlEye)
Second Quarter
Advanced vehicles (repair and modifications)
Advanced animals (life cycle, group behaviour)
Player statistics
New UI
Player stamina
Dynamic events
World containers
New physics system
Third Quarter
Traps
Barricading
Character life span + soft skills
Animal predators + birds
Aerial transport
Console prototype
Advanced communication
Fourth Quarter
Animal companions
Steam community integration
Construction (base building)
Beta version
To join the survivors in Chernarus, people can purchase DayZ (Early Access) for 27.99 EUR/34,99 USD from Steam and Store.bistudio.com. The price of DayZ will increase as development progresses.
So here we are, last few weeks of December for the Christmas break. The 0.51 update to stable branch has had enough time to mature and reveal any critical bugfixes that need to be addressed for 0.52. With 0.52, the focus is on issuing bugfixes, incremental systems updates, and several new bits of content. One of the ongoing issues we’ve been focused on bugfixing with 0.52 is client and server crashes. Having spent a significant amount of time these last few weekends playing on stable branch servers I for one can attest to how frustrating these can be as a player. Especially the server crashes.
In addition, as work on the central economy continues - there have been extensive cases on public hive servers with users abusing bugs to duplicate items. In order to combat this, we’ll be taking a two point initiative at the beginning of 2015. Firstly, at the start of the year we will look at performing a wipe of the hive. Next, we will work with our game server provider partners to deploy a system for server operators that continues to allow them access to restarting their servers in the event of unforseen issues, but logs and tracks abusers of this option.
Primary bug-fix focus for 0.52 is on the following issues:
Item duplication
Gunshot sounds
Super-loot spawns
Client crashes upon exit
Server crashes
Winners of the Private Shard contest should be receiving e-mails from Multiplay Game Servers shortly, please do not hesitate to reach out to support@dayzgame.com if you experience any issues.
On a more personal note: Now that the programming team has resolved the issues with servers properly pulling the local time from their servers for the in-game clock, I encourage all of you to spend some time surviving during the night time. Get off the coast, go hunting, set up a tent somewhere in the woods and really spend some time experimenting with the “hermit” playstyle. We have a long way to go, but I’ve personally found the experience very rewarding as of late.
Only a bandit on bandit day. - Brian Hicks / Lead Producer
Standup Notes for the week of 08 Dec 14 (Note: Standup notes are not a change log - they are a quick high level look at tasks the teams worked on throughout this week)
Art: • Full length ghillie • Planting field 3x3 • Animal remains • High fidelity V3S instrument panel • Winchester Model 70 • Crafted leather jacket • Hatchet
Animation: • Support to new Zombies • Optics • Vehicle animations • Skeletal adjustments for some animals • Animal animations
Now that 0.51 has reached stable branch we’ve had the pleasure of watching how the survivors of Chernarus interact and experiment with its content and mechanics. Be it player to player interaction through the extension of the meat harvesting systems, or traveling together across the map in search of a V3S. For now the team is focused on critical bugfixes and server side performance optimization for 0.52 midway through December (due to the upcoming holiday season).
For me, the first two quarters of 2015 hold a great deal of excitement.
The last year has had a large amount of work ongoing behind the scenes that effect gameplay, and playability for a significant part of the active Early Access userbase. As someone that has spent over three thousand hours in Chernarus this year I am genuinely excited for the possibilities.
Speaking of my time in Chernarus, as you all know the military tent (packable) was recently added into stable branch. This as I envision it is one among many possible “persistent objects” that survivors can find, and use to create their own base camp in Chernarus. Ranging from tents, to barriers, horticulture, containers, varied levels of fireplaces, and so much more - I see this feature expanding upon the initial pup tents of the mod into something that resembles a true improvised and -scalable- survivor camps.
Speaking of survivor communities, our Private Shard contest has concluded and while I am happy to announce the winners - I have to say there were far more entries than I had expected, and the decisions were not at all easy.
