DayZ started off as a very popular mod for shooter ArmA II, but eventually grew beyond its parent title. A standalone title by Bohemia Interactive separating the zombie survival game from Arma II released six months later, and the developer today announced it has reached 2 million sales in that time span.
The mod's creator Dean Hall revealed the impressive sales numbers on his Twitter account today, along with an image of a "units sold" total numbering 2,000,012.
"Just over 2 years ago the DayZ mod released. Today, the Standalone game just broke 2 million units in under 6 months."
Copies moved quickly right from the start, with 800,000 selling in just the first three weeks of Steam Early Access. By the fourth, DayZ had hit the one million mark. At two million, growth will probably slow somewhat, but the developers are continuing to work on the game. Hall announced in February that he would be leaving Bohemia, belieiving his skill set to be more useful in another role at that point.
The success is not particularly surprising, though those numbers are quite good. DayZ was hugely successful as a mod, and excited speculation over a full game turned into rampant anticipation following its announcement. The hype translated directly into sales, which is all any developer could ask for.
DayZ is an online multiplayer zombie-survival series, which has turned into an experience that quickly teaches you not trust your fellow players. People are often only looking out for themselves, and will just as soon stab you in the back after offering to help.