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How long do YOU survive?


Batsphinx

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This isn't a question that's about difficulty levels, or how skilled a player you are... more just how long your games of PZ take to play out in terms of in-game days, months and years - no matter what your game mode or sandbox settings.

 

Following on from the integration of Turbo's weather and seasonal change systems, we're currently working out ways to make stuff like farming and the 'nature takes over' aspects of the Erosion system more closely tied with the year as it progresses.

 

But, if we do stuff like this - how many players will actually play through / survive until the spring to cultivate a certain crop? Will people notice that Erosion growth systems kick in around that time too, when it's 150 days+ after most people have started their game?

 

I'm wondering whether we should change the start date of the game too - so more people see the more varied aspects of the weather system later in the year. 

 

Should we even consider a scenario in which a PZ year isn't a 365 day year? (I'd find this a bit weird, but there could be ways?) 

 

So anyway, HOW LONG DO YOU SURVIVE? Do let us know 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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I usually play at 1 day=15 minutes so I can speed through the year. I used to call one year one playthrough, but now I recognize when I'm in a good enough position to *likely* make it through the year and I drop out at that point, typically 2-4 months in. As more systems are implemented to complicate the later game, that'll definitely lead to longer save files for me.

 

That said, a year is a hella long playthrough for many people. A casual option might be to have one in-game day represent abstract performance over a week, or 1 game day=7 calendar days.

 

I would seriously consider moving the start date to early/mid spring, to emphasize Winter as the hardest stage of the game (at least as it stands now) and having that come at the end of the year.

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Mostly a month, and it's simply because I get to a point where I get too cocky, and/or feel as if I've achieved a self-sustainability and I need action and danger so I end up getting myself killed. It does feel though as some systems in the future *cough*, will change that when there may be more than one threat and some storytelling, stuff like that. I like the 365 days, but I doubt the majority of the player base will reach that, and probably all because of different reasons.

 

Would you change the start date for all players permanently or put in an option when selecting? I mean you could add options when selecting the game modes (besides sandbox since we already have it) to select one of the four seasons to start the game in with a description of how it affects gameplay.

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I think a more accurate question then would be "How long do your maps last?"

2 hours ago, Batsphinx said:

But, if we do stuff like this - how many players will actually play through / survive until the spring to cultivate a certain crop?

Its probably irreverent. Sure not every player will let their maps run long enough to experience it all, but not every player takes the time to experience every aspect of the game anyways. That's the result of having so much depth (this is a positive, not a negative).

In all the time I've played, I've never once farmed. Or trapped. Or spent time foraging. Hell...I rarely even bother cooking.

 

But in answer to the question, since I only play on our MP server...it usually goes from stable release to the next stable release. We don't reset unless we have to.

Our current time has been about 1 year. I'd be fine with changing the starting date, but please keep the years the standard length.

 

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There are two things that usually keep me from progressing beyond several months in an average game.

 

1: Day length. I feel like 30 minutes is a a bit too short seeing as how much inventory management/looking at menus the game has. The next day length option jumps to double, at 60 minutes which is way too long IMO. I've long wished for a 40 or 45 minute day length option. Longer days let you do more at a time, while that along exposes the player to more danger, the more experienced you are the more the risk diminishes, just leaving you with extra time to gather supplies and avoid the dark.

 

2: Zombie behavior. Even when I set up base in middle of downtown, after I clear it out I usually don't have significant problems with zombies any more. Once I get established I start to want more excitement so I will go out and do dangerous things to get more action. Maybe NPCs will change this, I don't know. But the occasional zombie siege, small and big should be more of a thing to keep things interesting. Modified by base size, average noise level, that sort of thing. This and more long term goals and projects would help provide more motivation for the long games. As it is now, only the helicopter event is a feared threat and from my perspective it's a little too blunt and arbitrary.  I'd rather it seem more organic, or emergent, and surprising.

 

 

I usually turn erosion down to the minimal times to increase the chance I'll get to enjoy them.

