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H1Z1 unplanned downtime stretches on

Whoopsie DayZ.

It's been a ropey old Early Access start for zombie survival contender H1Z1. Granted, it is Early Access, but it's also Sony Online Entertainment, maker of PlanetSide 2 and EverQuest, and H1Z1 has now been offline for around eight hours - unplanned.

What at first looked rosy...

Soon took an unexpected turn...

And still the online service hasn't re-materialised.

Eager players are now in a wait-and-see scenario for when the game's servers will be back up.

Problems like these are what Early Access helps identify - how your game runs when the public descends upon it. However, an Early Access release is also a first impression - and first impressions count.

As it stands - as we wrote this morning - "H1Z1 is a poor imitation of DayZ". SOE has the clout and experience to make amends, but not, I'd wager, in time to meet an anticipated full release later this year.