Ideas for Enhancing Realism and Mechanics in 7 Days to Die

[Mrcheese]

Hello, developers and fellow players!

I’ve been playing 7 Days to Die for a while, and I wanted to share some of my thoughts and suggestions to improve the game’s realism and gameplay mechanics. Some of these ideas may be a bit out there, but I believe they could make the game even better. Here are my suggestions:

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1. Realistic Campfire Interactions

Currently, when you step on a campfire, nothing happens. In real life, stepping on a campfire would cause burns or damage. It would be more immersive if stepping on a campfire in the game caused damage to the player, forcing them to be more cautious.

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2. Broken Leg System

The current broken leg system feels unrealistic. A minor break lasting for 20-30 minutes doesn’t make sense. A more realistic system could involve longer recovery times or varied injury levels that depend on the severity of the fall or damage.

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3. Reload Animations and Gun Handling

Some of the reload animations for guns, like the revolver, feel off. I believe improving the reload animations and making them more realistic would enhance the immersion. For example, the way a revolver is reloaded should reflect its design and real-life usage.

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4. Water Sourcing

In the game, it’s strange that you can’t drink water directly from lakes or rivers. You should be able to use a bottle to collect water, and then boil it using a campfire to purify it. This would make water more accessible and add a layer of realism to the game.

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5. Crafting Recipes and Books

Currently, the crafting system involves finding books to unlock new recipes. While this is a cool feature, it’s frustrating when the game shows the recipe but you can't craft it yet because you haven’t found the corresponding book. I suggest showing the name of the item instead of the recipe until the book is discovered. That way, players have an idea of what they can craft once they unlock it.

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6. Military Time and Time System

I personally find the military time system a bit unnecessary and would love the option to switch to a standard 12-hour clock. Having that customization would make the game feel more approachable for players who aren’t used to military time.

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7. Digging Mechanics

The digging system in the game currently feels off because the grid for digging is rotated incorrectly. It would be much easier to dig if the grid matched the expected orientation, making digging feel more intuitive.

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8. Feedback on Button Customization

The button layout could use some improvements. I think it would be great if players could fully customize all the controls, including more flexibility with the buttons. Also, there’s a button called “track” which doesn’t seem to do much. It would be helpful if this button displayed what you need (like books) instead of the recipe, until the book is found.

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9. Trees and Wood Collection

Breaking down trees currently feels strange because you slowly collect wood by breaking it, but there’s no noticeable change in the tree (like indents or cuts). Adding visual feedback to show the damage being done to trees would make this process more satisfying and realistic.

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10. Pooping and Peeing

One small thing I’ve noticed is that when you consume food, it’s unclear what happens to the waste. It would be funny and add a bit of realism if there was a mechanic where your character had to go to the bathroom after eating, similar to how some other survival games handle this. Even if it's just a small part of the game, it could add a touch of realism and humour.

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Conclusion

These are just a few ideas I think could improve 7 Days to Die and make it even more immersive. I love the game, but I believe some of these changes could enhance the overall experience. Thank you for reading

, and I’d love to hear other players’ thoughts on these suggestions!

 

[zztong]

I see this is your first post. Welcome to the forums.

1. Realistic Campfire Interactions

Currently, when you step on a campfire, nothing happens. In real life, stepping on a campfire would cause burns or damage. It would be more immersive if stepping on a campfire in the game caused damage to the player, forcing them to be more cautious.

Odd, I thought you took damage from a campfire. I'll have to intentionally try it.

I'm not sure I'd say it is realistic to become engulfed in fire if you just run through a campfire wearing something like a hiking boot, but if you were to stand in one for a bit, then certainly.

2. Broken Leg System

The current broken leg system feels unrealistic. A minor break lasting for 20-30 minutes doesn’t make sense. A more realistic system could involve longer recovery times or varied injury levels that depend on the severity of the fall or damage.

You're not wrong. Recovery from a broken leg could easily take longer than some people's game last. I suspect if you make it last a realistic amount of time people's games will be even shorter. Still, for those who like to play "PermaDeath", maybe they'd enjoy a realistic recovery time of 6-8 weeks for a minor fracture or up to 6 months for something major. I want to think the time values are in XML, making a mod possible though I wonder if it can handle as large a value as needed. What's 6 months in seconds? Oh, yeh, you might as well count days... which I'll bet needs a code change... hence your suggestion.

4. Water Sourcing

In the game, it’s strange that you can’t drink water directly from lakes or rivers. You should be able to use a bottle to collect water, and then boil it using a campfire to purify it. This would make water more accessible and add a layer of realism to the game.

As a person who has died on the hill of arguing for the ability to carry water away from a water source, I can tell you that mods are your savior, assuming you're on PC. You have choices ... if you want empty bottles back in the game, or if you don't. Personally, I don't miss empty jars, so I just use a mod that lets me harvest water from water sources and gives me murky water.

 

[InfiniteWarrior]

I just use a mod that lets me harvest water from water sources and gives me murky water.

Which mod is that? Not being a glue farmer, I'd like to give it a try. The bucket-cistern technique is okay, but I'd rather collect water on the go and don't much care for the empty jar method myself. Those inventory slots are precious!

 

[zztong]

Which mod is that? Not being a glue farmer, I'd like to give it a try. The bucket-cistern technique is okay, but I'd rather collect water on the go and don't much care for the empty jar method myself. Those inventory slots are precious!

