DayZ's new wintery map adds frosty peaks and snowy forests and icier ways to make you suffer
Coming this Fall
Good news DayZ fans, there's a new map inbound that'll make survival even tougher than it already is! That's right, the upcoming Frostline DLC adds the Sakhal archipelago, home to a rugged environment where you'll battle against the cold and attempt to shoot nasty players at the same time. Oh, there are also volcanoes that prove an extra threat, too. And new diseases. Wonderful.
Announced over on their Steam page, Frostline is arriving sometime this Fall as a paid expansion. Sakhal is over 83km² of "volcanic land, icy seas, and treacherous terrains", which makes it a much smaller space than the game's other two official maps: Chernarus (236km²) and Livonia (163km²). Still, it looks densely packed with icy lakes, snow-covered forests, mountains, and some abandoned towns. It's all a bit theHunter: Call Of The Wild, which makes me want to ignore the desperate survival situation and just unwind with a cuppa by some volcanic hot spring.
As Sakhal's a frosty place, you'll need to manage warmth and hunt animals for food, while also fending off wild animals who want to eat you for food. Those volcanic springs? Yeah, it seems like you'll need to watch yourself when lounging near them, although there's no details on what those dangers might be yet. I imagine they will involve lava.
And while you're roasting your rabbit over a fire and/or looting an enemy corpse for a pack of biccies, you'll need to be wary of catching some new diseases. Elsewhere, fishing will be overhauled, too. Sadly there aren't any details on either of these things, but I'd imagine the diseases front might involve you defrosting an ancient bacterium that's been frozen for thousands of years. Likely by fishing up a dodgy looking ice cod and not washing your hands before tucking in.
It's worth noting that DayZ's latest DLC Livonia will become free with update 1.25 (own the DLC already and you'll get the DayZ OST, yay). So by the time Frostline arrives, you'll be able to get the game's two previous maps for the price of zilch.