My Messy Adventure Building Custom Maps for 7 Days to Die on PS4
Okay, so here’s the thing. Playing 7 Days to Die on PS4 is fun and all, but after a while, you’ve pretty much seen what the base game maps have to offer. You start wanting something new, something you made. And that’s how I fell down the rabbit hole of trying to make my own custom map. It’s way more fiddly than I thought!
Step 1: Realizing the PS4 Sucks for Custom Stuff
First off, you gotta understand the big limitation. You absolutely cannot build or edit a map directly on the PS4 itself. Like, forget about it. Sony just doesn’t play that way. The console version is pretty locked down. So right away, my grand plan for doing everything from my couch went out the window. Time to drag out the dusty PC.
Step 2: Grabbing the Tools (The PC Part)
So yeah, you need a PC. Specifically, you need the 7 Days to Die game for PC installed. That’s the key. The PC version comes with the magic sauce: the Random World Generator and the Editor. Here’s what I did:
- Booted up my trusty old gaming PC (which definitely felt neglected).
- Opened 7 Days to Die on PC.
- Clicked to generate a new Random World. I spent ages messing with the settings:
- Made some mountains crazy high.
- Shrunk down the deserts, I hate sand.
- Tried to cluster the cities closer together for more action.
- But honestly? Random Gen felt… random. Cool but not my vision.
Then I jumped into the World Editor. Man, this felt overwhelming at first. Think like a super basic game development tool. I started placing roads clumsily. Tried to plonk down a massive lake where I wanted a prime base location. Added clusters of those sweet, sweet skyscrapers. It took some serious time to get the hang of the basic controls!
Step 3: The Exporting Headache
After sweating over the map on my PC, I felt proud. But this is where it gets really janky for PS4 players. How do you get that PC map onto your PS4? There’s no direct transfer. None. Here’s the painful truth:
- You have to find the map files on your PC. They hide in the game folders somewhere.
- Then, I dug around online trying to figure out the exact files. It’s not super clear!
- This is where things get murky for the PS4. Legally? Not great. Getting the files onto your PS4 in a way the game recognizes… that usually involves stuff that’s not officially supported. Think external devices and specific file structures the game might read if you set things up just right. It’s a mess and frankly risky for your console.
I found a lot of conflicting info and warnings about potential bans. Honestly, this part scared me off doing it the most common “unsupported” way.
Step 4: The (Less Risky?) Prefab Option? Maybe?
So, kinda defeated by the full map transfer hassle, I looked for other options. What about custom prefabs? That’s the stuff inside the maps – your awesome bases, your cool POIs (Points of Interest). Here’s what I learned:
- You can definitely build cool stuff on your PS4 using the in-game creative tools (Creative Menu). That part is easy and fun! Spend hours crafting your ultimate zombie-proof fortress.
- The problem? You can’t save that amazing fortress you built as its own custom building to easily drop into a different map.
- There might be ways to use files built on PC and convert them… but again, getting them onto the PS4 and working? That lands you back in Step 3 territory, facing the same murky unsupported methods.
It felt like the PS4 just has big roadblocks for true custom content sharing.
The Result? PS4 Map Building is Rough
So, yeah. My grand idea? Didn’t quite go as planned. I learned a ton about the PC tools – the Random Gen settings are neat, the Editor is powerful but takes practice. But the dream of having a seamless pipeline to get my custom world onto my PS4 and play it? Crushed. The console versions, especially PS4, are just not set up for that kind of freedom. The hoops you have to jump through are either vague, technically complex, or flat-out not sanctioned. It was frustrating realizing how limited the options are compared to the PC version. I ended up just building a cool base in Creative on my PS4 and enjoyed that. Maybe someday Sony will loosen the reins, but I’m not holding my breath!
