The Roadmap Ahead

4sheetzngeegles

4sheetzngeegles

Hunter
This is a direct quote from Kickstarter

Dynamic Story Generation - The story unfolds through our “Dynamic Story Generation System”
which guides the player to other survivors, better loot and undiscovered Points of Interests
through story note quests.

Ironic detail
For all intent and purpose the promised story was completed when, traders quests were added.

So everyone that has ever even once, played and received "Opening Trade Routes Quest and went
to Trader Jen followed a part of the story". Anyone that has played on Nav, a pregen map, or
an RWG map be it standard or customized, and has open trade routes to Joel in the Wasteland,
completed the story.

The World - Explore a beautiful, hand crafted, voxel world with a multitude of biomes including:
wastelands, forests, snowy mountains, pine forests, plains, deserts, burn forests and radiation zones.
Handcrafted: That would be Nav map, and Pregens. Plains was there, and rad zone was transformed into the
border. CHECK

Points of Interest Presently 1,040. CHECK

Dynamic Story Generation: Read above. It has been in done and in game for going on three years. CHECK

Basic Survival: The only thing missing is domestication, but once chicken coops and beehives are added. CHECK

Day and Night Game Play: 24 hour cycle: Spend the day looting, mining, crafting and building up your forts defenses,
as light slows down and weakens the zombies. Was changed to, regulars during day, feral at night.
Hold up somewhere safe at night as the lunar cycle speeds up and strengthens the zombies. Many players-many posts
verify that they stay in someplace safe at night. CHECK

Looting, Mining and Crafting: Loot and mine a multitude of items and ingredients to create hundreds of items including
melee weapons, guns, traps, generators, motorized tools, motion detectors, landmines, auto-turrets, salves, potions and
more using our 5x5 grid Crafting System. Grid changed to individual representations for each crafting device. CHECK

Relentless and Special Enemies: Enemies will claw, jump, climb and break their way through the world in order to get to
you. They can see, smell and hear the player and can work in a group. And watch out for the unique special infected
enemies like the Acid Puking Hulk whose acidic vomit can melt blocks. Smell became feral sense, Cop puke toned down
by popular request. CHECK

Block Physics and Stability: Our Physics System simulates real-time structural integrity, durability and mass. Blocks
don’t float in the air nor can you build an unsound unsupported structure. Build it right or watch it come crumbling
down. Weak blocks can even fall from the weight of the player or zombies. So they were staying true to statement when
they were shown floating bases a long standing misunderstanding. Progressed from minecraft blocks to smooth terrain. CHECK

Item Quality and Food & Water Purity: Both color coded and numbered. 3 levels of water. Lots of food and medical recipes.
CHECK

Stealth and Distraction System: Rocks and snowballs, and one other seldom if ever mentioned. Leave a dead timid with one
hit left on carcass. CHECK

XP and Skill Trees: Available and also, A main topic constantly. CHECK

Solo, Cooperative and Multiplayer: CHECK

Creative User Tools: Both DM and CM available, but creativity depends on the individual. CHECK

The EXTRAS:
Seasonal weather effects: Snow, Rain, Wind simulation, Storms, Temperature was before and making a comeback.
Enhanced pro soundtrack: Subjective but completed. More wild animals, mountain lion, coyotes, cats and dogs living
together, mass hysteria. A paraphrase of ghostbusters the movie. Animals can turn into zombies too. Zombie dog,zombie
vulture. CHECK

Npcs and Merchants, Merchants are NPCs. New additional NPC characters to discover, Joel, Bob, Hugh, Jen, Rekt.
They never said new ones added with each alpha. So CHECK

Pro voice actors: CHECK

Bandits, is more of an after advertisement addon. It doesn't say anywhere on the page that they are part of a story.
The only reference on the page for

THE BANDITS - Get a Bandit likeness of yourself in the game (Must submit a high res picture or yourself) + 2 VIP
tickets to the launch party + 7 Days to Die T-Shirt + Character Poster + World Map + Name in the credits + Alpha +
Beta + Finished Game + Kickstarter Backer Badge. No investors so CHECK by default.

Conclusion: Everything on the Kickstarter page is or has been in game, maybe not as expected but produced.
Everything else being conversed or promised or requested, from the point of all of the above would at most be
a Pimp Dream, or mod addon.

