Standalone Version of DayZ Delayed

The standalone retail version of DayZ – the Zombie-themed mod for technical shooter Arma 2 that has taken the internet by storm over the last few months – is to be delayed. The retail version of the game was intended for a December release window, but that has obviously now come and gone, with no sign of the game – and developers Behemoth Interactive have stated that the whole game engine is going to be re-vamped, in order to provide gamers with the best possible gameplay experience.

As reported by Kotaku, DayZ creator Dean Hall stated the following in a blog post:

Put simply, DayZ Standalone isn’t here because we had the chance to go from making a game that was just the mod improved slightly, packaged simply, and sold – to actually redeveloping the engine and making the game the way we all dreamed it could be. This blew any initial plans we had dictated to pieces.

The plan from here is straightforward. We will be releasing a closed test imminently, during which approximately 500-1000 people will assist in ensuring our architecture is correctly functioning. This closed test will be focused purely on architecture, not the game design. Once we have confirmed fixes for issues arising from the closed test, we will then reschedule an internal date for our public release.

He also went on to say that this new “plussed” version will feature an overhaul to the very clunky Arma 2 inventory system, a new item scavenging system, a simpler interface, and lots of new art. There is currently now schedule for this, but the test is due to begin soon.