There are a lot of fantastic DayZ communities out there, and at the very least I now have a whole list of servers I need to take time to visit.
The winners, in no specific order are:
- FriendlyFlashMob - The Midnight Crew - TAW.net
Congratulations to the winners, make sure to reach out to support@dayzgame.com to start the process of claiming your private shard server. For those who entered and did not win, don’t be sad - Of all the tons of submissions, there was not one that was not outstanding. We’ll be rolling out new support and options for private shards in January, so keep your eyes open for those.
Still not a bandit. - Brian Hicks / Lead Producer
Chris / Lead Artist
“Long time, no talk! Sorry about that - but it was for good reason. Lots of things are going on with the art team!
Character Art:
Current character work is focused around the upcoming changes to the zombie AI and animation systems. We are re skinning the old zombies and exporting the skeletons into a new proprietary format. This has not, however, this has not held us back from creating a new batch of zombie model templates with which we can quickly create loads of new zombie types of various shapes/sizes/and ages. This is particularly important since the latest news regarding testing of the new zombies suggests we may soon be able to significantly increase the number of zombies spawning. Work in this area will be ongoing and my still take some time to finish but it should pay dividends in the long run.
Regarding survivor clothing, we finished a bomber jacket and will be also adding a new quilted jacket, which should have fewer model clipping issues than the current bubble jacket, which it is intended to eventually replace.
Weapons:
We added the AUG in a somewhat unfinished state as it currently does not work with any attachments. However, we do hope to transform it into a highly modifiable platform and adding a RIS is the first step in that direction. The model is ready and soon, perhaps, I’ll release a picture as a teaser.
We’re also working on a Winchester Model 70 Alaskan which means I need to get off my butt and figure out a design for scope situation (i.e. one scope for many rifles). Also, its possible that I was told to make sure the suppressors are looking pretty so that they can be triumphantly re-added.
Vehicles: Now that design is settling on some technical requirements as it relates to art for vehicles, we’re formulating a vehicles roadmap to plan for the number and types of vehicles that design has requested. It will be exciting to see the vehicles feature expand in the coming weeks. We also recently added a new helicopter crash site which looks quite a bit better than the old UH60s.”
Mirek / Lead Gameplay Programmer
“This week we have pushed the current work on new Infected/Animals AI into internal testing. The core AI system was developed by the Bratislava team and is also using the new animation system, which will help us to have better navigation for AI units and more complex combat systems.
For the initial implementation, there is not many new things about the infected, but it should improve better server performance and navigation. It will also allow us to have more infected on the map and to implement stealth mechanics into the game.
Current testing is aimed for performance and if everything will go fine, we’re planning to push it on to experimental servers (once we’re happy with how it performs). After that we’re planning to tweak stealth and combat and we would like to push it on experimental servers with 0.53 version.
We’re also continuing on tweaking vehicles, improving loot distribution and loot respawning systems and other long term tasks, such as new game control mechanics and a new inventory system. Stay tuned for more details to come.”
Peter / Lead Designer
“Long time no seen my dear survivors. I hope that surviving in Chernarus is a little bit more satisfying now with your new best friend - Praga V3S (by the way V3S is an abbreviation for the 3-ton military special). Indeed that rolled out version has rather stripped down functionality however you should enjoy the free ride while it lasts. We started to work on more complex mechanics for maintenance and repair. The battery will be most probably the next part that will be needed to get your vehicle functional so without it you can try to start the engine as many times as you want but it won’t get you anywhere, which also means that we are adding in the actual action for turning the engine over and off. If everything goes fine we will add animations for entering and exiting the vehicle as they were removed in last minute before release due some issues with action conditions that leads to undesirable results such as entering/exiting vehicle through closed doors. We are also working on setting up the inventory container for the V3S as with the current state of inventory implementation it is not trivial as it seems. New color variants of V3S are ready to go so you will be soon have the chance to drive also gray, orange and blue one.
