Whether a player has just installed the game or has many hours spent in the virtual Kentucky apocalypse, custom sandboxes can add new gameplay or make things easier for players in the brutal survival gameProject Zomboid. After players choose their starting location, they can edit an existing sandbox preset or make their own.
The custom sandbox options include settings for how zombies act and how many there are in the world, loot options including rarity, start time, how vehicles work, and much more. Custom sandboxes and character builds can be as unique as each individual player, but there are some suggestions that players could try if they don’t want to mess around with each drop-down menu.
4 Easy Sandbox
Project Zomboid isn’t an easy game, even with adjusted settings, but things can be tweaked for a less heart-pounding run or for newcomers to the zombie apocalypse, such as having favorable traits and changing custom sandbox settings. Leaning heavily on making the zombies not-so-scary, custom sandbox settings can make players feel more like survivors instead of sitting ducks.
The zombie respawn hours can be adjusted to zero to stop zombies from respawning and ruining the hard work of beginner or casual players. Also, try bringing down the population start multiplier to 0.5 or 0.25, reducing the beginning zombie population to half or even a quarter of the default amount. Change the zombie speed to shamblers, so they can just be outwalked even when over-encumbered.
If zombie toughness is changed to fragile, and they are given poor sight and hearing, they would be much easier to avoid and fight off, if it came to that. Increase the rally group separation setting to 25, the max setting. This will prevent constantly running into zombie hordes and reduce the apocalyptic conga lines while bandaging up injuries. Decrease all loot rarity so medicine, weapons, and food can be found at all times. Throw in a starting kit, also found in the custom sandbox settings, that includes a schoolbag, baseball bat, hammer, water bottle, and chips. These are some settings that make for a custom sandbox that makes the game much easier.
3 Realistic Sandboxes
Mods can make the game feel more realistic, and so can custom sandbox settings. Listed by category, setting, and then choice, these are settings that can make the game more realistic. Players need to be on high alert as they are more vulnerable to zombies coming from the back. Vehicles that players would want to hotwire won’t be in great condition quickly after the infection, as many would be involved in accidents and would also have issues starting after standing idle. Cars are loud, so they would naturally attract zombies if players are driving around.
As for the zombies themselves, they might be more fragile as they don’t have the same ability to react well to attacks and defend themselves. They would be strong, as they don’t have any worries about their own danger and safety. Initial populations of zombies would start out smaller before the infection becomes very widespread. The number of infected would compound as the days go by, leading to huge numbers of zombies and few survivors after a few months, hence the population peak multiplier and the population peak day values.
2 Six Months Later Preset
The Six Months Later saved preset was a scenario offered in Project Zomboid that was patched out in Build 41. It then became a saved preset that is accessible when working through the custom sandbox option. Experienced and veteran players should try this sandbox option for added challenges and some new context for their survival.
Six months after the infection arrived in town, survivors are a rarity and are outnumbered by zombies at a ludicrous ratio. The water and electricity have been shut off, so gone are the days of picking up skills from the TV and cooking a meal on the stove. If it hasn’t been farmed or hoarded, all fresh and canned food has been picked clean by everyone else. Good weapons, loot, and everything else might as well be a myth. This is a very hard start, giving players basically nothing to work with as they stare the extinction of the human race right in the face and probably face some in-game depression.
1 Hard Mode
Project Zomboid "is too easy" is something that not many players would claim, even after many hours spent in the game. The settings within custom sandboxes can be edited down to the finest detail, and it would take many playthroughs to play with most possible configurations before even succeeding at surviving them. However, if this is possible for even a few players, there are custom sandbox settings that can possibly provide the hardest run possible in Project Zomboid.
The "A Really CD DA" challenge is a challenge that was popularized in playthroughs by YouTubers and other players who shared how difficult being blind, drunk, and in the middle of a house fire can be extremely difficult. Beyond trying that challenge, just try and crank every setting to its hardest option.
Zombie count: insane. Change zombies into Sprinter zombies and make everyone infected, instead of other infection methods. The loot has increased in rarity, bringing down the chances of finding food and good weapons. Hotwiring a car is difficult as vehicles and houses are locked, and there’s an alarm in almost every house that would go off and absolutely ruin any player’s day. Helicopters fly over often, attracting zombies with them, and finding any food out in the wild is next to impossible. It’s already hard enough to survive with some help, but this kind of custom sandbox configuration would make most players suffer.
Project Zomboid is currently available on PC, macOS, Linux, and Java.