DMZ - Nonstop Fun.

I have started playing DMZ. I think it's full name is Call of Duty Modern Warfare II Warzone DMZ, which is ridiculous.

The game is worse than Escape for Tarkov in many (so many) ways, but there are a few notable things it does better than Tarkov, so I thought I'd call them out.

• much better network (for me)
• most of real world game play time spent in raids
• no downside to dying 
• doesn't waste my time
• way more fun

Network

I don't live near any EFT server site, so playing EFT has always been dicey.  The difference in game performance offline vs. online has always been marked for me.  But with DMZ, while I have the occasional rubber banding and dropped texture, it mostly plays very smooth.  Nice.

Out of Raid

Unlike Tarkov, there is practically nothing to do in DMZ if you aren't in a raid. You can change a few skins, do the bare minimum of weapon mod, review and select some missions, change a device in a slot or two when kitting out. But that's it. There's no crafting, no hideout, no buying, no selling.  Money doesn't really exist outside the raid.  There's barely any stash/inventory management.  If you want to buy something, you need to go into a raid to do it at something called a "buy station" .  Certain other weapon mods are also only available at a  "weapon station". These things are silly and contrived. But I appreciate them. 

Getting into a raid is dead simple, and fast.  If you die, you can jump back into a different raid in a matter of seconds. Zero-to-hero is not an uncommon practice. Goofy, perhaps, but appreciated. 

When you exfil from a raid, most of the non-weapon loot you got is auto converted to money and then to XP. And you are done. No dealing with the Traders, and certainly not waiting for your two precious flea spots to sell through.

At first I thought these weird contrivances ( Buy Station ) were silly, and they are. But OMG this is so much better than Tarkov.

No Downside to Dying

If you fail to Exfil, you get less XP and you'll lose the gear your brought into the raid.  Your primary weapon is "insured" always, so if you die with that it'll be available again in a hour or less. In the meantime you'll have to run "Contraband" weapons (that you pulled from other raids) or go Zero to Hero.  But other than the insurance cooldown, there's no real downside. Your "other" items (like grenades and other toys) will usually be replenished next raid.  Just quickly double check that they are, and head back in son!

Doesn't Waste My Time

In comparison, in EFT even a successful mission can be a problem because you need to heal and eat and drink and re-equip meds, repair armor and weapons and replenish ammo, grenades and other sundries. And in a failed raid you need to add kitting out armor, weaponry, helmets and clothes to that list 

One of the least fun things in Tarkov is just the constant capitalism. Players spend a HUGE amount of time managing funds.  And when funds are low, the game becomes stressful, which is contrary to what a game is supposed to be.  

I like Tarkovs difficulty ( a lot ). I like the survival aspect. I like the depth that exists on almost every axis in Tarkov.     But somewhere along the way, EFT has gotten too grindy.  And I've never had a game that wastes my time like EFT. It takes so long to do all the things required to kit out, forever to load into a raid, then you die in the first five minutes and start it all over.   But in DMZ, you raid. Win some, lose some. Raid again. 

Way More Fun

FairTX describes playing DMZ as a non-stop Michael Bay movie, and he's not wrong. The parachutes, zip lines, jet skis, helicopters and all the crazy toys - they can make for some insane moments. But, by and large, the game play is not dominated by those things. On any given raid I don't use any of those things.  I find myself moving from building to building, peering out windows, moving from cover to cover, and flanking like I would do in Tarkov - except I do so much more of it in DMZ. Partly because there are way more AI enemies (OMG so many) than in Tarkov, and partly because I'm always raiding. Always.   For a casual game player like myself, who has some one or two hour slots scattered through a week, DMZ is great. Launch, click my insured weapon, enter a raid. 

There are definitely things I miss from Tarkov.  And, frankly, I could do without the silly things in DMZ. But no game is perfect. Maybe I'm enamored with DMZ because it's a shiny new thing. I've been playing EFT for 6 wipes and DMZ for less than 1 week, perhaps in time DMZ will tire on me - perhaps it's just cotton candy floss. But perhaps not.  Like I said, I spend all my time fighting, moving, flanking, killing and getting killed - the thing I seek out and relish in EFT - that's what DMZ is all the time.