Although there are some things that were discussed on Dev streams. For what is primarily discussed now, That is
mostly just player expectations.

Taking the 85 alphas that I have archived over the years, no duplicates, including V2.3 and minus the 1.3 that I lost.
It averages out to a release of every 1.38 months per alpha update. And there are still two more major segments to go.

So anything that TFP adds from now on, would be completing secondary promises and dreams initiated by Streams.
I can't wait to see how things develop from now until 4.0. It should be interesting.
 
theFlu said:
I ain't gonna pick a fight over it, even if TFP actually follow that logic; but I gotta say, that doesn't sound like Story Generation to me. There's no, you know, story involved.
Click to expand...
I don't think they will, but reading Kickstarter again after, the passed week reading posts and opinions, I looked at
the literal writing vs the hope for what it means. Then I thought of what Roland posted about the simplicity of a story
inclusion. Can't get simpler than that.
 
4sheetzngeegles said:
Then I thought of what Roland posted about the simplicity of a story inclusion. Can't get simpler than that.
Click to expand...
Not sure what he said, but I fully expect the story to essentially be some specific tasks for each trader. Not necessarily quite as simple as "set up food and meds with/for Rekt and Jen, an APC with Bob" etc; but not too far from it.
 
theFlu said:
Not sure what he said, but I fully expect the story to essentially be some specific tasks for each trader. Not necessarily quite as simple as "set up food and meds with/for Rekt and Jen, an APC with Bob" etc; but not too far from it.
Click to expand...
"Trader reputation" would seem to indicate as much, but we've yet to see the main characters' compounds and how they affect the game world. Is it territorialism? Yet to be determined.....
 
Technically NPCs and merchants have been added. However since they made a point of saying both it is expected that NPCs outside of traders will be added.
 
Well it says NPC characters AND merchants. So those non trader npc´s are sure still missing. It also says NPC controlled safe houses. Can´t be the trader, it isn´t a safe house if you get ejected at 22:00.

It also says expanded story. So nope, they didn´t hit the kickstarter goal here either. As we only have the trade routes the expanded part is also clearly missing.

We were always told, mostly by mods though, that story is one of the very last things adeed, so i think there will be more to it.
 
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Samcharles said:
Technically NPCs and merchants have been added. However since they made a point of saying both it is expected that NPCs outside of traders will be added.
Click to expand...
Technically, the merchant is just a talking mannequin. He can't interact with objects (like weapons), he can't move, and he can't do many other things either.
 
Version 2.3
They are set to be immobile, but this is their reference in the xml.

<entity_class name="npcTraderTemplate">
<property name="ModelType" value="Npc"/>
<property name="Prefab" value="NPC"/>
<property name="NPCID" value="traderric"/>

<entity_class name="npcTraderJoel" extends="npcTraderTemplate">
<property name="UserSpawnType" value="Menu"/>
<property name="Tags" value="entity,npc,human,trader"/>
<property name="Mesh" value="@:Entities/Traders/Prefabs/TraderJoel.prefab"/>
<property name="NPCID" value="traitorjoel"/> I THINK SOMEONE EITHER MADE A BOO BOO OR.....
<property name="DanceType" value="1"/>
</entity_class>
 
4sheetzngeegles said:
Version 2.3
They are set to be immobile, but this is their reference in the xml.

<entity_class name="npcTraderTemplate">
<property name="ModelType" value="Npc"/>
<property name="Prefab" value="NPC"/>
<property name="NPCID" value="traderric"/>

<entity_class name="npcTraderJoel" extends="npcTraderTemplate">
<property name="UserSpawnType" value="Menu"/>
<property name="Tags" value="entity,npc,human,trader"/>
<property name="Mesh" value="@:Entities/Traders/Prefabs/TraderJoel.prefab"/>
<property name="NPCID" value="traitorjoel"/> I THINK SOMEONE EITHER MADE A BOO BOO OR.....
<property name="DanceType" value="1"/>
</entity_class>
Click to expand...
Let's say the Fun Pimps were taken to court and sued over not delivering the promised NPCs. The Fun Pimps' lawyers would argue that traders "technically" fit the role of NPCs, just like you're doing.

