I'm bored waiting for the gf at the DMV so I wanted to write some thoughts.
I started playing DayZ in 2012 maybe. Around when the mod was coming out and growing. I was so excited to play but I wasn't able to run Arma 2 when I bought it, which lead to me buying my first computer upgrade. I had my friend instruct my mom and I how to put the GPU in my computer through skype. After that, we were off.
I loaded in to join my friends. They were at what I would come to learn was the firehouse in Elektro. I had spawned near them but it was nighttime so I couldnt see anything. I saw their flashlight signals in the distance and sprinted past zombies to get to them. It felt intense and when I finally got to them our adventure was about to begin.
Running through towns finding anything and everything. We collected guns, food, tires, gas tanks, anything we could find really. We would travel up to the NWAF in our bus of 8 people and storm it. Not to mention all the people we ran into through it all. The risk of losing everything we had worked for was always in the back of my mind, but there was also a risk that they would be killed and everything they had would be ours. I loved that feeling. The high-risk high-reward gameplay was intoxicating and it came to become my favorite game.
Flash forward 8 years. I haven't played DayZ in years besides checking up on it every few months. The mod I loved had died and the standalone game we were promised was so disgustingly mismanaged. It was nothing at all what they promised. It was not a completely new engine. It literally was a modified version of the Arma 2 engine, bugs and all. The same bugs we had for YEARS plagued this new game I had so much hope for. (I know there was a relatively recent engine update. I have played it and it is nice but WAY too late. It's already dead.)
I had just been playing the usual games I do for a long time but it felt like there was something missing. They didn't capture something I loved so much and longed for. The round would end and you would restart. Manage your eco and you're back in a round or two. Die and queue into a new game. Level up your skills and kill bosses you want whenever. It wasnt enough.
I had always heard about this game my friends were playing. I put off getting into it for what seemed like forever. There's no open world? What's a raid? Are scavs people or AIs? I would open a stream for a minute and close it. It seemed similar to what I wanted but too different to jump on right away. It wasnt until I finally convinced myself to eat the $45 and try it for myself that I realized.
This game is amazing. I'm currently Lvl 12 this wipe. My last raid was my 100th raid and I have 250hrs. What a blast. I've had feelings I haven't had in years playing games. Learning all the spots on the map and little intricacies to give you an edge is overwhelming, but it feels awesome when you finally put it to use in the moment. All the 1v5 clutchs or drops from bosses or gear upgrades could NEVER match the thrill of stumbling halfway across Customs alone, both legs black, hungry and dehydrated with a graphics card shoved in your asshole, hoping you dont die or run into anyone before you can extract because if you get out your bank will triple.
Tldr; thank you for this amazing game. I hope to see it fully realized one day. I see a lot of complaining on here about BSG. Being a newer player I don't know what you guys have gone through so far. It might be justified, but from my POV I see a labor of love for people like us who want an immersive and hardcore experience. IMO, it has already exceeded my expetations and I couldn't be happier to pay for this game and hopefully one day upgrade to do my part.
Have a good day, see u guys in raid 👋
