Project Zomboid Cheats: How to Activate and Use

The Project Zomboid menu is built into the game by default, so you don’t need to use any additional programs. With it, you can access god mode, give your character any item from the game, become invisible to zombies, and even pass through walls. In this brief guide, I’ll teach you how to use the built-in (legal) cheats in Project Zomboid.

How to enable cheats in Project Zomboid

To access the cheat menu in Project Zomboid, you first need to activate debug mode. This is done by modifying the game’s launch parameters.

How to enable debug mode in Steam

1. Launch Steam and open the Library tab. Find the game in the list and right-click on it. Open “Properties“.
   
2. In the “General” tab, add the “-debug” string (without quotes) to the “launch options” field.
   
3. After that, you can launch Project Zomboid. Debug mode is enabled, and cheats are available.

How to enable debug mode without Steam

If you use a pirate version of the game, you should add the “-debug” string to the game shortcut.

Add a space after the launch file URI, and then add “-debug” as shown the picture above.

How to use cheats in Project Zomboid

If you have enabled cheats correctly, you will see a new mosquito icon in the side menu in the game. This is a cheat (debug) menu.

Let’s take a look at the general functions of the cheats.

Main cheats

Press the “Cheats” button. There, you will find the most useful basic cheats.

• Invisible, Ghost mode, God mode – you’re immortal and invisible. This cheat will prevent death.
• Fast Move – speed hack. Be careful with this cheat! The character may lose the opportunity to walk normally after using it.
• No Clip – the character can walk through objects and walls.
• Unlimited Carry – disables the weight limit.
• Unlimited Endurance – the endurance is unlimited.
• Unlimited Ammo – shoot all you want.
• Know All Recipes – all recipes in the game are unlocked.
• Build Cheat mode – you can build everything without tools and resources. Just right-click and select the structure you like.
  
• Farming Cheat mode – manage the seedbeds with cheats. Right-click on a seedbed to manage.
  
• Mechanics Cheat mode – manage vehicle mechanics with cheats. Open the hood and right-click on a part to bring up the menu. Thus, for example, you can repair car parts instantly and for free. 
  
• Brush Tool – creative mode. Build instantly whatever you want. Right-click and then open the Brush Tool Manager. Press the “Choose Tile” button. Select any tile and instantly place it in the world.
  

How to get any game item using cheats

1. Open the debug menu and click on the “Item List” button.
2. Find any item by name or category and add it to the character’s inventory.

This way you can spawn any item (including weapons) you need.

How to edit character stats and traits

1. Open the “Player’s Stats” window from the Debug Menu.
2. Here you can change everything that concerns your character: its traits, stats, name, profession, and so on.
3. Use the “Level Up” and “Add XP” buttons to increase the level of any character skill.
4. Press “Add Trait” to add a new trait to the character trait list. Press “Remove” to delete a certain trait.

How to spawn cars and get keys

Right click on the ground and select Main → Spawn Vehicle. In the following window, select a vehicle by ID and press “Spawn“. Make sure the “Normal Cars” checkbox is checked. You can also repair the car if you walk up to it and press the appropriate button.

To get a key from a car or to repair it, the character must look in its direction; then the “Get Key” and “Repair” buttons become active. Press “Get Key” to spawn a key from the car in your inventory. Press “Repair,” and the car will get 100% durability.

How to teleport

Right-click and select Main → Teleport. Then enter coordinates and press “OK“.

Be careful with this cheat! You may get stuck outside the map boundaries.

How to heal the character with cheats

Pause the game by pressing the pause button in the upper-right corner of the screen. Open Debug Menu → Cheats and enable Health Panel Cheat mode. This way you will be able to check the state of each part of the character’s body.

Right-click on the damaged body part and select Part Change → Health Full. Or you can just select “Health Full (body)” to remove all injuries at once.

Useful when you need to remove infection and zombification or simply heal a character after being bitten.

How to adjust hunger, thirst, and other modifiers

Open Debug Menu → General Debuggers. In the “Moodles and body” tab, you can adjust the level of hunger, thirst, panic, pain, and all other modifiers that affect the character.

Make sure the “God mode” is disabled. Otherwise, you won’t be able to manipulate most of these parameters.

Why do you need cheats in Project Zomboid?

Developers include a cheat menu in the game for testing during development. For players, the cheat menu is useful for exploring and testing the mechanics of the finished game. With the complete freedom of actions that cheats provide, users can look at the game from a different perspective: for example, engage in creativity, calmly explore a location, calculate the damage formula, or even come up with their own game mode with rules like “Can I survive with a bat against 100 zombies?”

Cheats are also widely used by content creators (like me) when writing game guides and creating videos. Some people prefer to play with cheats enabled all the time. If you’ve been eaten by zombies in Project Zomboid (and you probably have many times!), you can turn on cheats and enjoy sweet revenge. However, keep in mind that constant cheat use deprives you of the pleasure of a fair playthrough of the game.