If you’re getting bored of the base game, the modding community for Project Zomboid has plenty to offer.
While Project Zomboid already has plenty of content by itself, there is a huge modding scene that is constantly putting out new and interesting additions to the game. But choosing the correct mods that fit your playstyle or needs can prove difficult when you have hundreds of options. So let’s take a look at some of the most popular mods you can get on the Steam Workshop right now. However, remember that some of these mods will only work on a new save game.
Raven Creek
If you’re looking to expand your map with a challenging new city, Raven Creek might be what you’re looking for. This mod hasn’t been updated since 2022 but it still works perfectly fine with the latest versions of the game. After installing it, the mod will add the city of Raven Creek on the northeastern part of the map. Getting there can be quite difficult with only a few paths into the city. The city itself is filled with skyscrapers and crowded areas with huge roaming hordes of zombies. So make sure you bring plenty of equipment with you if you want to make it out alive.
Brita’s Weapon and Armor Packs
These are two mods, but we’ll discuss them together since they’re similar. Both of these mods will add a ton of new weapons and armor to your world. These include some cool melee weapons and a huge amount of firearms. Alongside these firearms there are also plenty of attachments that go with them, allowing you to turn any gun into a decked out killing machine. However, remember that some of these guns might prove a bit overpowered, especially some of the new shotguns which can take out three or four zombies with one well-aimed shot. You should probably try to raise the population from your sandbox settings to balance this out.
Weapon Condition Indicator
This is a great QoL mod that will give you a durability bar for any weapon or tool you have on your quick slots. Every time the condition is lowered you will also get an overhead notification. You will also get a notification when your character falls and drops his equipped weapon. This is a pretty simple mod that also sort of makes sense from a realism standpoint. It doesn’t really make sense that you can’t estimate the condition of a weapon you currently have equipped, so definitely pick this one up.
Minimal Display Bars
Even though the developers consider mods like this to be on the verge of cheating, plenty of people refuse to play without it. This mod will add some bars on your screen that will indicate the status of each of your needs. These include Health, Hunger, Thirst, Endurance, Fatigue, Unhappiness, Boredom, Temperature and Calorie Intake. Since the base game only uses noodles to indicate their state, this will make things much easier to manage. The mod also lets you choose the size and position of each of those bars, including making some of them invisible.
More Traits
Character creation is a big part of the game, and some people want more out of it. This is where the More Traits mod comes in, offering access to plenty of new traits. You get some control to enable or disable a few that are a bit unbalanced. All in all, this is a solid mod that can allow you to try out some more challenging runs with the Alcoholic or Amputee negative traits.
Autotsar Trailers
If driving around the world of Project Zomboid is a part you enjoy a lot, this is definitely a mod you need to try out. Alongside adding plenty of new vehicles to the game, it also adds some unique vehicles. These include a portable generator that can be extremely handy for starting up gas stations after the power has gone out. A mobile home can also be found, giving you a safe house on the go that offers some decent storage space. And last but not least, there’s also a handy cistern you can fill up with either water or fuel.
They Knew
The zombie infection in this game is how most of your runs will end. One single bite or an unlucky roll on a laceration or even a scratch will mean you have a few days before you turn. Infection can be turned off from the sandbox settings, but some people think this takes out a pretty important part of the game. This mod comes in here, adding two types of medicine that can help with infections. Zomboxycycline is a preventive measure that will work for 24 hours, but won’t actually cure you if you’re already infected. To cure an infection, you must find a Zomboxivir dose. Keep in mind though, that Zomboxivir will not affect any upcoming infections.
Equipment UI – Tarkov Style Interface
Fans of Escape from Tarkov might be interested in picking this one up. This mod adds the inventory system from EFT to the world of Project Zomboid, meaning that your inventory now consists of a grid system, depending on the capacity of your bag. Each item in the world will have a new defined size that you will have to fit into your inventory screen. While this might seem like busywork, it does add an extra layer of complexity to looting in Project Zomboid which can become a lot of fun.
Conclusion
There are literally hundreds of other mods out there in the Steam Workshop for you to explore. While some of them add new items, vehicles, or models to the game, plenty of them do change important aspects of the core gameplay. It’s also nice to see how some modders have been added to the core team over the years, showing that the developers are paying attention. So, identify what parts of the game you start lacking and start supplanting those aspects with the help of mods.
