It’s been a long time coming, but 7 Days to Die’s next big update is here! This brings the game up to version 2.0, the next big milestone in the game’s post-1.0 development roadmap. Sure, the update has overshot the intended release window of Q4 2024, but now it’s time to have a look at what’s new. Will it be worth the wait? Let’s check out the contents of 2.0 and see how it is.
What Storm is Brewing?
Let’s take a look at the main staple of Storm’s Brewing: the new weather and biome system.
Stormy Weather
If you know anything about weather in 7 Days to Die, it’s that the weather is either fine or raining (or snow in the Snow Biome). It was something that existed simply because the world has weather, it was no obstacle in the way of ploughing through droves of zombies.
So, with an update titled Storm’s Brewing, what can we expect from this stormy weather? Let’s start with what a storm entails. Storms are a new weather mechanic that can stop whatever you are doing in your tracks. Unlike rain or snow that makes you a little wet, a storm can bring consequences for you if you don’t take shelter. Each biome has a chance of storms, and when the conditions are right, the biome will brew up a storm.
A storm is brewing, time to take shelter.
What happens when a storm begins to brew? Unlike the warning for a blood moon where you have all day to prepare, a storm can happen at any time. Not just that, you also have about a minute to seek shelter or get out of the biome. After a minute has passed, you will have another timer, a debuff that counts down before the storm becomes hazardous for you.
In all biomes except the Pine Forest, the weather will start dealing damage. To shelter from the damaging effects of a storm, players will either need to build a shelter that will protect them from the weather or find a way to take the brunt of the damage. As the Pine Forest is a starting biome, players will be safe from storms as the weather does not present itself as a real danger.
A storm’s severity depends on where it is. The frequency of when they occur and for how long they last is also random, so make sure you stock up before it starts.
Biome Progression
In a way, 7 Days to Die had a biome progression system, but it was less about preventing players from entering hazardous land and more a warning that the entire zone was more dangerous than before. With this new biome progression system, the more dangerous biomes will have obstacles that prevent traversal. How does one unlock a biome?
You will start off in the Pine Forest as usual, so this will be your entry-level biome. As you progress through the game, exploring more of the land is necessary, but these other biomes are dangerous and are concealed by hazardous conditions. These barriers make surviving the biomes much more difficult, and without the correct equipment, you won’t have much time to explore the area.
Thick smoke blankets the Burnt Forest, surviving here won’t be easy.
Progressing to new biomes requires understanding how to survive and overcome these conditions. This can involve wearing equipment that protects against the biome hazards, gathering resources within the biome, and surviving long enough in the area.
Completing these challenges in the respective biomes will eventually unlock what is called a Biome Badge, a permanent upgrade that protects you from the harsh conditions of the biome. Each Biome Badge has 7 challenges to complete, and each Biome Badge above the last requires the previous one to unlock. These are no walk in the park, so make sure you are well prepared.
A Biome Badge from completing all the challenges in the Burnt Forest.
Having a Biome Badge also has a small effect on the new stormy weather mechanic. If you haven’t obtained a Biome Badge for the biome you are currently in and a storm starts to brew, you will be warned to get out of the biome as you will still be affected by hazards even when sheltered. Of course, a Biome Badge does not protect you from the storm, but it makes surviving in the biome much easier than without.
New faces on the block
This new weather doesn’t just bring environmental hazards. There are now more zombies to tear at your flesh, or to use as target practice. It depends on how you see these new enemies.
Plague Spitter and Frost Claw.
First, we have the new faces of the block, each belonging to a specific biome. In the Desert biome, we have the Plague Spitter, a zombie that specializes in entomology - and by that I mean spewing out swarms of insects at you. Dealing with these insects is best done with melee weapons. Next up, in the Snow biome, we have the Frost Claw, a zombie that will hurl boulders at you. Beware the impact damage as these boulders can also destroy terrain.
Charged Blue and Infernal Orange zombies.
Along with this, there is a new set of radiated zombies to challenge players at higher difficulties. These zombies behave similar to their existing green radiated cousin, but these new ones offer a different challenge. A blue radiated zombie is also known as a Charged Blue zombie, and these specialize in speed and agility, as well as dealing more damage to players. On the other hand, we have the orange radiated zombie, also known as an Infernal Orange zombie, a tanky but slower variant that can destroy structures with ease.
Player Changes
In addition to the new weather system, there are some new tweaks and modifications for the player. These come in a few varieties.
Cosmetic Armor
Fret no more that you look like a cobbled-together pile of junk. Included in the player menu is the option to apply cosmetic armor. This little system allows you to wear whatever gear you want but look the same for as long as you have cosmetic armor equipped. For those that want to look good while slaughtering zombies, this is the system just for you.
