Cheers FT.
I'm pretty average at it, but have only been playing for under 2 hours so to be expected.
Still tended to just wander round, not finding much. Did get a backpack and a baseball bat. But eventually I died of starvation - woops. Couldn't really find food anywhere, am sure I'll find spots eventually, just a matter of getting used to the game and map.
I'm finding it really addictive, but ultimately pointless so I wonder how long my interest in it will last. I'm not usually one to try to get achievements very much, but it seems like this game is tailor made for it, so its unusual (especially for a game on steam) that it doesn't have any. You basically just go round looting items, but for what purpose? Of course more and better items = more fun.
People play it for two reasons to see how long they can survive and the pvp action.
Once you start moving in land and getting geared up then you have a chance against zombies and other players. If you find a little unlooted town like Nysta or Msta inland but near the coast you will usually find everything you need to survive. I usually start out low pop servers, (towns unlikely to be looted),and then move to high pop when geared up.
For some it's about teaming up with friends and heading to Cherno or Elektro to have fire fights with other bandits.
Others just hang out in small towns observing other players moving through. Remember it's still an alpha so no base building, limited crafting,no transport yet and the zombies are pretty weak compared to the mod.
Many players create an imaginary back story for their character, this helps to immerse yourself in the game
I'm playing a loner who is prone to bouts of rage, (pretty true to life), and at the moment I've got a great gun set up, (courtesy of the arse-hat I blew away yesterday). So I'm playing on high population servers and sniping on my usual stomping ground the NE airfield. I'm actually not fussed about killing people it's just fun to see their reaction when I fire a few rounds their way. Also I have VOIP/direct com on and warn people to run, I also play weird sound effects, heartbeats and cat purrs to freak people out.