Zombie/Survival Game – DayZ

Over on my other blog I’ve been talking about a new video game I’ve been playing.  Since the gameplay is relevant for this blog, I decided that I would share it here as well.  The game is still over a year away from being complete but already I’m hooked.  I’ve been playing it just about every day after work . . . chores be damned!

The scenery in this game is also pretty incredible. I play on very low settings to make it smoother but on high-res settings the game is BEAUTIFUL.  

So far, there aren’t a lot of guns in the game, but there are a few to play with like the Mosin, M4, and the SKS.  They seem to react in a real-enough way to simulate what it might be like to use one in real life.  Bullet drop as well as a delay for long distance shots is realistic and poses quite a challenge sometimes.  Ammo is also pretty scarce so you have to choose carefully whether or not to pull the trigger.

Surviving is hard and you’re required to stay healthy, well fed, and well hydrated, all while trying to live among zombies and other players.  The game demands that you prioritize medicine, food, and water, with firearms and other gear coming as you find it.  This part of it is a bit limited at this time.  Things are going to be added at some point like hunting/fishing so that should definitely add another element of survival to the game.  Currently you can only get food and water by venturing into towns and cities.  In servers that have a lot of people, this can be very dangerous and can keep even the most prepared players on edge.  Even without other players there are zombies to worry about too (although at this point they’re very buggy and not very much of a threat).

This is Phil. He was friendly and we traveled together for a bit before going our separate ways.

What I like most about this game is that it sheds a light on what civilization might be like in a post-apocalypse type scenario.  Every human encounter I’ve had in the game has been very tense.  Sometimes that heavily armed guy running down the road waving in your direction might be bringing some supplies to weary travelers, but he might also be looking to put a bullet in your head for sport.  You never know what will happen; anyone can turn feral when survival is on the line.

If you like video games, and preparing for disasters, this is a fantastic game to try.  Its currently available on Steam for just $30.  As I said above, the game is still under development so there are a lot of bugs and glitches that occur, but you get all updates and patches for free.  When the game is complete and released it will likely sell for around $60.  Buying now is a great way to help the developers and just might save you some money in the long run!

The Bayonet – More Than Just a Weapon

I, like many of you, have gun parts and accessories in every part of my life.  Today I found an unexpected use for the SKS bayonet that I’ve had laying in my car’s back seat for weeks.

I was running errands, trying to gather things we need for the apartment this weekend and I stopped at Best Buy (where I picked up our cable modem).  In the spot beside me was a young JMU student who was trying to squeeze her arm in the small opening left in her window.  I knew right away that she had locked her keys in the van because I’ve been around a lot of people who do that.

Being the kind, people loving person that I am, I watched her struggle for 3 or 4 minutes; then I offered to help her.  She gladly accepted and I began looking for things we could use to unlock the door.  The only thing I had available that I thought might work was the bayonet.  I offered it to her and she didn’t even question what it was.

Using the bayonet she reached inside and maneuvered it so that she could flip the little lock tab.  Once it clicked I pulled on the handle and opened the door.  Viola, it was open.  Of course the alarm started going off and people started looking, but once she got the keys from the bag in the back seat into the switch, the alarm stopped.

So there you have it.  When someone asks what you need a bayonet for, tell them its in case someone locks their keys in their car.  If that answer doesn’t satisfy them, just remind them that melee weapons are the way to go when the zombies roll up on us.

Videos To Watch – 3/7/13

I haven’t been able to go video browsing as much this past week, but I did find a few.  Each of these videos are about separate topics, but they kinda go together.  In today’s lineup we see some competition shooting, home clearing, zombie prepping, and cops on camera.  Hope you enjoy:

Scott Folk at the 2013 S&W IDPA Indoor Nationals – This video came to me via Gun Nuts Media.  Its really interesting to see some of the courses they go through.  I really wish there was something like that locally that I could participate it.  Looks like it would be a really good way to practice several different skills at one time.

 

Police Say You’re on Your Own – “It’s 2013.  It’s The United States of America.  You lock your doors and hope nothing happens.”  That is of course, “unless you have a dog.”  Some of the responses from law enforcement officers in this video are just unbelievable.  They don’t want you to do anything to defend yourself it seems, but they also say you’re on your own.  So what are we supposed to do then?

 

When The Zombies Come – Thanks to Zombie-Thon for sharing this video.  Just another reason to get familiar with your local hardware store.  You can turn just about everything they sell into a weapon to fend off the zombie horde!  Definitely not a professional video or anything but it shows that people all over the country have zombies on the brain.

 

Low-Light Home Defense Tactics – This is a pretty cool video.  I can’t remember which of the blogs I follow brought this to my attention, but Its definitely worth checking out.  In this video you learn different techniques for securing your home at night using flashlights or weapon mounted lights.

Zombies and Guns

When George A. Romero released his zombie movie Night of the Living Dead he had to know that it would be seen as strange and unusual.  In fact I would almost certainly say that was what he was going for.  What I don’t think he knew was that his idea of zombies would consume the entire country in the following decades.

Romero’s decision to take the classical zombie and add a few more terrifying elements turned out to be a huge success.  Zombies can now be found everywhere.  In almost every form of media.  In TV.  In movies.  In toys.  In games.  It’s safe to say that everyone in the country is familiar with the idea of zombies.

My decision to write this post was because of the overwhelming number of zombie related merchandise in the gun world.  There are zombie targets that I’m sure most of you have seen.  These are everywhere and feature everything from zombie children to zombie animals.  In addition a lot of accessories now come with zombie related themes.  You can get zombie grips for your 1911 pistol.  Or a zombie trigger guard for your AR15.  The Ruger 10/22 isn’t even safe from this zombie plague.

Whether or not these items will help you survive the zombie apocalypse, or whatever may occur next month (December 21st, 2012 – end of the world), remains to be seen.  Regardless, go out and get yourself a few zombie targets.  You never know, all that time you spend practicing for perfect head-shots might come in handy one day . . .