You knew that DayZ has custom maps, right? As Bohemia labors away on the standalone version of DayZ, modders have been busy porting user-made Arma 2 islands into the zombie survival mod. The varied biomes of Fallujah, Lingor Island, and Panthera are all playable on custom servers, and a click away from being installed through the handy, PCG-recommended DayZ Commander utility.

Joining these maps next could be Namalsk, an arctic forest covered in custom structures like reinforced defense towers. Namalsk is in the process of being ported by Sumrak, one of Namalsk’s creators, and should be available for download here soon. In the meantime, here’s a video of the map being tested in DayZ.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l0NaO1hX9_Y

It's been 36 days since Bohemia Interactive confirmed that two of its developers had been arrested during their trip to the Greek island of Lemnos. Ivan Buchta and Martin Pezlar face up to 20 years in prison for charges of spying, which they continue to deny. And now, a strike in Greece's judicial system is impeding any progress in their case.

To get an update on Ivan and Martin, I spoke with Jay Crowe, Creative Director at Bohemia, about the imprisonment of two of his friends and colleagues.

PCG: Thanks for the opportunity to speak about this, Jay—we're wishing you and the rest of Bohemia well during this unfortunate incident. Have you personally been able to speak directly to Ivan or Martin? What have they told you?

Jay Crowe, Creative Director: We don't have any direct form of communication with the guys, but they're able to call their families. Obviously, being in a foreign prison they don't feel great, to say the least. They're trying to stay strong and maintain a faith in justice.

Do you have any sense of Ivan and Martin's emotional state?

Crowe Having not been in direct contact with the guys, it's hard to tell. But, knowing Ivan, I can say he's a real family man. This year, while presenting our game at E3, Ivan and I were roommates. On account of his famous snoring, you might say I'd drawn the short straw. But, after a long day of presenting, we'd share some beers, and he'd share funny stories about his wife and baby daughter. He missed them both terribly after only a week away from them. I can't begin to imagine what he's going through right now.



Although the more recent trip by Ivan and Martin was a personal trip, Bohemia has previously spent time in Limnos for game research. Had Bohemia previously had any interaction with the Greek government or military, either in person or to notify officials of the purpose of their visit?

Crowe Actually, none of the visits to the island have ever been beyond the scope of what tourists are entitled to do and, as such, there's never been a need to establish any formal contact with local authorities.

How did this situation arise, from your understanding?

Crowe: As it stands, it's an incredibly frustrating situation, one which we're still struggling to comprehend, really. From what we understand, Ivan and Martin didn't enter any military areas and—from what their lawyer has presented thus far in the media—it's impossible to think that they've documented anything that could even remotely be classified as "espionage." They were arrested near their hotel and the fact they've found themselves caught up in this ongoing situation is simply mind-boggling.

It really does seem to have spiraled out of all proportion. Only hours after their arrest some bizarre media campaign seemed to kick into gear—talking about Czech spies arrested in the act of photographing military complexes to be used in Arma 3—all despite the fact that they weren't actually formally charged with anything until much later on. I can't imagine that helped the public perception of the situation.

In a previous press release, a statement made by Ivan and Martin described their conditions as “tough,” although they also mention that they’re treated “fairly and correctly.” What are their living conditions? Where are they being detained?

Crowe: The latest information is that they're being detained at a facility in Chios. Obviously, I can't speak for the guys but, personally, the idea of being torn away from family and friends and imprisoned in a foreign jail is, well, "tough" would be putting it mildly. Their summer holiday turned into an unmitigated disaster. Being accused of espionage after visiting an island on vacation might somehow sound like a bad joke, but it's a real nightmare for all involved.

Has the Czech government involved itself on Bohemia’s behalf, and if not, do you expect it to?

