Need some advice for DayZ

[EasternDragon]

So, I am new here, let me know if I mess up. I am now obsessed with DayZ, but I am unsure of which version to get. Arma 3 looks nice, but $60 is too steep. What does everyone recommend? Also, I have a decent rig, but not amazing, (8gb ram, 1gb vram, core2quad, and an ssd), but I am worried about performance if I get the standalone or arma 3. Are the servers among these games cross compatible? So if I had arma 2, could I play on arma 3 servers?

Thoughts?

 

[PrincessFrosty]

The stand alone is the least finished so far but it's probably got the most potential in the long run since it's actually financially backed, i'd recommend sticking to that.

 

[spaceman]

i wouldnt waste $ on standalone
im sorry i did
playerbase is small, and most dont see an endgame w it
its perpetually alpha