More Serious.
This is POI related, but I heard so much feedback about this I wanted to break it out. It generally feels like a17 has shifted to more "serious". Not a ton, but enough to garner a bit of worry. We loved finding funny stuff inside POI's but it feels like there's less of that. Please Fun Pimps, don't forget your company name, we like that silly zany stuff!
You described it right on spot. I have same thoughts, I wrote on many other discussions about this. It feels like gameplay shifted from 7d2d ( A10-A16 ) into more of an action style ( FP shooter of sorts ) where game is oriented to just go out and constantly fight and collect kills ( feels more like death match in shooter games ). Somehow all the other aspects of game are dulled down. Feels like genre of the game has changed now.
I really like new POI's design, atmosphere, looks and all (
great job TFP ), but usually they are so packed with zombies that it really feels like you are entering a new death match game ( countown 3,2,1 GO is missing to make it complete lol ).
On later levels ( 100 + ) I enter a house doing fetch tier 1 level trader quest ( didn't do them before since trader was far away ). So i enter the house and open a console ( 21 radiated zombies on basement level - mostly cheerleaders and few Boes ). Next floor another 15-ish radiated ( still moistly cheerleaders with couple of spiders and bigMoma's), top level in the attic 12 radiated most of them in room guarding the crates ( wights, boes and few others ).
OK obviously i didn't have much problems with themat these levels, picking them 1 by 1 with 3 steel arrows in the head and couple of times with knuckles fights ( exploding heads from head crusher ), but cmon it felt like playing Doom ( the one from the 90's

) only with better graphics and effects.
My point, radiated zeds should be special ( boss like, tough opponent guarding something important and difficult to obtain ). They loose that omg Green zombies effect. It just gets too repetitive on a same pace all the time.
On the other hand wouldn't it be nicer if on blood moons those zombies numbers per block would be limited? and once that limit is reached zombies should move to the next block. More like mindless A16 zombies just trying to demolish as many blocks as possible?
In A16 i spent almost half a week gathering, mining, building and fortifying the base - mixing that concrete and smelting steel and making traps and rest of the days looting and exploring - trading.
A17 has great new things but i just think everything should be more balanced among all the aspects the game has to offer and not just focus so much purely on fighting, just to loot couple of crates with crappy items.
Yes looting needs to change - waaaay too many guns ( that also adds the feel of a shooter game where guns are all over the place ). These should be special finds with powerful attributes, but hard to find so it makes you think if they are worth using now or should you save them for OH SH** moments. Yes I think MadMole said its still work in porogress and many new items are coming so I'm just commeting current state of the game.