The second DayZ DLC was released recently. After the fan-favorite Chernarus experience, the okay Livonia adventure, and plenty of mods, people wonder how fun this new addition is.
Well, not much.
So, join us for our DayZ Frostline review!
RECYCLED WORLD
The visuals are a bit disappointing, but not because they are bad.
DayZ Frostline distinguishes itself by being set in Sakhal, an archipelago inspired by the Kamchatka Peninsula in Eastern Russia, and the Tanoa map from Arma 3. It has one large island area with three smaller ones and several islets dotted in between. Sakhal is the smallest official DayZ map, 83km², while Chernarus is 225 km² and Livonia is 163 km².
So, we have a smaller, winter-themed DayZ map. Snow is abundant, with frozen lakes and plenty of ice sheets around the coast. Besides giving the locale more personality, the snowstorm effects allow ambushes to be set or a chance to escape. Should players run out of water, they can eat snow. It’s risky but better than dying from starvation. The lighting effects are still a DayZ highlight, with the overall fidelity on par with the base game.
While there are new environmental assets like fisherman supplies, a new apartment type, workshops, and refuse, most of Frostline’s assets are recycled from the base game. Houses. Clinics. Military buildings. Shops. Tents. Knowing blind spots in buildings is just as crucial as being armed. With the same buildings, there’s no need to learn and adapt. Building placements are not copied directly, but players familiar with DayZ’s interiors will immediately know how to defend optimally. Keep that in mind for the gameplay section of this review.
Considering it is a new official map, the existence of mods, and the price tag, it would’ve been nice to see more original assets. With the recycling of assets, and the fact the bones of Sakhal are based on Tanoa, it can feel more like a community mod at times than an official DLC.
SAKHAL SOUNDS
While the soundtrack is more or less the same quality as previous DayZ material, the new ambient sounds included are amazing. Rocks tumbling in the coastal regions, trees flapping against the wind, ice cracking underneath your feet, a tundra around you. It’s all good stuff that helps create a sense of place.
GIMMICKY GAMEPLAY LOOP
While the sounds are okay and the map has some issues with recycled material, Frostline disappoints the most with the gameplay. It’s no secret that DayZ is a very unforgiving game, often bordering on unfair. Yet overcoming impossible odds is nothing short of empowering. Frostline is even more brutal than the base game, but the gameplay loop is inconsistent in the best sessions and a gimmick in the worst.
Because Sakhal is a boreal biome, your body temperature is constantly dropping. Low body temperature will cause your character to lose health due to hypothermia and have their energy stat drain faster. The starting loadout felt appropriate for Chernarus but is terrible for the storms of Sakhal.
Most food items will be frozen, requiring you to start a fire to thaw them. Starting fires in Chernarus was optional, mainly just to cook raw meat. In Frostline, the main gameplay loop is centered around keeping warm. Everything you do has so much more urgency. The need to thaw food and warm up places a heavier emphasis on a sedimentary playstyle, not until you have clothing with good insulation. If you can survive long enough. Again, something DayZ veterans will excel at, thanks to the recycled buildings.
Starting fires in DayZ has always been a double-edged sword. Besides using them to recover and craft, you can lure enemies. Or find prey from a distance. Because of Sakhal’s significantly smaller size, you are far more likely to get attacked while resting, at least with the current player cap. While the base game had moments of tension, there were also moments when you could unwind and plan comfortably. There’s no middle ground between calm exploration and a tense fight for survival here.
The need to warm up every 30 minutes means that a roaming, lone wolf style is ill-advised. The style comprises a decent chunk of the player base and the most likely playstyle for newcomers. Not revealing your location just to survive can get quite irritating. Groups always had an objective advantage in base, but at least the large size of Chernarus meant you could evade more easily. That’s not the case with Frostline. Groups can easily dominate, more so than the base game.
THE PROBLEMS PILE UP
There are some new items, such as animals and diseases, but nearly everything else is the same old DayZ. The lack of dynamic events and gas means nothing stops players from hunkering in a high-tier loot area. Not to mention, it makes Sakhal appear more static. Traveling with a boat sounds attractive at first, but the appeal quickly vanishes as your character slowly freezes to death.
On top of that, you still have the same problems as before. RNG still makes some sessions pointless. Combat logging is still a massive issue (especially here), and Bohemia Interactive has done nothing about it. You can die only to spawn in the same area. The damage system is still wonky; a sniper shot from 100 meters can insta kill you, but 00 buckshot at point-blank range to the chest can be survived. These inconsistencies have been present in DayZ for a long time, but with the addition of a harder setting, they become much more serious.
Conclusion
There’s nothing wrong with wanting to make a game or a DLC difficult. Some of the best games are known for their brutal difficulty. But conquering that difficulty felt satisfying.
Because of the tedious loop and long-unsolved problems, playing Frostline can feel like a chore, more so than some of the worst sessions with Chernarus. Combine that with alienating users and a lack of new material and mechanics, and only the hardcore players can truly appreciate this.
Right now, the DLC costs more than half of DayZ. That’s too much for too little content. Purchase only after a 30% or 35% discount.