Picking locks - Can it be improved? Is RNG better or should we have a minigame?

[Macdallan]

I get really bored picking locks in 7 Days to Die. Hold E, select pick, wait, hear annoying fail noise go ca-chunk and repeat. Boring. Why does it fail and make us select it again? Why not keep going until I run out of picks, or until I hit Escape? That would be preferable to hearing that insanely annoying click noise over and over, and having to constantly hold E and re-start the process. Sure, add some time if the RNG fails, but keep going until the lock is opened.

Better yet maybe give us more than just simple lock picks. Give us lock pick guns (yes they are a thing and they are faster but only work on really simple locks) and safe cracking kits (because you can't pick a safe with a lock pick). Let us learn how to "rake" open easy locks. Let us use brute force (add a crowbar, please) on some locks that will simply pop them open (not just smash the container open). I've broken a few locks open, it's much easier to do with some cheap locks than you might think. Let us pick locks on doors, too.

Even better would be to add a minigame to lock picking, something like Skyrim or the safe cracking mini-game in GTA V online. Make it something active instead of click, wait, and RNG decides. Have character skill and better lock picking equipment make it easier. Why is this better? It makes us focus on the task at hand and that will build tension because maybe a sneaky zombie just stumbled into the room while we were working out the second number in that safe's combination...

Thoughts?

[Macdallan]

Цитата допису Tyrax Lightning:

I can agree with Lockpicking & Safecracking being made separate... but at the same time I HAVE heard of stuff like Safes & Gunsafes having a Keylock backup entry method... (Often poorly hidden...) a guy on YouTube I enjoy watching called "LockPickingLawyer" has tons of Vids on Lockpicking, including at least a bunch on Gunsafes & how terribly vulnerable the (often poorly hidden) backup keyhole entry locks can be... let alone ones that can have such stupid Hardware Design that they can be defeated & opened by stupidly basic tools & such simple techniques that Kids could do it if they know what to do.

I watch LPL all the time so I know exactly what you mean. Yes, some combination or digital safes, or even some combination locks, will have a backup cylinder/keyway. Sometimes hidden, sometimes obvious, and on low end hardware it's probably easier to pick than trying to deal with working out the combination. Even combination safes, or digital locks, can be popped open with ease if there are major design flaws (LPL is the best place to see those) or if the person opening them is skilled and knowledgeable enough, like the LPL, and that would be where the highest level of the perk could provide some serious bonuses. Sometimes brute force is so easy that it only takes a few seconds to open, such as an extremely low quality lock or lockbox opening with a little pressure and sometimes it's impossible without spending hours. Maybe Lock picking needs to be 5 levels and at the higher tiers simple locks become extremely easy to open and you learn how to crack a combination lock (or look for the hidden keyway...).

Цитата допису atom heart:

Lock picking is all very well when applied to the standard strong box and possibly, the small wall safe which I think has an actual key lock on it. The rest of the secured containers do not. The gun safe doesn't, not even one to lock the combination dial. The larger tier loot chests are digital. So, what are we picking exactly?

I agree with Macdallan that lock picking and safe cracking should be separate, they are not the same thing in any way. The stethoscope to hear the tumblers is a bit of Hollywood myth in the majority of cases. Professional safe crackers would take hours with one so I am not a fan of that.

However, a digital lock reader and an amplifier which is far better for audible safe cracking could be part of the safe cracking skill set. I know that this isn't a thief simulator game but I just wish we didn't stand there trying to break into a digital lock with a pick, that is just wrong.

Stethoscopes aren't used as much these days because there are better tools available, and well made modern safes aren't as easy to crack, but it's not just a Hollywood myth. They can help the safe cracker hear what's going on with the mechanisms and while some websites may claim they aren't, or were never used, they were.

You are right, though, some safes would take a very long time (hours to days) to crack and that's just not something that would be fun in the game. I do agree that some digital and standard combination locks shouldn't be opened with a lock pick, but as Tyrax Lightning pointed out some of these devices have a traditional keyway and cylinder to back up the combo locks. If that's the case then it's fine, and I have to admit that maybe the safes in this game are not as durable or pick proof as they should be.

[Tyrax Lightning]

Funnily enough, LPL can also potentially provide a viable Cover Story why the Safes in this game die in less than hours... maybe they were crafted by Mastersux. :P