As you can see by my playtime, I've played 7DTD rather a lot, but have not yet written a review for it. :D

At it's heart, 7DTD scratches an itch I have of starting with almost nothing, but surviving for as long as I can and building myself up, making a base along the way for storing loot or just to hide from the hordes outside. Uncovering the map by exploring new places, looting what you can carry, and always having to keep an eye on your food and water levels. A little hunting here and there too, but always keeping a lookout for those pesky zombies (or, some of the wildlife)... and getting back before nightfall, which powers up the zombies just a little. ;)

7DTD does all of this very well, and it's great fun. Building a base is a simple affair (one that will withstand a wandering zombie horde, or worse, maybe less so without a good plan or the building resources but that comes with experience) and you can literally building almost whatever and wherever you would like. Your own house, a tower, or even underground. Use whatever building materials you like, like wood (not really recommended), bricks, all the way up to concrete eventually. Your choice of biome (forest, or snowy for example) pose their own challenges. Desert is not recommended for new players, for example. Weather plays a part, too, in terms of ambient and body temperature, and can affect visibility. In addition, there's many things to craft, too (though some are 'hidden', or gated behind skill choices). Most zombies are relatively easy to dispatch once you get the hang of things, and even kiting a large group during the daytime soon becomes second nature.

In the current beta, combat is OK, although it feels a little 'off' sometimes (especially when using the bow, it doesn't always seem that you hit what you aim at).

There's going to be some bad points too, of course. I liked the system they had in previous betas, where you basically 'learned by doing' - the more you used a club or axe to hit something, for example, the better you got at using that particular tool. This gave it, to me, a 'Wizardry' (for those who remember those RPGs) feel about the game, and one I found more realistic than the current system of allocating skill points earned by levelling up. As I've seen mentioned elsewhere, this does give more impetus to hunt zombies for the XP to level up, which for some can be a little immersion breaking as you are, after all, supposed to be surviving and not actively looking for trouble. That comes later, perhaps, when you are more fully equipped. ;)

Zombie dogs, and their counterpart, the wolves, can sneak up on you without warning. This can, though, lead to an adrenaline pumping escape as you hope to lose them (especially the dogs) by putting enough distance between you and them, if you're quick enough, before your stamina runs out. Getting caught by a pack of two or three unawares probably means death in a lot of cases.

Possibly personal choice, but I had usually found the blood moon mechanic to be a little silly (it's like every zombie in the area homes in on you for one night), and if it was possible to have maybe got by without alerting a single zombie from when you started up until the seventh night, you suddenly find they have telepathy or something and just know where you are. This does add a tower defence element to the game (so effectively you have to build up resources to fend off these attacks) but can be immersion breaking again.

And I'd like the hunger and thirst bars to be visible all the time, like in previous betas (mods can help fix this, though).

But all in all, it's a fun, enjoyable game. On your own, with default settings (although I turn off loot respawn and airdrops to add to the 'realism'), it can be a race against time to get all the materials you need to build up a starter base (or just take over an existing house or shop that you find) and shore it up for the seventh, blood moon night. And also, to find enough food to eat (and cook) by hunting or looting (as I have a strange habit where I hate to eat canned food), and secure a water source of some kind so you can boil water. It maybe loses a little towards the middle part of the game, where you have much of what you need and don't have to worry about food or water, and just need materials for crafting but that is true for most games of this type.

Edit as of alpha 18: Small changes to the perks and books system, and how the 'starter' bow works mix things up now (for me, no more going for headshots with the 'starter' bow as it's not so overpowered anymore, it's easier to just use a club), plus more experience gained for building is good for those who would rather avoid combat. The infection system has changed (for the better, I feel), and the new weapons add more variety too (although I have only experimented with the stun baton more than any other new addition). And the zombie rage system will catch out the unaware! ;)

As you can see by my playtime, I've played 7DTD rather a lot, but have not yet written a review for it. :D At it's heart, 7DTD scratches an itch I have of starting with almost nothing, but surviving for as long as I can and building myself up, making a base along the way for storing loot or just to hide from the hordes outside. Uncovering the map by exploring new places, looting what you can carry, and always having to keep an eye on your food and water levels. A little hunting here and there too, but always keeping a lookout for those pesky zombies (or, some of the wildlife)... and getting back before nightfall, which powers up the zombies [i]just a little[/i]. ;) 7DTD does all of this very well, and it's great fun. Building a base is a simple affair (one that will withstand a wandering zombie horde, or worse, maybe less so without a good plan or the building resources but that comes with experience) and you can literally building almost whatever and wherever you would like. Your own house, a tower, or even underground. Use whatever building materials you like, like wood (not really recommended), bricks, all the way up to concrete eventually. Your choice of biome (forest, or snowy for example) pose their own challenges. Desert is not recommended for new players, for example. Weather plays a part, too, in terms of ambient and body temperature, and can affect visibility. In addition, there's many things to craft, too (though some are 'hidden', or gated behind skill choices). Most zombies are relatively easy to dispatch once you get the hang of things, and even kiting a large group during the daytime soon becomes second nature. In the current beta, combat is OK, although it feels a little 'off' sometimes (especially when using the bow, it doesn't always seem that you hit what you aim at). There's going to be some bad points too, of course. I liked the system they had in previous betas, where you basically 'learned by doing' - the more you used a club or axe to hit something, for example, the better you got at using that particular tool. This gave it, to me, a 'Wizardry' (for those who remember those RPGs) feel about the game, and one I found more realistic than the current system of allocating skill points earned by levelling up. As I've seen mentioned elsewhere, this does give more impetus to hunt zombies for the XP to level up, which for some can be a little immersion breaking as you are, after all, supposed to be surviving and not actively looking for trouble. That comes later, perhaps, when you are more fully equipped. ;) Zombie dogs, and their counterpart, the wolves, can sneak up on you without warning. This can, though, lead to an adrenaline pumping escape as you hope to lose them (especially the dogs) by putting enough distance between you and them, if you're quick enough, before your stamina runs out. Getting caught by a pack of two or three unawares probably means death in a lot of cases. Possibly personal choice, but I had usually found the blood moon mechanic to be a little silly (it's like every zombie in the area homes in on you for one night), and if it was possible to have maybe got by without alerting a single zombie from when you started up until the seventh night, you suddenly find they have telepathy or something and just know where you are. This does add a tower defence element to the game (so effectively you have to build up resources to fend off these attacks) but can be immersion breaking again. And I'd like the hunger and thirst bars to be visible all the time, like in previous betas (mods can help fix this, though). But all in all, it's a fun, enjoyable game. On your own, with default settings (although I turn off loot respawn and airdrops to add to the 'realism'), it can be a race against time to get all the materials you need to build up a starter base (or just take over an existing house or shop that you find) and shore it up for the seventh, blood moon night. And also, to find enough food to eat (and cook) by hunting or looting (as I have a strange habit where I hate to eat canned food), and secure a water source of some kind so you can boil water. It maybe loses a little towards the middle part of the game, where you have much of what you need and don't have to worry about food or water, and just need materials for crafting but that is true for most games of this type. [i]Edit as of alpha 18[/i]: Small changes to the perks and books system, and how the 'starter' bow works mix things up now (for me, no more going for headshots with the 'starter' bow as it's not so overpowered anymore, it's easier to just use a club), plus more experience gained for building is good for those who would rather avoid combat. The infection system has changed (for the better, I feel), and the new weapons add more variety too (although I have only experimented with the stun baton more than any other new addition). And the zombie rage system will catch out the unaware! ;)