Now, let's say that both the claimant's lawyers and the Fun Pimps' lawyers are equally expensive and equally skilled.

Based on the other promises in the kickstarter: “NPC Characters and Merchants”, “NPC Controlled Safe Houses Added” and “New Additional NPC Characters to Discover”...while still not 100% specific in their definition, would be enough for the Fun Pimps to lose the case.

People that like to be "technically right" in arguments fail to understand that in contract law there is something called the "Reasonable Person Standard". It asks: what would an average, ordinary person expect from the wording used, in the context of the project?

Long story short: no. People did not get the promised NPCs.
 
Factions will make some of the bandits hostile and some friendly depending on the reputation you build. We already know that POIs are getting hooks to be bandit-inhabited. What do you call a POI inhabited by friendly bandits? An NPC controlled safehouse.

I don't know what I said regarding simplicity of the story. I think the original kickstarter goal is the simplest most minimalist way to do a story... finding notes. If they exceed that by utilizing NPC interactions via friendly and hostile bandits then great-- but we aren't really entitled to anything more than random notes that send us on a chain of POI checkpoints until we find the last note and learn how the apocalypse started. But, I do believe that models for both the Duke and Noah have been worked on and whatever story we get will at least involve a final confrontation between one of these two bosses depending on which faction we decide to support. Time will tell. Lots of time...
 
I for one don't care whether everything promised is out yet. If they keep updating an making the game fun I'm more than satisfied.

I know a lot of people dislike the current direction and I have my fair share of criticism and compliments to give on various things but at the end of the day I still have a lot of fun with the game and think each update make the game better overall.

Would I like bandits and end game? Sure. Would I like to see more incentives towards diversifying the game away from just questing? Absolutely. Could there be more neat things like expanded dynamic weather and randomized events? Of course. Do I still enjoy the game without those things? 100% YES!

Asking for new or better gameplay for me isn't the same as not appreciating the game and where it's at. For me it's just wanting the game to be even better. I still enjoy it and even if I step away for another game this is one I keep coming back to more than any game I own.
 
Roland said:
Factions will make some of the bandits hostile and some friendly depending on the reputation you build. We already know that POIs are getting hooks to be bandit-inhabited. What do you call a POI inhabited by friendly bandits? An NPC controlled safehouse.

I don't know what I said regarding simplicity of the story. I think the original kickstarter goal is the simplest most minimalist way to do a story... finding notes. If they exceed that by utilizing NPC interactions via friendly and hostile bandits then great-- but we aren't really entitled to anything more than random notes that send us on a chain of POI checkpoints until we find the last note and learn how the apocalypse started. But, I do believe that models for both the Duke and Noah have been worked on and whatever story we get will at least involve a final confrontation between one of these two bosses depending on which faction we decide to support. Time will tell. Lots of time...
Click to expand...
I wonder if that new ReJekts POI will be part of that for the bandits?
 
The main topic of my post was talking about the Kickstarter, goals.

The way I look at the game, just reading, is in two separate development goals or cycles,
Reaching 1.0 which is really A22 was the identification of coming to completion of goal one
of two. Which was the kickstarter portion. Then part two is split into 3 sections. Those
came about over the years of dev stream posts, social media posts, and forum interaction
posts. Which are viewed as promises, shown by posts.

Many of the player posts that I have read especially during more recent timeline,
cross between the two mixing them. I only acknowledged that they had finally reached one of
their literal goals, the kick starter finally.

That to me means just as Vanilla is considered a template for modding, finally finishing
up the last of the add-ons frees them up from the technical obligations, and opens up the
creative side again, just like it was in the beginning. I don't mean specific alphas, I
mean the actual thought and energy that came and could be felt, as the game developed. That
is what was the attraction. And over time that is what feels like has lost a step.

The rest of my post was in regard to the additional, expansion thoughts that have
come about over the years, and the building of individual expectations, that each time
moves more to the fantastic, so when the new additions are being added, they will always
fall short of expectation, and not measure up to an individual's standard , no matter what is released.

The evidence recently for the phase two regarding expectations is the reception of the storms, and
entities. It went from storm's brewing straight to a literal ■■■■storm of distention because of
expectations of how each person felt it should be. The arguments are all over the spectrum.

