I don't get it. I want to.

[Eukre]

I've watched how-to's and game-plays. All look great and made easy. I've done vanilla and mods. I even done the "sandbox" where I try desperately to dumb down the zombies and make the population as low as possible. I know more about the damn character creation menus then I do trying to survive 5 friggen minutes in any game in solo mode. Seems like any option I make in sandbox options has no affect, at start or during game play. It's a run away simulator. (Sneaking, finding weapons....yeah yeah, I know all that)
I WANT to play this game. I like survival. the videos make it fun. But damn... wtf?!?

[Lobo_Yagami]

boa

[Hazza]

womp womp

[⭕⃤ LilYoshi]

Brother, cut down some trees, find a warehouse, put up some planks and you'll survive. The very next thing you do is read books that will help (Cooking, crafting, electronics, etc.), download a mod to make this less time consuming IRL. After that try focusing on what you wanna do for your build, are you a crusher kind of guy? The most important thing you need is patience, all worlds take longer than five minutes of building to establish a real foothold. You need to sit through ONE playthrough. Not hop around on all the different gamemodes, it's not what the games about.

Edit- Also, you need multiple exits to any building you settle down in.

[maeharaprojekt]

OP, are you asking for assistance or simply venting your frustrations?

I grok that you are finding PZ difficult, as I have been there too - many of us have. Even the most machotistic and ego-testicle players have struggled at first (they'd rather choke on a bowl of D rather than admit it), getting burned to death or face-nommed within minutes of starting the CDDA challenge.

[Nox]

I feel you, I had similiar issues when I started this game long ago.

1 - Run / jog ONLY when you absolutely have to, stamina is a matter of life and death and you can outwalk shamblers or fast shamblers if you're not tired / winded or encumbered.

2 - If you're being chased by multiple zeds you can do a few things.
- If their numbers are not so high, you have a decent weapon and feel like you can take them on, try to find a fence, as zeds trip over it you can pick them off, just be wary of their lunge and yourself, any mistake can screw you over.
- If their numbers are too big, calmly walk to a corner and the moment you break LoS run, cut corners and LoS as much as you can. That's why stamina management is important, if you get tired running to a place, you might pay the price when you really need that stamina.

3 - Rosewood is a really good beginner friendly place to spawn, I can think of at least 2 good base spots.
- Firefighter station, all sides except for one are covered by indestructible high fence, if you dedicated a bit of time and work, you can wall of the remaining side and now you have a secure base with a good place to farm. Not to mention the station has really good clothing for protection, good weapons (axe), meds, spacey garage etc.

- South-east houses, they may not be fenced but they are secluded, meaning you shouldn't have that much issue with zeds.

4 - Take.Your.Time. Game isn't a race, play it at your pace, you don't need a car from the beggining, you don't need a firearm, your first focus should probably be finding a good spot for base and finding a decent melee weapon (crowbar, baseball bat, axe etc.) but you may also play a nomad-style, live on the go - it's really up to you.

5 - Firearms...if you're gonna fire one, use a shotgun first and make sure you have the ammo, firearms are a dinner bell.

6 - If you're struggling I might suggest turning infection off or setting it to saliva only, one thing I learned the hard way, PZ punishes you really ♥♥♥♥♥♥♥ hard for any mistakes.

EDIT - Also, turn on Outlines for weapons, really hand as it shows you the chances of hitting a range attack by colour (red -> orange / yellow -> green) and also shows you when you will connect with a melee hit (green)

[VANGUARD]

If you say the sandbox options have no effect, then try to set the zombie population to zero and start a game.
If there're still zombies roaming outside then something's going wrong.
Either your game is bugged or you're making some kind of error.