You may ask what else is being worked on not regarding the vehicles? I’m glad that I can tell you there is a bunch of upcoming stuff that was hinted a long time ago, specifically silencers, chainsaw and suicide. Recently a feature to use more shooting sounds per firearm was added thus we can now made the silencers useful and bring them back to loot spawns. It also opens possibility for crafted ones so you will be able to decide if you keep that PET bottle as a water container or made a silencer from it. The chainsaw was put on hold for few reasons that were connected to animation and melee systems but now we feel it is quite a good time to push it in the wild finally at least in some crude form. We decided to redo the way how suicide was supposed to work completely. We ended up with a fluent part of the gameplay which doesn’t break up the immersion. Suicide starts with a gesture and while you are in this verbose pose you can still decide if you really want to pull the trigger and end your misery at once or leave it be and try harder to survive even with bad cards on your hand. Added value of this solution is that you can do such pose even with empty hand.
Apart from all that we are still improving the horticulture with the possibility of making fertilizer while cooking is being refactored with some advanced functionality in mind for example you will be able to put your ammunition to fireplace and examine what it will do with them over time. We are also supporting the hermit way of play. In the near future you won’t need to scavenge surroundings for loot and become self-sufficient if you wish and choose such a way to play. For now we will be adding new items and crafting possibilities including primitive stone blade and guts, next step will be to add bones, torch and alternative way to ignite the fire without matches.
Don’t forget to save some fuel for chainsaw… see you in Chernarus folks! ”
Standup Notes for the week of 01 Dec 14 (Note: Standup notes are not a change log - they are a quick high level look at tasks the teams worked on throughout this week)
Art: • Full length ghillie • Quilted Jacket • Bomber Jacket • High fidelity V3S instrument panel • Winchester Model 70 • Cleaver • Hatchet Animation: • Support to new Zombies • Optics • Vehicle animations • Chainsaw Animations • Sword animations
Design: • V3S Praga Bugfixing • Config and scripts for suicide • Silencer configs • Chainsaw configs • Loot defines for new centralized loot spawning
Programming: • Critical inventory fixes • Walkie/Talkie support/fixes • Sound System support • Loot distribution redesign/improvements • Audio/Global Messaging bugfixing • Vehicle simulation diagnostics / bugfix • Character connection issues (protecting players from attack while logging in/before being able to move)
November and December are busy months for DayZ. Coming up next week we’re aiming for the 0.51 update to stable branch, we have the conclusion of our Private Shard contest, and of course.. the initial implementation (at a very basic level) of wheeled vehicles into stable branch. It is important that when hunting for/fueling/driving these new base model V3S trucks across Chernarus you understand the limits, base functionality, and placeholder status of much associated at this time with the vehicle.
The V3S is not tied to the persistence system at this time, so when it restarts - it respawns.
Yes, worry not vehicles will save, just not at this time.
Much of the animations are in progress, we hope to greatly improve the visual immersion versus legacy animations when mounting and exiting
The interior of the cabin is still in progress, what is there currently is placeholder.
Instrumentation will eventually be the primary method for tracking speed, fuel, temperature, etc
New sound effects for the V3S will be recorded, for now we are using legacy placeholder sfx
At this time the bed / cargo / command sections of the V3S and its variants are disabled while we continue work on them
This means the truck has no item storage capacity, and seats two survivors (at this time!)
Very basic functionality is present for vehicle maintenance, this is limited to fuel consumption and refilling.
Further functionality is being worked on - spark plugs, exhaust, radiator, etc
This first initial implementation of vehicles in DayZ is aimed at tracking the network impact, physical simulation performance, and gameplay impact of this feature on the title. Be warned, this is the first time stable branch will get its hands on these systems, and there will be bugs. As with all systems, we will be iterating and expanding upon this as we move forward with development of DayZ. Aside from the V3S, 0.51 contains a strong amount of new mechanics, expanded systems, security hotfixes, and as always content. Going into December, we will be observing the impact of this update on stable branch and work on a end of year update for December with 0.52 mid-month.