Like Roland posted above, Factions which were in the xml, indicates alliances, mods have been built
on them. All of this is expandable.

Trader quest line, though simple does provide a foundation, for a linear guiding which is what a
story does. That can be expanded upon, maybe not to the liking of some, considering the repeated posts
regarding linear progression. Personally I'm excited to see the outcome. Especially if the energy
has finally returned.

My conclusion statement was,

So anything that TFP adds from now on, would be completing secondary promises and dreams initiated
by Streams. I can't wait to see how things develop from now until 4.0. It should be interesting.
 
4sheetzngeegles said:
Version 2.3
They are set to be immobile, but this is their reference in the xml.

<entity_class name="npcTraderTemplate">
<property name="ModelType" value="Npc"/>
<property name="Prefab" value="NPC"/>
<property name="NPCID" value="traderric"/>

<entity_class name="npcTraderJoel" extends="npcTraderTemplate">
<property name="UserSpawnType" value="Menu"/>
<property name="Tags" value="entity,npc,human,trader"/>
<property name="Mesh" value="@:Entities/Traders/Prefabs/TraderJoel.prefab"/>
<property name="NPCID" value="traitorjoel"/> I THINK SOMEONE EITHER MADE A BOO BOO OR.....
<property name="DanceType" value="1"/>
</entity_class>
Click to expand...
That line is intentional. Even his compound used to say Traitor on the sign. I haven't paid attention to see if it still does after they updated the compounds, but I don't think so. It is just likely a joke about Joel. There are a number of different jokes or Easter eggs in the game.
 
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Smell is gone, still missing cats and dogs, multitude of animals that can be domesticated? Fail to see how chicken and beehive counts as multitude but baby steps for a game thats been in development for 13 years I guess.

Enemies dont climb since they removed that ability from the spider zombie unless you want to count going up and down ladders as climbing.

Saying that traders sending us from one trader spot to another is dynamic story generation or even the quest they give us to kill zombies or fetch a purse is one hell of a stretch.

We had temperature and seasons but all of that was removed along with the clothing system. Adding in features then removing them doesnt mean they are still part of the game and if they are going to add those back in that is a wait and see consider what a terrible job was done with the storms brewing update which was supposed to be the big weather overhaul update.

Yes the team has completed a decent amount of the kick starter goals after so many years and so many reworks but this current version of the game is nothing like what was promised especially with so many features still missing.

Alpha 16 with all its jank and issues was closer to completion of the kick starter goals than the game is in its current state.
 
Slingblade2040 said:
still missing cats and dogs
Click to expand...
I never took that part seriously, actually I always have to watch streams multiple times and reread posts. Because
of a lot of marketing and hype talk.

That part was a paraphrased quote, from The original ghostbusters film.
Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together... mass hysteria!........Bill Murray.

But I also looked at, the verbal and literal. Like @Double G posted above. Once written or recorded it becomes
real. So after I would look at how that was handled later. It may have been intended as an attempt at witticism,
but is not always taken that way.

If there were more, just straight talk on both sides, there would be less misrep or misinterpretation. Of course on
the other side of that it would be a flatter, and each word would need to be exact, or focus on a single word could
cause an instant derailment. I just find it interesting how things have developed on both sides of the discussions.

When I watch the streams, I look at what is the minimal necessity for what ever is proposed to be done or added.
The rest is just hype talk, but that's marketing.

The traders' quests: are minimalist, yes, but it has each of the elements, written about. Just the elements, which as
a foundation, can be built on and expanded.

The NPC controlled safe house scenario, the compounds had a lot of mini garage storage units, a couple with mattresses
There was a mod where you could rent, or stay in those areas, over night. Laz Man and the crew are creating more intricate
Pois so they may be a precursor to the expansion too.

Since the coding, is still there for all of the things that have been removed, it is possible to be re-enabled. It just has to be
retrofitted, to work in the new environment. An example is temperature: the original code was based on up and down, or
vertical calculations. Now it has to be performant, but it has to be recalculated for a horizontal grid.
 
I will agree that I don't think a reasonable person would conclude that the story is completed. Perhaps the best thing to a story we have is the duke's note in the beginning.
 
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