That is one of the most misguided concepts I've ever seen - it surely sounds like a great concept, until you actually think what reward is, where will it lead and why are you happy after getting that reward. Sometimes you can make "punishment" look like a reward, which is a good thing overall, but in the end it is a matter of perspective. There can't be positive in the long-term without the negative, because it slowly stops being perceived as positive - it's that simple and it applies to everyone.
So, think about it: you want "rewards" in order to make BM worthwhile without being penalized. Why do you want them? Which is the ultimate goal? Perks, items? What is the purpose of those in the first place? Survival? Do you want to get rewarded in a BM with those, so that you can survive the ...rest of the time that you are barely threatened? And what is that about "don't penalize"? What is survival, other than the positive state on one side of the coin?
Seriously, I know everyone loves reward, but a little common sense won't hurt. Reward must be cleverly, prudently placed not handed out like confetii, otherwise it's not much of a reward.
Considering that HN only penalizes the player currently, when in the past it awarded with a lot of loot which apart from repairing your base, was enough to make you feel progressing forward. Now you get only XP which increases difficulty and perhaps some bags if you're lucky enough, but most likely will give food.
To some extent we all are people who thrive to have the best possible way to play the game, some people only in little steps, but it's still there. You gain experience in the order of skills you unlock (first pack mule, perhaps stealth, Sex T-Rex or aim for the forge), what materials you need first (focus on wood or stone, dirt and sand later, etc.), where you explore (burning is good with building corners, desert is too vast, forest is always good, etc.), how you build your base (take over a POI, build something from scratch or dig into the ground) and many other aspects of the game. Along all of that is the enjoyment we get, but it doesn't mean we don't strive to GIT GUD.
Apart from what everyone said, there's not much more to be said about Horde Night.
- It SHOULD NOT be avoidable.
- It SHOULD be difficult.
- It SHOULD scale according to player progression, not faster nor slower. A good equilibrium is required in everything.
- It SHOULD give a sense of reward, unless it's only purpose will be to haunt the player (like the incoming hordes in They Are Billions). In its current state, it does neither of those.
- It SHOULD be satisfying as you kill the last zombie victorious.
- It SHOULD have a breather, so you don't have a WH on you 2 minutes after sunrise. I imagine HN as the gathering of EVERYTHING from around, i don't suspect a single group decide to wait till dawn to ambush me...
EDIT: n2n1 - Shortly after i started playing 7DTD i was scared of going outside at night, but i did try multiple times until i knew how to do it safely. Things worked different in the past, but it was still possible to out at night if you were careful.
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