Once the most popular DayZ Mod, Origins was able to inspire hundreds of thousands of players, but the standalone Taviana The Origins hardly inspires anyone. We try to figure out: Why is that?
Dwindling interest: Taviana The Origins could inspire tons of players and take them by storm. But the trailers, devblogs and Co. hardly captivate anyone. But why is the DayZ Origins Standalone from the Czech developer Mayak Games not gaining any new or old fans?
What is Taviana The Origins and will you become a fan?
You could be a fan: Have you never heard of Taviana The Origins? Or just noticed something in passing? A friend told you about it? Whether you know the survival game or not, you could be a fan.
Basically, Taviana: The Origins is based on the DayZ Origins Mod, which really took off in 2013. The players were drawn to it by its Soviet atmosphere and the romance of prefabricated buildings. Not to be forgotten are the Mad Max-like vehicles and the many possibilities that the mod offers compared to other DayZ mods:
- Base construction with many levelable buildings made of garbage, scrap and metal.
- Vehicles can be upgraded with armor plates or metal cladding.
- Sector A & B provide late game zones for exciting battles against AI and players.
- Lots of mysteries in the archipelago, underground laboratories, aliens and much more.
- Wacky equipment or vehicles, like a flying fortress, welded together from 4 helicopters.
- AI faction that flies the islands and fires when they see it.
As you can see, there is a lot to do in DayZ Origins. And this is how Taviana The Origins should be structured. All in a chic Unreal Engine 4 style. Recently released videos are also evidence of great progress in recent years. An interview with studio manager and chief developer Martin Bauer (via Guided Germany) also shows that the team has a plan, a roadmap and an idea that can finally loosen up the survival genre.
That’s why the game doesn’t find any new fans
If we look at the videos that the development team has uploaded to YouTube, one thing strikes: fans have received the first announcement really well. The views then plummet again until they rise again in 2020. And you are welcome to guess what the situation looks like now – right, rather poor. Here is the first trailer:
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That’s why: The videos that have been well received by fans are full trailers or big announcements. But too often the team also sprinkles video game development videos showing how the Unreal Engine 4 works. This is interesting for a few, but in our opinion it has lost nothing on the official account.
The developers should use it for updates to the game. But then not in the style they do. Every innovation or every milestone is shared individually. No digestible dev blogs, no big updates. Here is an example of the newer videos:
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If you want to stay up to date about Taviana The Origins, you have no choice but to rummage through countless videos full of superfluous information. In addition, there is the rather poor quality of the recordings: Often too quiet or in low resolution, paired with figures drawn in Paint. Even if that certainly doesn’t reflect the game, users feel that way.
This is how Mayak Games Taviana can make The Origins more popular
- Regular devblogs that document the progress and contain all changes from the last cycle.
- Share small milestones on social media (Twitter & Instagram).
- Issue newsletters for online magazines and users
- Involve streamers and YouTubers in collaborations
- Request marketing in cooperation with Bohemia Interactive (post or shoutout)
Of course, these are just our tips and only the first steps in what may be the right direction. We personally very much hope that Taviana The Origins will gain some fans. We haven’t been looking forward to a survival game that much for a long time.
Unfortunately, we have been waiting far too long for a release and a closed beta has already been postponed several times. However, some supporters are already allowed to take a look at Taviana The Origins.