[[Censored]]

Publicado originalmente por Eukre:

I've watched how-to's and game-plays. All look great and made easy. I've done vanilla and mods. I even done the "sandbox" where I try desperately to dumb down the zombies and make the population as low as possible. I know more about the damn character creation menus then I do trying to survive 5 friggen minutes in any game in solo mode. Seems like any option I make in sandbox options has no affect, at start or during game play. It's a run away simulator. (Sneaking, finding weapons....yeah yeah, I know all that)
I WANT to play this game. I like survival. the videos make it fun. But damn... wtf?!?

when i bought this game like 8 or 9 years ago i think... i struggled... its very hard to learn all the controls and get comfortable with... i hated it in build 40 i had shelved it until b41 hit and then i was bored and was in a phase of all games suck then i sat there a fiddled with it - lotsa you tube videos until i had it figured out and man im so glad i did take the time - this game is worth it - its only game in my 160 game library that i keep playing - its the best game on steam in my opinion - but ya its hard to learn this one (just keep at it man - like learning how to ride a really elaborate bike - you wont regret it)

the only other game i have that was or is this damn hard to figure out was elite dangerous and that one pissed me off so bad i threw it away - i almost did that with this one

[Spec]

When you first start playing the game, you need to be overly cautious. Over time when you die, and die, and die, learn, then die, you'll get more used to the game. My first game ever, I spawned, took all canned food, took a fork, ran outside, broke fork, got bit, died. Now, 100+ hours later I can comfortably gather large hordes outside my home, and lead them blocks away to clear any populations nearby.

Reason why so many videos make it look fun and action packed, is because a lot of the mundane tasks might be cut out, or just have so much experience, that they can do 1000 different things in a single hour. Just takes time!

[[Censored]]

Publicado originalmente por Spec:

When you first start playing the game, you need to be overly cautious. Over time when you die, and die, and die, learn, then die, you'll get more used to the game. My first game ever, I spawned, took all canned food, took a fork, ran outside, broke fork, got bit, died. Now, 100+ hours later I can comfortably gather large hordes outside my home, and lead them blocks away to clear any populations nearby.

Reason why so many videos make it look fun and action packed, is because a lot of the mundane tasks might be cut out, or just have so much experience, that they can do 1000 different things in a single hour. Just takes time! :beeped:

after you get super comfortable with the alien space ship controls and then you get confortable with the pacing and swing speed of the different zombies and weapons.... you start clearing hordes like a baddass and get over confident and then the real tantrums can begin - you can start throwing keyboards through windows and screaming like chewbaca and divorcing your wife..... its worth it... you will keep coming back... and oh man.... dont let em lie to you about the pvp...... its sooo good.... youll be neegan in no time

[Double o Stoner]

Git gud... JK

There are very good tips here. I can only add... FINDING A CAR

1. If you find a car look around it in "search mode" the keys may be lying around on the ground somewhere, you can even spot them without search mode.

2. if the car is in a driveway/parking lot... search the nearest building for houses the keys usually spawn in the same container every time (if they spawn at all) so it becomes a game of memory after a while (Check: bookshelves, desks, kitchen cabinets)

3. As Nox said Rosewood is usually the best place to start (I say usually because the game my start you in an overpopulated area) but if you are lucky enough to start in or near the police station you can usually find a key in the sheriiff's desk (the desk in it's own office).

4. You got lucky and found an unlocked car, but oh no it has no gas... pop the trunk and look for a gas can... if your luck somehow persists and you found a gas can. Time to go siphon... find the nearest locked car and give it a whirl.

5. once your mobile... GTFO of town find a nice quiet farm somewhere and live happily ever after... until the power and water go out...

I put an insane amount of time into this game and I can still die on day one. I get too confident opening doors looting houses then BOOM I run blindly into a zombie house party with what looks like 50 guests. Walk don't run...

[[Censored]]

Publicado originalmente por Double o Stoner:

Git gud... JK

There are very good tips here. I can only add... FINDING A CAR

1. If you find a car look around it in "search mode" the keys may be lying around on the ground somewhere, you can even spot them without search mode.

