“I realize some people are upset at my departure from the project for two months to climb Mt Everest…”
So concludes the most unlikely devblog ever committed to html. It’s a postcard about radios, zombie pathfinding and deer animation, sent from the foot of a breathtaking mountain. And back home in Prague, it sounds like Bohemia’s DayZ Standalone team are already cresting the peak of their own.
The most exciting nugget of info to arrive in the latest DayZ Standalone update is about radio implementation, which Hall says will allow players to communicate using a similar, but less complicated system to that of the popular ACARS radio mod for Arma 2. Players can turn their device’s microphone and speaker on or off, and use it as a listening device – but output will be audible or visible as text to other prying players unless the player crafts a nifty pair of headphones.
The results, says Hall, are “fantastic”. Bohemia programmer Bebul is now working to ensure that the system works in all cases in multiplayer.
Bohemia’s animation squad, meanwhile, are building the interior data necessary for indoor zombie pathfinding. They’re testing animations for animals and a fully-fledged melee system.
The team hope to channel Cormac McCarthy’s The Road via some new damaged road decals, and I imagine seven remade towns should go some way in capturing its sense of existential and natural devastation too. On top of that, newly purchased satellite data has improved the detail of the base Chernarus map when seen from a distance.
Hall confirmed that community-written books submitted for in-game inclusion are currently undergoing editorial scrutiny. While he refused to offer timeframes and implored fans to be patient, Hall said that the community submissions, alongside real-world literature past its copyright sell-by date, would form the basis of “hundreds or thousands of books that can be found and read in the world”.
Elsewhere, work continues apace on art for character models, weapons, and crafting items, as well as Steamworks integration, inventory system bugs, and the careful heavy lifting needed to move DayZ across to its new cheat-unfriendly server-client architecture.
“Hopefully from this you can see the large team Bohemia have assembled behind the development that are continuing to innovate and develop DayZ Standalone in the direction of the game we all want,” said Hall, reiterating his hope that an initial alpha version of the game will go live once the architectural transition is complete.
What sort of adventures do you imagine having with your new wireless? If you aren’t already envisioning farmhouse ambushes, be aware that others will be.