7 Days to Die is a popular survival horror game that has been steadily supported with new content and features since its release back in 2013, but not all of its features are loved by players. One mechanic in particular has been receiving a lot of criticism; armor progression. Players are finding the system underwhelming and even frustrating to use due to a multitude of different reasons.
The Early Game Experience of 7 Days to Die
When starting out in 7 Days to Die 1.0, the Primitive Armor Set is your first step into gear. It is simple and pretty easy to upgrade to a quality level of 5. This set only has one mod slot, which most players fill with pocket mods to increase carrying capacity. It makes sense, and it works well enough in the early stages of the game.
However, once players begin crafting other armor sets, the problems start to become apparent. One player has took to Reddit to wax lyrical about just how terrible the armor progression system is in 7 Days to Die.
As you progress through the survival-horror experience, you can craft better armor, but here’s where it gets tricky. Players can only craft new sets at quality levels 1 or 2 initially, which presents some pretty tough choices. The user mentioned, that if you opt for light armor, you maintain mobility but lose out on protection. And with only one mod slot, typically used for pocket mods, you can’t enhance the armor rating to make up for it.
The other option is medium or heavy armor, which significantly boosts your protection. However, this comes at the cost of mobility, increased noise, and higher stamina costs. Once again, with the single mod slot often used for pockets, there’s no way to counteract these negatives.
Some players suggest mixing and matching armor pieces, such as wearing one piece of medium armor with the rest being light or primitive. This can help balance out some of the drawbacks, but it doesn’t seem to provide a satisfying solution. As one player noted, using one medium armor and the rest being light is a decent choice. Still, it’s a pretty frustrating thing.
Midgame Frustrations Are Too Much for Some Players
As the game progresses to later stages, the issues with armor only become more apparent. The idea here is that players don’t see much benefit in switching armor sets until they can craft higher-quality ones. This essentially makes much of the armor progression feel pointless or frustrating.
Players have also pointed out the inefficiencies in how bonuses are distributed across armor pieces and sets. The core issue lies in the lack of meaningful differentiation between the various armor types. Light armor offers minimal stat boosts and negligible improvements over Primitive armor.
Everything considered, the current state of armor progression in the 7 Days to Die 1.0 update seems to be a significant pain point for many players. The community has voiced a desire for a rethink of the system, hoping for a more balanced and rewarding progression that makes the effort feel worthwhile.
The developers could include some updates such as revamping the set bonuses to incentivize players to wear complete sets, and maybe higher-quality versions of armor sets should have additional mod slots.
What do you think of this criticism regarding the latest update for 7 Days to Die? Let us know in the comments.
