7 Days to Die

This survival and exploration game tries to improve upon the sandbox formula but only rests on what has already worked before, with interesting but not necessarily groundbreaking results. For one, 7 Days to Die makes a lot of assumptions about who you are if you're playing it: Even basic tasks such as upgrading building materials you've already constructed is unclear, and your'e never given clear instruction on how to perform them (for example, you press the left trigger instead of the right). There are so many menus thrown at you and that are hard to navigate, and it's difficult to discern what you should be paying attention to; it's also difficult to discern when and what to call up based on different survival situations, such as you're bleeding out or starting to get dehydrated (all of which is made that much harder to do on a console). All of this means there's a heavy investment of time required from the player, although fortunately online multiplayer means you won't have to be completely alone in the wilderness if you don't want to. But online, there are problems as well. Even when you're just hosting a game for others to join and being there by yourself, the game will reliably lag or stutter unpredictably. This is unfair to count as a deterrent against checking the game out, but it's another built-in frustration you'll need to be attuned to navigating and anticipating.

These complaints aside, there's still something captivating and enticing about a game that doesn't hold your hand and sets you out in the wilderness and defies you to survive. True to its survival/horror roots in The Walking Dead, this game rewards cautious survival instead of guns-blazing action. There are elements of survival here that skew closer to reality -- aside from the zombies -- which means it's an interesting simulation of what might happen were you really roughing it. And that also means there's greater strength in numbers, meaning that when you're on a server with other people -- and you're able to find each other -- bigger things are possible, such as food runs and supply runs. Otherwise, by yourself, you can feel incredibly vulnerable, because 7 Days to Die usually will do you in and kill you by the end of your second day, if you're lucky. This game is hard and clunky, but if you come in with an open mind, you'll be able to have some fun in fits and starts.