H1Z1 rolls out its latest update this week introducing players to the Arcade mode, limited time events that throw a wrench into the proverbial hornets nest and change the way you play. This week and next week sees the introduction of Shotties and Snipers which is exactly what it sounds like: The only weapons available are shotguns and snipers.
The future of H1Z1 includes new leaderboards for season 2, new weapons for all ranges, and new daily challenges.
(Source: Daybreak press release)
The day is here: H1Z1 has finally launched as free to play on Playstation 4. Launch day brings with it a new content drop, introducing two new weapons (an RPG and a sniper rifle), a new vehicle (the five-man ARV) and new launch bundles as well. H1Z1 on Playstation 4 was built from the ground up for consoles, streamlining the interface, control scheme, and inventory for faster paced games that feel at home on the console’s controller.
“Everyone here at Daybreak Games is thrilled with the overwhelmingly positive response to H1Z1’s debut on PS4,” said H1Z1 Producer Terrence Yee. “Ten million new players in our first month in Open Beta is an incredible milestone, and our entire development team has worked tirelessly to build on that early success. We’re beyond excited to officially launch H1Z1 on PS4—this is our fully realized vision for battle royale on console.”
Today also marks the launch of the first season battle pass. Playstation gamers can unlock up to 30 rewards from three tiers (free, premium, PS+) for completing missions and leveling up. The battle pass sells for $5.49 USD.
(Source: H1Z1 Press Release)
Daybreak Game Company announced this week that H1Z1, the formerly zombie-based survival shooter turned Battle Royale title, will be launching on Playstation 4 officially on August 7. Upon launch, the game will officially become free to play and introduce a bevvy of new content including two new weapons, a new vehicle, season one of the game’s battle pass, two launch bundles, and optimizations to be sure.
H1Z1 has been trucking away on Playstation 4 in open beta, attracting more than 10 million players (that’s about 1 in every 7 PS4 owners). For more information on the update, check out the link below.
(Source: H1Z1)
If you’ve been playing H1Z1 on Playstation 4, you’re probably well aware that the endgame mostly revolves around and relies on players obtaining vehicles, occasionally getting out of their cars to pop shots at one another until only one person is left alive. In a post on the H1Z1 subreddit titled “Wrangling the Car Rodeo,” Daybreak Game Company has posted its intention to diminish the valuable role that vehicles play in-game.
Now Daybreak has already enacted some measures to curb vehicle dependency, including the EMP grenade, air strike gun, and disabling collision with players, but the next update should do more to reduce the effectiveness of vehicles rather than simply implementing a counter to them. In addition to considering updates including a map-wide EMP that would disable all vehicles at a certain point presumably in the late stages, Daybreak will reduce the total gas by 50% and reduce damage resistance to all vehicles except for the ATV which already doesn’t prevent much damage.
(Source: Reddit)
Daybreak Game Company this week is celebrating a new milestone as H1Z1 surpasses 10 million players on Playstation 4. In the game’s first month of open beta, over 102 million hours have been played with 167 million kills racked up.
Accompanying this news is another update to the title, introducing revive mechanics in group play, aim acceleration adjustments, as well as the new self-explanatory airstrike signal weapon. People who have already downloaded H1Z1 prior to Wednesday will receive a Darkfire Pickup Truck and Sunrise Parachute skin override that will be sent out this weekend.
(Source: Daybreak Press Release)
I’ve been trying to put my finger on why I am enjoying H1Z1 on the Playstation 4. Is it the graphics? No, those are relatively standard for a game of this style and mostly subpar in the greater scheme of the Playstation. Is it the streamlined controls and faster paced action than its PC counterpart? We’re probably getting closer. Is it the fact that I can get through a match, kill seven people, and actually have a fleeting shot of winning? Absolutely.
Competence goes a long way toward enjoyment.
H1Z1 is a battle royale game from Daybreak Game Company, originally released on PC and now ported over to PS4 sans its survival mode counterpart. The PS4 version down to its fundamentals is a port of the PC copy but with a lot of the intricacies stripped out. Gone is crafting, your inventory, weapon attachments, and more. What’s left is a survival mode shooter that will likely make you happy that the game isn’t pulling such complicated systems in a rather fast paced game and handing you a controller to fumble your way through it.
For those of you who have managed to avoid this genre, I’ll go over the details: H1Z1 throws up to 100 players on to an island littered with weapons, armor, and vehicles and has them battle it out to the last remaining survivor. You and 99 players are essentially thrown into an arms race where you try to build up your offensive and defensive power by raiding the numerous towns, houses, and camps that litter the landscape. As the match progresses the playable area gets smaller as a toxic gas slowly encroaches upon players. This ultimately leads to each map starting of slow, watching players get picked off, and ending with just a massacre of the remaining players as they all get grouped up into the last remaining safe spaces.