2. if the car is in a driveway/parking lot... search the nearest building for houses the keys usually spawn in the same container every time (if they spawn at all) so it becomes a game of memory after a while (Check: bookshelves, desks, kitchen cabinets)

3. As Nox said Rosewood is usually the best place to start (I say usually because the game my start you in an overpopulated area) but if you are lucky enough to start in or near the police station you can usually find a key in the sheriiff's desk (the desk in it's own office).

4. You got lucky and found an unlocked car, but oh no it has no gas... pop the trunk and look for a gas can... if your luck somehow persists and you found a gas can. Time to go siphon... find the nearest locked car and give it a whirl.

5. once your mobile... GTFO of town find a nice quiet farm somewhere and live happily ever after... until the power and water go out...

I put an insane amount of time into this game and I can still die on day one. I get too confident opening doors looting houses then BOOM I run blindly into a zombie house party with what looks like 50 guests. Walk don't run...

protip - never ever go near a porta potty or an outhouse - i wont ruin that for ya - but youve been warned

[Jambie Lionheart]

Just mess with zombie lore settings. Make 'em weak, blind, deaf as posts and slow sailors.
In advanced zombie settings you can also further reduce zombie population in advanced zombie settings down to 0.01. set peak to 1.0 (technically you can actually set the zombie population to absolute 0). Anyways, if you still can't survive that, time to find a new game or come back in a few yearskid :(

Edit: Also, question, how exaclty are you dying in game? Think about that and think about how you can avoid or push past that death the next time.

[[Censored]]

Publicado originalmente por Jambie Lionheart:

Just mess with zombie lore settings. Make 'em weak, blind, deaf as posts and slow sailors.
In advanced zombie settings you can also further reduce zombie population in advanced zombie settings down to 0.01. set peak to 1.0 (technically you can actually set the zombie population to absolute 0). Anyways, if you still can't survive that, time to find a new game or come back in a few yearskid :(

Edit: Also, question, how exaclty are you dying in game? Think about that and think about how you can avoid or push past that death the next time.

nah you can do it - this guy didnt go pro on day one either

[RDecline]

I think it is better to learn to play the game at basically default settings. You'll potentially learn some sloppy habits for when you turn them back up. (Plus...I just don't think it is much fun with the zeds cranked way down.)

My non how to play advice:

1. It is going to sound dumb but one piece of advice I got was: Whatever you did that got you killed, don't do that.
For me that was getting a bit settled but then restless and pushing my luck.

2. Think slow. Maybe really really slow until you get the hang of the controls and stuff. Base up maybe even where you start or only one or two houses over.

3. Venture out with a simple "mission" in mind and stick to it. Example: Going to get food, or it might even be, I'm going to go one street over, or I'm going to explore that shed next door.

Videos are made by usually fairly seasoned players and can be pretty misleading.
When I start a new game often I don't leave the street I start on for a tiny bit. And usually want food, a hammer, saw, screwdriver. I'll kind of base up somewhere, preferably a larger house if I can since it has more stuff, and just start knocking everything apart, boarding windows, etc to get the carpentry skill up. Gradually in all that the fighting skill gets better, venturing out gets easier. But it really can be slow.

4. Walk and spin A LOT in combat stance. Even one point in Nimble goes a long way to making fighting easier.

5. Maybe instead of turning the zombies down, try turning the XP multiplier way up. You will level skills crazy fast but still learn some with timing attacks and stuff.

[DemonchanSama (Lilyia)]

Publicado originalmente por Eukre:

I've watched how-to's and game-plays. All look great and made easy. I've done vanilla and mods. I even done the "sandbox" where I try desperately to dumb down the zombies and make the population as low as possible. I know more about the damn character creation menus then I do trying to survive 5 friggen minutes in any game in solo mode. Seems like any option I make in sandbox options has no affect, at start or during game play. It's a run away simulator. (Sneaking, finding weapons....yeah yeah, I know all that)
I WANT to play this game. I like survival. the videos make it fun. But damn... wtf?!?

Try watching streams or videos of various players, you'll learn lots of useful tips this way.

https://www.youtube.com/@Pr1vateLime

One of my favorite, he does fun challenges.