I need to update to 1.4 anyway so I will reset the server. Hopefully that will help but I have been hearing issues with load/log in times.

S

Right on, thanks.

Waiting a bit until they stabilize Alpha 11. The mini bike looks really cool in Alpha 12.

I'm also getting back to Rust 2.0. Getting fleshed out with lots of changes.

So how is Rust 2.0? I remember the original being a fun game overrun with cheaters and griefers.

S

I thought it would be same old, same old with Rust Legacy (formerly the original Rust we all used to play) but pleasantly surprised with all the changes they put through in 2.0 (formerly called Rust Experimental).

If you go to www.rustafied.com there is a good summary of where the game is currently.

Not sure about the cheaters and griefers in 2.0 Haven't put in enough time to have an opinion on that, but general opinion of most regulars seem to suggest that 2.0 is an altogether different and better kettle of fish.

The premise of the game still has not changed though. It is still oriented towards a multiplayer PvP scenario. I think if you play Rust or DayZ, you have to realistically temper your expectations that the kind of people who populate the servers tend to be sociopaths. If I am honest, I have behaved in like manner many times in Rust and still have in-game footage of me acting the jacka$$ to prove the point

I have always thought it would be fun in a game like Rust to build a small community of like minded people for general protection. Kind of like a Mad Max scenario against all of the psychos. Unfortunately, I have always found there to be more psychos than the people I need for a community.

I think the ultimate reason for that is there is not enough of a downside to being insane. It is far and away the easier path. If there was more incentive to work together maybe that would change but who knows. People play games to be different than real life. I know I tend to be a more evil character in the games I play, but sometimes it would be cool to attempt real life in a completely different environment (the wasteland).

S

I told the devs to put in some game types.
If you could set up teams, 2 or even more....have a set number of days or a week for groups to build, prepare, arm themselves, set up defenses...then the next few days or week the war commences. Each team should have an object in their base that once someone from another team gets it, they win over that team. You should respawn in the room with the object so that it can't simply be walled off in an impenetrable room.
After someone wins over all groups, structures are wiped and everyone rebuilds again the next round.

Open world is fun for a while, but then goes to crap. The players you actually want get bored and move on, leaving just the cheaters.

Regrettably anti-social behavior is endemic on open world multiplayer systems. Getting a good community is more the exception than the rule.

On servers where we were not admins, I only ever saw a strong SimHQ community with DayZ mod but that didn't last all that long relatively speaking. As you said, people got bored and moved on. The other exception was when Marsvb ran a PVE DayZ server with several of us as admins and for a while we managed to keep everyone in line and enjoying themselves for a few months within the spirit of the server. But the longer the server went on, you can be sure there will be some regulars who start having their own ideas how a server ought to be run, and they get disillusioned if their self-entitlements are not met. Not surprised when Mars shut the thing down. He financed the server through his own pocket but some patrons were behaving like ingrates. Having said that, I think part of the problem with PVE is that people get bored eventually. They need some chaos and antagonism that is inherent with PvP to fuel their drive. Its a dichotomy. You need and even encourage antagonism to give people the incentive but its hard to put curbs on antagonism once it gather steam.

I think there are games out there where you can have a happy balance of a community working well together in a dangerous enviroment....where cooperation and communal protection, not factionalism, is essential for survival.

7 Days comes immediately to mind, but I think they need to up the ante in terms of zombie AI and aggression for the environment to be a credible threat. Right now the challenge comes when you are first establishing your base and necessities. Once you get all that down and begin to thrive, the zombies are a mere afterthought.

I can offer another viable alternative for coop play in a credible and truly dangerous game world. Dying Light modded with the 'I Am Legion' mod. I have put in many hours with DL since I bought it. The vanilla game starts off with a lot of potential but falls very short once your character levels up....way too easy, too boring. The 'I Am Legion' mod changed all that. It has great potental. I am currently roped in by the author as an Alpha tester for this mod because I think this is one of the top mods out now that will change DL gameworld to what a zombie apocalypse should be. I will write a full review on a separate thread but if you guys are looking for coop in an open gameworld that is both exciting, dangerous and stressful, do seriously consider engaging DL with the 'I Am Legion' mod. Wait for my review

I hate it but I have to agree with everything you said Harry. I love 7 days. I think it is the best early access I have ever been a part of, but the difficulty is wonky. Really hard early on. Really easy, once established.

I eagerly await the I am Legion right up. Does the mod just modify the late game difficulty or is it more than that?

S

You have a wait a bit for my review. I'm busy with a couple of things at the moment. He just came out with a newer version of the mod.

But to answer your question briefly, the mod ramps up the game difficulty to the max right from the gitgo. AI, weapons, skills and most everything have been/will be balanced. The ultimate goal is that even if you level up all your skills and perks to the max, the city will still be a dangerous place to be. Yes, you'll be a much more deadly combatant at max level but certainly not invincible like in the vanilla game.

I had a small taste of that after I max out many skills. You still have to fight smart. It's still very easy to die if you are not tactical. There's often very little opportunity to stay still in many parts of the city. In some locales, the swarms are so bad you do not even hang around to loot...you just haul a$$ out of the area. This is part of the mod author's idea of eventually making some parts 'No Go Areas'....which is realistic, I think.

But if you want to see the gameplay do check out his youtube videos here :-

http://www.nexusmods.com/dyinglight/mods/128/?tab=7&navtag=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.nexusmods.com%2Fdyinglight%2Fajax%2Fmodvideo%2F%3Fvtype%3D0%26id%3D128&pUp=1