Crowe: From what we know, local authorities have already accused them of espionage and have filed formal charges. As we understand, their lawyer is seeking bail so that the guys can return for the duration of the investigation; however, we're aware of reports in the media suggesting that a protest by judges and doctors over austerity budget-cuts may delay the judicial process in Greece. The whole thing is a real mess, totally frustrating. While Bohemia itself is not directly involved in this situation, we strongly hope that Czech and EU institutions are already closely monitoring the case.



How has this event affected development of Arma 3?

Crowe: It's come as a shock to us all. Maxell (Martin Pezlar) is a passionate artist—we even named Arma 3's Camp Maxwell after him—and, of course, Ivan's the heart of Arma 3. Setting out the initial vision over two years ago, he's been a driving force in the project ever since. Following this incident, development has continued—albeit a little less splendidly—and the team has focused upon reviewing and executing the tasks identified as being key to the release of our public alpha.

On a personal note—having worked side-by-side with Ivan since last December and across previous projects, and having benefited from his wealth of experience and peerless zeal—I certainly look forward to their swift return home.

What’s the most effective way that gamers can offer support to Ivan and Martin?

Crowe: Keep them in your thoughts and prayers, and wish them a speedy return home. If you feel able to support them in any way, please do so. Friends, gamers and concerned citizens have already started up some activities online, so perhaps it's best to start by checking those.

Community-run support page www.helpivanmartin.org recommends sending a Twitter message to Greece's prime minister and writing to Greek embassies, among other actions. You can also send a note of encouragement to Ivan and Martin through this digital postcard page.

Arma's Real Virtuality engine is an underappreciated machinima canvas. What it lacks in physics is made up by scale and map detail, both of which are showcased in "The Beginning of Sorrows," a short released yesterday from BinaryOrchestra. The video mashes up Take On Helicopters' (another sim built on Real Virtuality) satellite-modeled, that's-where-the-houses-actually-are map of Seattle, Washington with Arma 2: Operation Arrowhead's military assets. The result is a grim and well-scripted spectacle of war in the American Northwest.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=puWjRow3a9U

For your relief, a slightly more lighthearted use of Real Virtuality.

DayZ developer Dean "Rocket" Hall has been going over his plans for DayZ at the Eurogamer Expo. "It has to be out before the end of the year," he said. "Not just because we've committed to it but in order to achieve what we have to do. It has to be. There's no 'we hope it is'; it has to be.

"And it's going to be cheap. We've decided that we don't need to sell a heap of units in order for us to be OK with where it's going. The more units we sell of it the more ambitious we get, because the project has the better resources."

Hall mentioned that Valve, Eve Online developers, CCP, and Notch have expressed interest in helping out with early code, but the project has experienced a setback. The two Bohemia Interactive developers arrested for espionage in Greece were responsible for building the updated version of Chernarus that'll provide the setting for the standalone version of DayZ. "I just want to see them home," he said. "Whatever I do to see them back is important."

The fear of copycat games is one of the factors driving Hall's determination to get DayZ out quickly. An audience member asked Hall about his thoughts on WarZ, which features many obvious similarities to his mod. "Should I sue anyone who ever mentions something to do with zombie horror - will that make a better game? And the whole premise of of DayZ, and the whole premise of our development is we're going to make an awesome game. That's what we're selling. We're going to price it low and lots of people are going to play it. If we compromise on that, we're screwed."

Dslyecxi is a guy we count on for glimpses into hardcore Arma 2. The master mil-simmer, former US Marine, and contractor/consultant for Bohemia Interactive is the founder of ShackTac, a long-standing A2 community.

His latest PvP video centers on a disabled UN convoy; Dslyecxi plays as one of the insurgents racing toward it—bringing IEDs and grenades to the fight. Meanwhile, a column of Humvees is streaking in to assist. Private military contractors are keeping guard. A helicopter circles overhead, vulture-like. Who'll get there first? Don't miss the surprise ending.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Sil78cF7Euc

For more Arma 2 videos from the ShackTac crew, we recommend CHKilroy and Beagle's channels. CHKilroy published another video from this mission, from the UN side of the battle.

