Project Zomboid, the isometric zombie survival title from The Indie Stone, has recently received one of its biggest updates ever. The game has had a long and rocky development, beginning life as a tech demo all the way back in 2011. Despite a series of setbacks, Project Zomboid has continued to grow over that time, adding more depth and content to the immersive survival mechanics.
One of the most important updates for Project Zomboid was Build 39, which first introduced drivable vehicles. Project Zomboid takes place in Knox County, which is based heavily on the area around Louisville in northern Kentucky. With a huge map to explore, cars are an essential survival tool in the zombie apocalypse. However, though there are many of them scattered across the towns and suburbs, finding a key to start one is a real challenge. Fortunately, it's possible to get a car running without a key if players know how to hotwire.
Gaining the Skills to Hotwire in Project Zomboid
While any survivor in Project Zomboid can start the engine of a functional car if they've found its key, hotwiring is a little more difficult to accomplish. To start with, they'll need the right skills, as only a character with Electrical 1 and Mechanics 2 can attempt to hotwire a vehicle. Alternatively, any survivor that chose the Burglar occupation in Project Zomboid's character creation system will be able to hotwire without special skills.
It doesn't take any special tools to hotwire a car in Project Zomboid, but non-Burglars will probably need some anyway for maintenance and to learn Electronics and Mechanics. These skills can either be gained at character creation, or learned through experience. A handy screwdriver will allow any zombie apocalypse survivor to dismantle small electronics or car parts in order to gain the experience necessary. This process can also be greatly accelerated if the player is lucky enough to find an Electronics or Mechanics skill book.
How To Hotwire A Car In Project Zomboid
To start hotwiring, players should approach a fully-operational car and press V. This will bring up the radial menu and allow them to instantly enter the car if a door is unlocked. If not, impatient zombie survivors can smash a window to get in, though this may cause harm if not done with a weapon.
Once inside, players should open the V menu again, and select the hotwire option at the top-right. Hotwiring takes some time, and isn't guaranteed to succeed, even for a Burglar. Although failed attempts won't damage the car, they may attract unwanted attention from the nearby hordes of zombies. Once a player has successfully hotwired a car, any player that enters it will be able to start the engine and drive just as if they had the correct key.
Project Zomboid is available now for PC.