Cosmetic changes on the armor. Notice the lack of headgear while still wearing it.
There is a bit more to it than just equipping whatever you want. For some, you may not want to have headgear showing on your player. This is also possible through the cosmetic changes as headgear can be hidden from view. While this is an experimental build and it may change, only headgear can be hidden, so unfortunately, you can’t run around with nothing on.
Along with this are planned announcements for cosmetic armor drops through DLC or Twitch Drops. Keep an eye out for these new and unique pieces of equipment.
Perk System changes
Skills have been rebalanced to be more consistent. The biggest change is that skills will always have 5 upgrade levels, and each attribute will always have 10 levels. This means that skills that had fewer levels are now scaled up, so for many skills, reaching the maximum level may take more time. Spend those skill points wisely.
Strength attribute from 1.4 on the left and Strength attribute from 2.0 on the right. All perks are now 5 levels each and some skills have been added or removed.
Along with some rebalancing for skills, some have been moved around. This introduces a new tab to the Skills page for general skills. Rather than some skills being locked behind upgrading certain attributes, these are not governed by an attribute and can be upgraded at any time without needing an attribute upgraded.
As some skills have been moved from an attribute to the general tab, new skills are added to fill in the rest of each attribute page. There are quite a few skills for each attribute, so have a look at what has been added for each one. You may find yourself balancing your skills towards a different attribute now.
Sledgehammer Books
Sledgehammers have been given an extra bit of love with a new series of books to collect. Many tools and weapons, such as clubs and pistols, each have a series of seven books. Each volume provides a boost to the specific tool, weapon, or skill, with one final perk for finishing up a full series. Before, Sledgehammers did not have any perks.
The new perks for the Sledgehammer, thanks to Sledge Saga.
As of 2.0, there will be more books to find, this time for Sledgehammers, making them more viable for combat. Such perks include extra damage to certain enemies, improved chances of knockdown, and perks for power attacks. Another weapon at your disposal for zombie disposal.
Getting together with friends
With this update also comes some new changes to enhance your multiplayer experience. Now is a better time than ever to get your group together to bust some zombies.
Crossplay
Crossplay has finally arrived for dedicated servers! If you or your friends play on the Xbox or Playstation, they can now join in on the endeavor to survive, and you won’t need anyone else online to do so.
In order for a server to be eligible for crossplay, there will need to be some settings in place to allow for console players to join the server. To do this, the server’s configuration file will need to be edited. For a guide on where to find and edit the server config, check out the help article.
Change the following settings on your server to enable crossplay:
- ServerAllowCrossplay - set to True to enable Crossplay
- ServerMaxPlayerCount - set to a value of up to 8. Crossplay servers can only allow up to 8 players.
- EACEnabled - set to True. Servers must have Easy Anti-Cheat enabled.
- IgnoreEOSSanctions - set to False. Servers must adhere to Epic Online Services sanctions.
Servers that have any mods installed will not be able to show up on the server list for console players.
Spawn near Friend
Picture this: your friend has invited you to play 7 Days to Die. It’s your first time ever playing the game, so they’re going to walk you through how to play the game. There’s just one problem: it’s a blood moon, and their base is far out of the way from spawn. It’s a tale as old as time where players join a server for the first time, underprepared for what is to come and caught right in the thick of an enemy horde.
As of 2.0, this problem will be left in the past. If it’s your first time joining a server, rather than spawn at the world spawn, you can choose to spawn near another player. This eliminates the problem of being far away from your experienced friend, and you can get right into the action without being part of it first. Just be careful, if biome progression is enabled and your friend is in a hazardous biome, you won’t be able to spawn in. Servers may also disable this feature if the challenge is surviving in the worst possible cases.
Discord Integration
We also get some integration with Discord clients. When using voice chat in game and you have a linked Discord account, it will make use of Discord for voice chat. Not just that, but many other functions of Discord are available in game, such as switching voice chat rooms, messaging, and inviting friends to play. For an added bonus, you can use your Discord friends to pick who you can spawn near.
Discord settings can be found under Audio Settings. Simply click on Link Account to connect with your Discord account.
On top of extra functions in-game, there’s also a new feature outside the game. The Rich Presence feature in Discord has more enhanced features for the game, displaying more information about what is happening in the game, so you know what your friends are up to and if you can tag in.
Many Quality of Life Improvements
There is so much to cover with this update that it would be exhausting to list every change that comes with this update. Zombies are getting smarter, audio and graphics are getting uplifted, and the game is improving on performance. For those wanting the whole list of changes, here’s the release notes with everything we know.
Are you ready to get started? The Storm’s Brewing update can be installed on your 7 Days to Die server by navigating to Game Settings, then selecting the new version to install. Looking to host a new server? Get started with our recommended plan here, then simply create a 7 Days to Die server.