Sitting down to play The War Z for the first time feels like kicking the tires of an untrustworthy car. I feel the need to rattle the chassis, to jiggle handles, check for gum under the seat, listen for groans in the engine—to apply percussion with the expectation that some zombie muffler will fall loose.

Approaching a hands-on opportunity with this sort of diagnostic mindset is unusual. But The War Z is unusual; when the online survival game was suddenly announced in July, we reacted with mild hope and major skepticism. Makers Hammerpoint Interactive were promising a fuller-featured PvP/PvZ world than DayZ while cribbing concepts and mechanics from it, and it was promising you’d be able to play it this autumn—before the final version of DayZ is ready.

Half an hour with The War Z isn’t long enough to suss every concern I have with the game, but my initial test drive of an alpha version was more encouraging than I thought it'd be.

I begin in a parking lot, one that looks like a welcome center for a national park. Conifers, oak, and birch shade knee-high grass. This is The War Z’s “Colorado” map, the first of The War Z’s settings. It’s about 160km² (DayZ’s Chernarus is 225km², or about 40 percent larger).

I start gunless, with this stuff in my inventory:


Bandages
A full, 375ml water bottle
Antibiotics
Instant oatmeal
Flare
Flashlight


And a map, though it’s an always-owned item that lives on the M key. Executive Producer Sergey Titov, playing on another PC beside me, warps to my position. Titov throws a few gifts onto the pavement: a better backpack and a scoped rifle. He stipulates that guns, ammo, and (especially) attachments will be extremely rare in the final version of the game, making it sound like what I’m about to pick up off the ground is an apocalypse-king’s bounty.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OaaA5PQCcM8&feature=plcp

Grabbing the loot is an absolute cinch: I look at it, hold E, and a line crawls clockwise around a circle to indicate that I’m picking it up. Feedback! Wait. Why am I happy about this? Right: because grabbing items in DayZ can feel like picking up sleeping cats with tweezers.

Once the gear is in my inventory, I can drag it around freely. Consumables like water and food can be right-clicked within my inventory to be spent. A row of the inventory is reserved for five or six active, “in-hand” items. Scrolling the mouse wheel fast-swaps between these from a set of Doom-style numbered inventory slots. Nothing nests in the backpack itself—all items I’m carrying share in the same visual space.

It’s a modern, functional system, in other words. I’m impressed with this gear setup, and that feeling echos my other small moments of appreciation that emerge during my hands-on: The War Z simply benefits from being designed from the ground up to be the type of game it is. Adore DayZ as much as I do, The War Z lacks a few of the annoyances that arise naturally from the process of stuffing a PvE/PvP, persistent survival game into an intricate military sim.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zkboXRI_M9U&feature=plcp

Titov leads me down a hill to a small town clinging to a two-lane road that curves around a lake. We glass zombies through binoculars at a safe distance. Some are still, some shamble, some stand on roofs. Titov right-clicks, centering his M4’s red dot optics, and plugs away at a few closer undead. His gun fires with the recoil and responsiveness you’d expect in Battlefield 3: bullet drop is modeled, but not all of Newton’s laws are along for the ride. There’s a weird, circular tracer that zips through the air with every shot we fire—an effect I hope is only in place for debugging purposes.

Zeds start to creep in from our back and side (partly because zombie vocalizations and footstep effects haven't been baked into the build yet), and we flee through an alley formed by a wooden fence and a church. I mash a zed with my flashlight four or five times until it falls over. At this alpha stage, the zombies’ animations and movement balancing is incomplete. Undead streamed in at a consistent pace—about 80 percent of our sprinting speed—that made them easy to dispatch. Right now, they lack the erratic, bobbing gait and head movement that makes kill shots in DayZ so satisfyingly difficult. Titov says faster zombies will be added later on.