 

 

Ultimately what I would suggest is implement some non-identifying datamining into the game that reports back to you guys the goings-on of users games so you can really see what the average user gets up to and when. Just scarf up all the tasty data and see how it is. But be transparent about it because some people are paranoid.  If it requires user consent, then you'll have to make it stupidly easy and convenient to report it because people are lazy.

 

 

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Around 5 months or something.

I think nature taking over is nice but not too much (like my base gets destroyed or something by nature and there's nothing i can do about that) and i don't think most players would experience that since it would need to take more than one year for that to happen, i would say it's a waste of time for now.

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I have a very conservative approach to the game and usually I last years... unless I'm getting bored and do stupid dangerous things and get killed :-D.

But I really like this game for its plausible realism. Therefore, from my perspective, I would prefer that you won't implement "gamey" ideas such as short years or similar.

 

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I don't really die anymore, but my playthroughs usually last between 6 months and a year (that's the time it takes for me to get tired of a char / start over to try something different / take a little break from PZ), except for my last one wich is currently 18 months and counting. 

 

Integration of erosion with the weather system sounds very interesting, I wonder If we could get a couple of examples to better understand how would that work.

 

7 hours ago, Batsphinx said:

 

I'm wondering whether we should change the start date of the game too - so more people see the more varied aspects of the weather system later in the year. 

 

 

I think that should vary depending on the difficulty chosen (imminent winter being the hardest), or something like that.

 

 

7 hours ago, Batsphinx said:

 

Should we even consider a scenario in which a PZ year isn't a 365 day year? (I'd find this a bit weird, but there could be ways?) 

 

 

No please, the current format fits the game perfectly.

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I'm also somewhere between 1-3 months. 
I usually start over when I have a new mod I want to play with, or play a server with a friend. 

 

I'll usually play with Helicopter set on 'sometimes' and shack up somewhere after a few weeks. Every now and then, a horde is too much for me to hold out against, and I lose everything I'd built, which can contribute to me starting new (depending on the extent of the damage, and how settled I am) 

 

Longest playthrough was about 4-5 months, but I did not realise that generators with low condition explode. (This was a private server with a friend) 

We had enough stuff / started a rebuild in a new location, but we wanted to change the settings up and start fresh, so we set out to make a new server anyway. 

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I feel there would be a big difference between multiplayer and single-player. I personally only ever play single-player and like to start a new game after my character dies, rather than creating a new one. When I die really depends on the game mode. Survival tends to be up to a week or two, while Initial Infection or The First Week I could last ~3 months, until I get bored and create a new game. 
 

15 hours ago, trombonaught said:

I would seriously consider moving the start date to early/mid spring, to emphasize Winter as the hardest stage of the game (at least as it stands now) and having that come at the end of the year.

I'd somewhat agree with moving the date to spring, especially with the increased difficulty with the weather update in surviving Winter and even Summer. Although then it would be even less likely for people to experience some of the really nice winter effects that Turbo has added. I've never even experienced winter when I'm playing the game normally...

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1 hour ago, Vaileasys said:

I'd somewhat agree with moving the date to spring, especially with the increased difficulty with the weather update in surviving Winter and even Summer. Although then it would be even less likely for people to experience some of the really nice winter effects that Turbo has added. I've never even experienced winter when I'm playing the game normally...

This gave me a thought- put the start date at the end of winter/very early spring, to showcase a bit of the snowy weather while the players still have loot to live off of.

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2 months, 15 days and counting, but it is only because I broke my leg pretty bad and I can't go outside. The minute this fracture heal, I know that I am going to die trying to find some jar lids, or whatever junk that has me obsessed at that moment. 

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6 - 12 weeks

I've still never seen a PZ winter in a game with the standard start date  : /

I either get killed in the first week while getting set up, or I take an unnecessary risk once I'm "secure".

I like 1/2 speed in sandbox, but as mentioned above a 3/4 setting would be perfect IMO. 

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Mostly playing MP with my friends and we usually quit after we get self-sustainable, which differs due to my mood when I set the difficulty. We normally play for two months before we hit this point.

As for why we only play such a "short" amount: I think this is another topic and I will start another thread for it.

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