I made one for my own use. You're welcome to snag the files and strip out anything you don't like. For instance, to try and balance out the advantage it gives, I change stacking to 10 for murky water and impose a rate limit so you can't just spam 10 keys and instantly get 10 water. I also give "Boiled Water" a dysentery chance so that Pure Mineral Water is the only true potable water and that you can only make that at a Chemistry Station.

https://github.com/brucezztong/ZZTong.7D2D.Mods/tree/main/ZZTong-Water

 

[Riamus]

1. Realistic Campfire Interactions

Currently, when you step on a campfire, nothing happens. In real life, stepping on a campfire would cause burns or damage. It would be more immersive if stepping on a campfire in the game caused damage to the player, forcing them to be more cautious.

Unless this changed, certain campfires can cause you to catch on fire if you stand on them for a few seconds.  These are the unlit campfires in POIs.  I know I've caught on fire from them in the past when not paying attention.  I haven't ever stepped in my own crafted campfire since I don't place that on the ground, so can't comment on what that one does.  If some campfires still do catch you on fire, then you may just not notice because it isn't instantaneous.  You have to stand there for 2-3 seconds.

2. Broken Leg System

The current broken leg system feels unrealistic. A minor break lasting for 20-30 minutes doesn’t make sense. A more realistic system could involve longer recovery times or varied injury levels that depend on the severity of the fall or damage.

Most players would just kill themselves if a broken leg lasted a very long time.  It's probably the most annoying debuff in the game.  In any case, you do have different recovery times.  A sprain recovers more quickly.  More variable times really don't offer anything.  And remember that game time is not intended to be realistic.  If it was, your crops would take about 90 in-game days before you could harvest them (plus or minus, depending on the crop).  No one would want that.  Debuffs lasting many days, weeks, or months?  Again, no one would want that.  Gameplay trumps realism in most cases.

3. Reload Animations and Gun Handling

Some of the reload animations for guns, like the revolver, feel off. I believe improving the reload animations and making them more realistic would enhance the immersion. For example, the way a revolver is reloaded should reflect its design and real-life usage.

This has been brought up many times.  Improved animations wouldn't hurt, but most players aren't experts about guns and don't have any idea that they aren't accurate.  This makes the priority for updating those animations very low.

4. Water Sourcing

In the game, it’s strange that you can’t drink water directly from lakes or rivers. You should be able to use a bottle to collect water, and then boil it using a campfire to purify it. This would make water more accessible and add a layer of realism to the game.

You *can* drink water directly from lakes or rivers.  Stand in the water at the edge, use empty hands (no weapon/tool/etc.) and you'll see the drink notification.  Press your interaction button (E by default on PC) and you'll drink water.  As far as transporting water from a water source, that was intentionally removed, so it's unlikely to return without using a mod.  It was far too easy to get water in the game, so they changed how you could get water.  You can still quickly max out your thirst meter by drinking directly from a water source, but you'll need to use dew collectors or else find water for any crafting recipes or to carry water with you.  This slows down water gathering from what it used to be.  Before, people could craft hundreds of jars in a very short time and then fill them in a second and have enough water to last the entire game.  That's no longer an option, which is a good thing.  Yes, it isn't realistic that you can't carry water back from a water source, and maybe they could add a way to do that without making water extremely easy again, but I don't think that'll happen.

5. Crafting Recipes and Books

Currently, the crafting system involves finding books to unlock new recipes. While this is a cool feature, it’s frustrating when the game shows the recipe but you can't craft it yet because you haven’t found the corresponding book. I suggest showing the name of the item instead of the recipe until the book is discovered. That way, players have an idea of what they can craft once they unlock it.

I'm not sure what exactly you mean.  Where are you talking about?  If you are in the crafting window, it should default to not show the recipe when clicked on until you select the recipe tab and instead show a description of the item instead.  At least, that's how I remember it working.  It isn't something I've really paid attention to.

6. Military Time and Time System

I personally find the military time system a bit unnecessary and would love the option to switch to a standard 12-hour clock. Having that customization would make the game feel more approachable for players who aren’t used to military time.

Although I see nothing wrong with it being military time (people should learn this), having an option to change it wouldn't be difficult to add, so I see no reason not to add it.

7. Digging Mechanics

The digging system in the game currently feels off because the grid for digging is rotated incorrectly. It would be much easier to dig if the grid matched the expected orientation, making digging feel more intuitive.

Not sure what you mean here either.  If you dig in a straight line, that line will be aligned with any blocks you place.  It isn't rotated differently than blocks.  If you aren't getting the same line as a block, it means you're not digging in a straight line.

 

[Dead Smarty]

1. Realistic Campfire Interactions

Currently, when you step on a campfire, nothing happens. In real life, stepping on a campfire would cause burns or damage. It would be more immersive if stepping on a campfire in the game caused damage to the player, forcing them to be more cautious.

I stepped a few times in my own campfire and did get burned. It was placed in a blond moment close to a ladder.
 

4. Water Sourcing

In the game, it’s strange that you can’t drink water directly from lakes or rivers. You should be able to use a bottle to collect water, and then boil it using a campfire to purify it. This would make water more accessible and add a layer of realism to the game.

Craft/buy/find a bucket, fill it in a lake or puddle, dig a small hole close to base, fill with bucket, drink water with your hands and get sick. Untill you find purifying mod for helmet just use the murky water for tea to cure that dissease.