Lockpicking?

[JackTrysGames]

And before you get mad, I'm not thinking like a Skyrim or Oblivion level minigame (though that might actually be a good idea) I'm just thinking something to replace the current lackluster system.

If you manage to find (or make) a lockpicking set, you can try your hand at picking locks. Takes some time, might fail, but you'll get the hang of it eventually. Professional grade lockpick sets tend to work better than tools you've made yourself at low levels, but at high levels you could basically shim a lock open with a paperclip and a Swiss army knife if you really wanted to. (Not that I haven't seen that done before, cough cough Dying Light cough cough)

Of course, bashing it open is still an option most of the time, but that could ruin the lock as it does to the Timberwolf Mountain shipping containers.

Edited March 12, 2023 by JackTrysGames
A lockpicking minigame might be a good idea, depending on how you look at it. It's up to the devs.

[SpanishMoss]

Well there aren't really many situations where this would come into play. The only locks in survival mode are some of the lock-box caches in TFTFT. And if we could pick them open, it would defeat the whole purpose. 
Additionally locks on car trunks and lockers already have a solution: pry-bar. Adding lock-picking would make the pry-bar almost useless.

So overall lock picking, while cool, wouldn't add much to the game.

[javijungle]

I totally agree with @SpanishMoss, in the TLD scenario with a prybar you have plenty of lockpicks

[hozz1235]

Yeah, lockpicking is usually done for stealth reasons.  There's no one around in TLD, so bash away!

[ajb1978]

Well in defense of lock picking, bashing open a door is generally going to render that door useless. I mean it might shut, but it won't latch and will eventually end up getting blown open as air pressure shifts, and eventually blown off after battering back and forth in a heavy storm. Let's use the Cannery as an example. Say the employee break room was locked with a simple lock. You can invest the time to pick the lock, in which case you are rewarded with a sweet little wolfproof outdoor/indoor safehouse. If you instead choose to bash the door open, you still get the bed and barrel, but now that the door is missing it counts as wind-sheltered but fully outside, and the wolves can come right in.

[JackTrysGames]

On 3/12/2023 at 12:48 PM, SpanishMoss said:

The only locks in survival mode are some of the lock-box caches in TFTFT.

And the locks on the cargo containers, and on certain doors such as the one at Surfeit Trestle and the Orca Gas Station...

On 3/12/2023 at 12:48 PM, SpanishMoss said:

Additionally locks on car trunks and lockers already have a solution: pry-bar. Adding lock-picking would make the pry-bar almost useless.

So maybe you could use the prybar to open crates without risking damage to the stuff inside? Who knows, you might even get more reclaimed wood out of it since you aren't recklessly hacking away at it.

I feel like using a prybar as a one-size-fits-all tool to open nearly every lock doesn't quite fit, especially with certain places such as the Paradise Meadows Farm. Why can't I pry that door open? Why do I have to go looking for a key? Shouldn't I also be looking for a key for other places, like the Orca Gas Station?

[Cyclone35]

I think lockpicking can be a secondary option to opening locks from car trunks and lockers. The benefit is that lockpicks are lighter, giving you a bit more space compared to carrying a prybar. You can also use scrap metal at a workbench or furnace to make your own.

Downside is that it takes slightly longer to pick a lock compared to prying it open. In addition, lockpicks are fragile tools that can break easily if used incorrectly or excessively. There could be a minigame that involves carefully turning the lock, if you go to fast the pick will break. If your playing on a controller, it can vibrate to increase the intensity. The vibration gets worse if when you move to quickly.