Name: 7 Days to Die
Release Date: 28 June 2016 (consoles) 13 December 2013 (PC)
Developer: The Fun Pimps
Publisher: Telltale Games
Genre: Survival Horror
Platform: PS4, Xbox One, PC, Linux, Mac OS
Reviewed on: PS4
7 Days to Die was an early access game on Steam back in December 2013, but now the game is released on consoles as well. Telltale games does have its name on the box art, but have in mind that they didn’t develop the game, they just published it on the consoles.
Story
There isn’t a linear story behind this game, basically the main quest here is as the title says, survive.
Gameplay + Graphics
Let us first get all the negative things about the game away first.
If you are looking for a game with excellent graphics, then this isn’t for you. Since 7 Days to Die is an Indie Game from the studio The Fun Pimps, and is still in Alpha version on both PC and now consoles as well. The console version of the game got the update from 26 March called Alpha 14, but the most recent update released 20 June Alpha 14.7 was only released on PC. So the console version might be a little behind the updates from launch. The console version is said to be a standalone version of this game, but this might be the same system as Blizzard’s Overwatch. (Pre-released in early stages, so both platforms get equal updates)
Textures are blurry, objects pop ins are frequent and the character models of both player and enemies exhibit the animation range of a mannequin. The framerate on the PS4 isn’t that good and will freeze on certain points, especially when it auto saves. The combat is quite the same as the Dead Island games, but less polished. It feels clumsy sometimes and I’m still trying to figure out how the bow and arrow works.
The few issues the console version has now, are something that’s discussed on reddit and how to workaround it. But in my opinion the game doesn’t suffer huge problems as many people would say, and hey, it’s an indie game and it’s still in alpha version.
If you love Minecraft this game would not feel different, The Fun Pimps aren’t ashamed in borrowing a few elements and inspiration from Minecraft. 7 Days to Die takes these elements and puts it into the survival aspect and uses this as the basis for the whole experience, and for me this is perfectly okay. You collect resources such as wood, rocks, feathers and many many more. You can collect from almost everything in the game. As written before the game doesn’t have an linear story, but the quest is to survive. You begin in an open world and start collecting resources and building or finding shelters. The game also features a short tutorial in the beginning to get you started.
As the day goes by and night slowly ascend to you, the undead is changing. During the day the undead walks and isn’t that aggressive, but during the night all hell breaks loose as the undead starts running and is more aggressive towards you (default settings, can be changed)
You can set up a series of traps to defend yourself from the various enemies in the world for survival, same as gaining experience in cooking skills for food to stay alive. Or you can go rambo style and loot everything you find and find shelter in houses or caves during night. The variety of gameplay is many. But keep in mind that the game holds it’s word on the title.
7 Days to Die is more fun to play with friends either online or split screen. As the experience by playing alone gets quite boring in length. One big issue I have with this game, is the lack of option to play split screen online, if you have a girlfriend/boyfriend or just a friend visiting and both of you want to play with other friends online, well then you guys must take turns or just play by yourself in singleplayer mode. (Must play single player mode for split screen).
The Verdict
Any Minecraft gamer will know the addiction and absorbing effect of playing a crafting survival game, and 7 Days to Die does delivers this experience as the hours fly by while you play. Especially with friends online or split screen. The game dosen’t look that bad regarding graphics or gameplay, I think it looks pretty good to be an indie game and still in alpha version.
The game is a very enjoyable experience for a long time despite a few technical issues.
8/10
+ Gameplay Experience
+ Variety of crafting
+ Easy yet challenging to learn
– A few technical issues
– Lack of split screen option online
-/+ Addictive