On a more personal note, 0.51 - even with the title as early in development as it is has had a large impact on my playstyles within DayZ. I am very eager to see how survivors adapt and expand upon the world of Chernarus with these changes. In addition I hope to put a special status report up when 0.52 is published to stable branch (sort of a town hall style address) where myself, and the other leads recap the most impactful and persistent bugs in DayZ Early Access, and where we are / what the plans are for them moving into 2015.
As always, not a bandit. - Brian Hicks / Lead Producer
Standup Notes for the week of 24 Nov 14 (Note: Standup notes are not a change log - they are a quick high level look at tasks the teams worked on throughout this week)
Art: • Prison Complex • High fidelity V3S instrument panel • UH1Y Crashsite model • Prison-themed zombies
Animation: • Steyr Aug reload animations • Player Suicide Animations in Progress • Vehicle animations • Rifle sitting animations update • Zombies with new AI
Design: • V3S Praga Bugfixing • Config and scripts for prion disease balance • New content spawn points • Cooking extension • Loot defines for new centralized loot spawning
Programming: • Critical inventory fixes • Client/server performance • Client/server crash fixes • Loot distribution redesign/improvements • Player & Item duplication fixes • Vehicle simulation diagnostics / bugfix • Character connection issues (protecting players from attack while logging in/before being able to move)
Player Interaction is arguably the cornerstone of what makes DayZ magical. Be it friendly or hostile, direct or at a distance - the interactions between players within Chernarus is what makes the world come alive without a structured narative or reason to be. The drive to stay alive, and survive in itself compels the player to create their own story by way of the journey. You see the stories told through pictures, forum posts, youtube videos, and twitch streams all over the internet. As we move towards our Christmas break, making those experiences be as fluid and enjoyable as possible on a development build is a personal goal for the team. Server performance, and security fixes rank just as high as the remaining content and feature additions on the board for November, and the weeks available in December outside the holidays.
Recently I have taken to spending more time on the newly supported private shards, exploring their communities and observing the playstyle differences between their player bases and the public hive. First person only camera perspective seems to be increasingly popular within the private shard market, and I’ve personally had some amazing player interaction in those worlds. For those still on the fence when it comes to trying first person only servers, I strongly encourage you to give them a chance. Restricting the perspective to what your character can actually see has a large impact on how people approach the game, and other players.
As we approach the end of 2014 and look back at all the challenges, and accomplishments of the DayZ Early Access I can not help but get excited about the possibilities in the new year. A passionate and active community has allowed us to grow and adapt the design and functionality of the project so much more than the traditional development method does. Being able to deploy, test, and research how systems are utilized, and the impact that they have on the player base rather than the traditional closed method of development and hoping that when your titles hits shelves it has the effect and reception you had hoped, is amazing. I can’t wait to share the work left in 2014 with you all, and hopefully spend my Christmas in Chernarus.
(Not a bandit)
- Brian Hicks / Lead Producer
Standup Notes for the week of 17 Nov 14 (Note: Standup notes are not a change log - they are a quick high level look at tasks the teams worked on throughout this week)
Art: • Prison Complex • High fidelity V3S instrument panel • Military Tent & Ground Model • Prison-themed zombies
Animation: • Steyr Aug reload animations • Player Suicide Animations in Progress • Vehicle animations • Animation changes for new controls • Zombies with new AI Design: • Configs and scripts for V3S Praga • Config and scripts for prion disease • Vehicles • Cooking • Configuration for Military Tent
Programming: • Critical inventory fixes • Vehicle settings for physical simulations • New gamecontrols • Loot distribution improvements • Gameplay & Player Statistics • Client/Server crash triage & bugfixing • Character connection issues (protecting players from attack while logging in/before being able to move)