As a genre, the battle royale game mode is all about your experiences and how you experience the game is directly related to whether or not you enjoy it, and how much. Combat is fleeting so there tends to be more memorable moments of survival or failure, like the time I hunkered down in a gas station and wound up taking out six players before being forced out by the toxic gas, or the time I parachuted into the world only to immediately have my brains blown out by some guy who found a pistol seconds before I did. Victory, while likely more common in group games, always seems to have a memorable story behind it of you and the other last remaining dude or dudette battling it out in the toxic fog.
Controls and handling in H1Z1 is pretty unique compared to other shooters on the platform. Guns are tight and control pretty much how you would expect for a third person shooter, but vehicle handling is all over the place thanks to a rather wonky physics system. You’ll be spending a fair amount of time driving in a vehicle, so getting used to the loose turning is going to be necessary for survival.
What makes the gunplay so special in H1Z1 is that the game is very straight forward in how it plays. There is a large enough variety that you’ll inevitably find your favorite close and long range weapons, but basic enough that you’ll figure out what each weapon does within the first few games. Weapons are familiar enough that you’ll know how they work: Pistols can shoot faster but do less damage, or slower and be more powerful. Shotguns are killer at close range while SMGs shoot fast to make up for their lack of punch. The only wacky weapon that H1Z1 really has to offer is the crossbow that shoots explosive arrows, great for area of effect damage or destroying a moving vehicle.
Equipment you pick up is also huge for your survival. You will find basic helmets and makeshift armor everywhere, with higher end military gear available only from caches that dot the landscape. You can also find backpacks that let you carry more weapons and combat boots that let you run faster.
Microtransactions come down to cosmetics which in turn act sort of weird. You can buy gold and then spend said gold on loot crates or earn them through gameplay, and those crates in turn unlock cosmetics for various weapons/equipment that effectively override your current default. How does this work in a game where your items are all found throughout the world? I’m glad you asked. When you equip said item, the look gets overridden to your default. Simple as.
End of the day, I feel like H1Z1 is a game that people will either hate or they will love, until they hit three bad games in a row of dying within three minutes of landing, and log off to stop themselves from angrily throwing their controller through the television, and come online to finish the beta review that they should have done two days ago.
Unless that’s just me.
H1Z1 has officially hit the Playstation 4 and in the 24 hours since open beta began more than 1.5 million players have downloaded the game to their system.
“This is an incredible milestone and we want to thank all of our player who helped make this possible,” said H1Z1 Producer Terrence Yee. “We believe we’ve found the right balance for battle royale on console and players have responded positively to our reimagining of H1Z1. We will continue to refine the game based on feedback from Open Beta to ensure the best experience possible for our actively growing community.”
Redesigned for the PS4, H1Z1 features more weapons, a reworked user interface, and faster paced gameplay. The open beta can be downloaded for free on Playstation.
(Source: H1Z1 Press Release)
The H1Z1 open beta has arrived on Playstation 4 today, and many of you trying to log in may be unlucky enough to find yourself getting stopped at the door. Daybreak Game Company has announced via Twitter that 200,000+ concurrent users are trying to get online and the servers are having some trouble keeping up. As a result, more hardware is being spun up to accommodate the extra server load.
Daybreak has asked that players hold on tight while the servers stabilize.
(Source: H1Z1)
H1Z1 is coming to Playstation 4, and you’ll get the opportunity to shoot some guns and fight to the last man standing starting next month. Daybreak Game Company announced this week that H1Z1 is being built from the ground up for the Playstation system with a simplified loot and inventory system to keep the game flowing. In addition to fluidity changes, other alterations are coming to the console version including the removal of crafting as well as changes to the gas system, among others.
“H1Z1 on PS4 is true battle royale mayhem. We have reimagined the game for PlayStation 4 and have designed it to accentuate the essentials of battle royale that make the genre so exciting to watch and play,” said H1Z1 Producer Terrence Yee. “We have added key gameplay differentiators to keep the game frantic and fun — an action shooter’s dream of fast-paced battle royale.”
Daybreak’s plan is to have the game running at 60fps on the Playstation 4 Pro. Open beta for H1Z1 starts May 22.
(Source: Press Release)
In the past four years, H1Z1 has been announced, launched into early access, promised as a free to play title, converted into a pay to play game, split into two products, rebranded, and now Daybreak Game Company is going back on its original decision to go back on its decision to launch the game as part of their “Free to Play Your Way” library, and will be making the game free to play. H1Z1 officially launched earlier this month as it also deals with a major drop in concurrent player count.
Excited gamers can get their hands on the Battle Royale mode for H1Z1 while current owners can look forward to a bundle of free goodies. Daybreak Game Company has also directed players to Steam’s refund policy which allows them to refund purchases within two weeks or two hours of game time, whichever comes first.
It is also worth noting that this does not affect the survival mode of H1Z1, dubbed “Just Survive,” which has not announced a free to play transition.
(Source: H1Z1)
MMO Fallout 