It’s been two months since the long-awaited launch of Project Zomboid build 42, and that means it’s back to the gradual grind of unstable patches for The Indie Stone. The first of those incremental updates has just arrived, and it’s packing quite a hefty count of bug fixes and improvements in the wake of that massive overhaul. Alongside that, the new Project Zomboid update brings some notable gameplay adjustments aimed at better ‘quality of survival’ across the zombie game – and the developer says it’s the first step on the path to a faster rollout of stable upgrades.
Starting out with some of the biggest problems that have been present since build 42 was fully implemented in Project Zomboid, The Indie Stone has solved issues in both solo play and multiplayer where large hordes of zombies could suddenly disappear if you left and then re-entered a given ‘chunk’ across the world. On the other side, instances of zombies duplicating in multiplayer have been fixed. The new super-size trees have had their visual cutaways improved to provide better visibility, especially while driving, and to ensure they don’t hide nearby houses or furniture.
For multiplayer, the developer has expanded its anti-cheat system to guard against “various new cheats,” and has also remedied some common safehouse exploits. It’s resolved an issue letting players circumnavigate the Steam authentication process when joining servers (which could let them dodge Steam ID bans). Driving on a high ping (roughly 150ms or above) should no longer prevent the map from loading correctly ahead of you, and you should notice less passenger teleportation, unsynced player coordinates, or “general MP-associated juddering.”
The full list of other balance changes, fixes, and adjustments is rather large, but there are a few key ones to note. A total of 86 additional fluid containers have been made viable for water purification. Starting as a Welder will now set you off with the right recipes, instead of handing you Blacksmithing ones. Washing machines can clean dirty rags, strips, and bandages. Refrigeration now works correctly on food items in a bag. You can package antibiotics using the ‘pack in box’ crafting recipe. Floorboard stashes found using maps are “more appropriately named,” and explosives should now work as expected when used in basements.
The Indie Stone also has good news for split-screen Zomboid enjoyers (an audience it describes as “small but mighty”), with fresh polish applied to the format. Among the fixes are correct sharing for book statuses and XP boosts, more consistent fishing in split-screen, and a resolution for crashes caused by “sharing a moving vehicle with your significant other.”
Project Zomboid build 42.21 is available now via the game’s unstable branch. You can make the switch via the ‘properties’ menu found in your Steam Library. Navigate to the ‘game versions and betas’ tab and select the unstable build. The Indie Stone notes that existing save games from 42.20.4 should work, but recommends making manual backups before you attempt to use them with the new update.
Looking to the future, The Indie Stone is “trying to move faster” than its previous schedule, instead of just using the unstable branch as an “unofficial stable.” With 42.21, it says there will be adjustments based on feedback before it’s deployed to stable, and then another unstable should be rolled out after that.
“Going forward, this should be the standard procedure for all releases; a new update goes to unstable, it’s tested by you, we potentially make more changes, and ultimately the release goes to stable,” The Indie Stone explains. It notes that the exact length of time between an update launching in its unstable form and the eventual stable release “will vary depending on the complexity of the update,” but the overall goal is to get back to more consistent releases.