We cross open pavement, and trip a few “sleeper” zombies. These undead lie dormant on the ground, but rise when they notice you nearby. We make it across the parking lot okay, then hop the counter of a post office building to check for more gear. I loot painkillers, a military helmet, bandages, and a Mossberg shotgun. The gear is actually resting on shelves. This isn’t some mindblowing innovation, but it’s a tiny detail that, again, reinforces that The War Z will at least benefit from being designed from scratch to be a survival game.



Going downtown

Titov teleports us to another area of the Colorado map. We’re on a highway raised on concrete stilts, overlooking a relatively dense downtown made up of office and residential buildings. I point at the tallest one and ask if we can go in. Titov obliges. We drop down a broken segment of the freeway, taking fall damage as we do, and hop a waist-high wall of sandbags outside the door.

We head up to the fourth floor; the roof of the building is closed off, but Titov says the door blocking us from entering is only in the alpha build temporarily. I start trying to poke holes in what I’m seeing. Is occupying a structure for a longer period of time something that’s supported by the game? Titov says yes: item storage is persistent, so if clanmates want to hunker up in a multi-story office building like this one, they can barricade it, use it as a giant stash, and try to guard it from other players.

How is The War Z addressing death-escaping loopholes like slamming Alt + F4 at the first sign of danger? Titov demonstrates: when you exit the game, you have to wait for a 10-second timer to expire. This is a really simple solution; I’d prefer a system that’s able to gauge if you’re engaged in combat, and prevents logging out when that’s the case. But it’s better than nothing.



What measures will be in place to prevent item duplication and hacking? Titov mentions his experience dealing with cheaters in his other project, War Inc. “For War Z, since it’s a much slower-paced game, we’ve been able to do lots of the logic server-side. On War Inc., we have to do lots of things on the client, just to keep up the fast-paced nature of the game, to keep the lag as low as possible and things like that. For War Z, that’s not a requirement. We’ll see. Obviously once the game is released, we’ll probably see new cheats pop up. Hopefully it won’t be as bad as it was when we launched War Inc. on Steam. The first week was okay, but the second week we had cheating popping up. We spent a month of like, fierce fighting, basically changing stuff on a daily basis. After a month we killed probably 90 percent of the cheaters.”

From my first brush with it, The War Z feels like familiar ingredients mixed by a different chef. My impression that it’d be a more accessible take on DayZ was affirmed by the weapon handling, Battlefield-like movement speed, and seemingly streamlined detection mechanics. The act of shooting isn’t as arcadey as, say, Borderlands 2—the ironsights on an M4 I picked up, for example, had parallax between the front of the barrel and where my eye meets the gun. But The War Z doesn't seem to have DayZ’s spirit as a simulation—it’s not driven by fidelity, real-world ballistics, or a feeling that you’re in a space modeled after reality. Details like freelook are absent. When you're about to deploy a barricade item (like a set of wooden planks), the ghost-outline of it floats in front of you weightlessly—a single click deploys it instantly into the world.



And yet, it's possible that The War Z could still support the kinds of strange and serendipitous player interactions DayZ has become known for. For one, it lacks some of the jankiness inherent to Arma’s engine tech. Corpses ragdoll. Buildings have more than two floors. Swapping weapon attachments—a system straight out of Crysis 2—is effortless. I’m also interested in some of its systems: player authored questing, especially. I’m looking forward to seeing how formalizing bounty-setting and other such systems impacts emergence and the feeling of player-owned stories.

I’m intrigued that The War Z’s offering private, rentable instances too. In addition to larger, full-map servers that The War Z will make available for rent, the game will make smaller instances available, that individual players can purchase for a few dollars a month. These “Strongholds” almost function as player or clan housing: templated settings like a cabin in the woods, a farm, a small town on a cliffside, or a trainyard that you can invite other players to. Titov also mentions to me that “you’ll have the option to “lock” certain locations with keypad lock, so only people who know the code can get inside, thus dividing map space into ‘public’ and ‘private’ portions.” I love the idea of learning someone’s secret code to infiltrate these areas.

So, my skepticism about The War Z is swinging a bit more towards curiosity, I guess. I need to spend much more time with it (and on a populated server) before I can make a better-supported conclusion about what it's going to feel like to play at launch. Right now, it presents a handful of good antidotes to some of DayZ's simple issues. But it's also rough around the edges: the zombies are unfinished and not very intimidating, VOIP isn't in yet, and presentation elements like animations related to the use of medical and food items are missing. I can't judge still-unintegrated systems like bounty-setting and Strongholds until I see them. The alpha build didn't reassure me about how dangerous The War Z will be, either—I never felt the need to be careful, but then again, as a closed alpha, it's understandably vacant. Expect a more thorough evaluation of The War Z once we're able to spend more than half an hour in it.

The ARMA community has rallied together and set up a site in support of the two Bohemia Interactive employees who were arrested last week after allegedly recording footage of military bases in Lemnos. The website, www.helpivanmartin.org houses a petition and an updated news feed relating to the case.

"Facing up to 20 years in prison for taking pictures of an island," the website reads, "just like countless other tourists before them, the Czech developers are being charged with espionage. Only because they happen to work on a computer game, a game that portrays Greece as a battlefield for a fictional futuristic conflict between the USA and Iran in the year 2035.

"Ivan and Martin are no spies, but passionate community members, dedicated to the game and its experience for the player. Many of us have witnessed Ivan talking in interviews passionately about the progress of ARMA3 and all the new features, also developed by Martin.

"It's time to show our support, not only as a community, but as players and concerned citizens, for two developers, who now face a lifetime in prison for an unfortunate misunderstanding."

Meanwhile, Bohemia Interactive themselves have strongly rejected the accusations of espionage which have been levelled against the pair by the Greek authorities.

It's not the first time that civilians have been detained on charges of espionage in Greece for taking photographs - in 2001 12 British plane spotters were held on spying charges. But they didn't have the wrath of the internet at their disposal - perhaps the ARMA community, and gamerdom at large, will prove vociferous enough to give the Greek authorities pause.

Two Bohemia Interactive employees were arrested by Greek authorities for espionage last week after recording footage of military bases in Limnos. BI have sent over a statement saying that reports claiming that they'd entered military installations and taken footage to support development of Arma 3 are "completely false and without substance."

"These employees - our friends, Ivan Buchta and Martin Pezlar - visited the island as tourists. Their holiday was a product of their interest in the island, triggered by their work on Arma 3 over the past two years of development," they say.

"They took photographs and videos in public areas, as countless tourists arriving to enjoy the beauty and hospitality of Greece may well do. These included a short video as they drove through the main road passing around the international airport, where in one short part of the video off in the distance some hangars and other buildings of the complex can be seen. It's very likely that many tourists may have pictures similar to those taken by Ivan and Martin in their own family albums, without being aware that they put themselves or their families at risk."

The description conflicts with the account that Greek police offered to Czech officials, according to comments from Czech foreign ministry spokesman, Vit Kolar, picked up by The Escapist. "We have a statement from the Greek police saying they were taking pictures and video footage of military facilities on the island on which they were detained, and that they entered the military facilities despite a warning."

BI are using Limnos as inspiration for the fictional island we'll be fighting for in Arma 3. "The in-game Limnos is close to completion, and it’s far from an identical replication of the real place," they explain. "It was heavily modified to fit the game’s backstory, a purely fictional 2035 setting. It was rescaled to only 75% of the real island, and it does not attempt to display any real world military installations situated on the island of Lemnos."

They stress that no military objects were photographed as source material for Arma 3 units or locations. Buchta and Pezlar are currently being held in Mytilene. "The conditions are tough, but the people we meet treat us fairly and correctly," they say in a statement. "It is all a completely absurd misunderstanding that will certainly be quickly explained. We mainly think of you, our families; you have to stay calm and not to worry about us. We hope we will meet soon."