Feedback on Whiteout Challenge

[sirsupreme]

So I just completed the whiteout challenge. For the most part, I had ridiculous fun with it. But the one problem I always had with the challenges are the endings.

For example, for the Hunted challenge, I was really looking forward to my reward - not winning the challenge, but shooting that damn bear.

In the Whiteout challenge, I was looking forward to living in the Quonset with my surplus of food for the full 30 days - eg., living through the last 5 days on the calendar marked as "CAT. 4 STORM" in the quonset with enough food to last for the end of the challenge, which I thought was the 30th day. That would have been difficult and challenging in my mind, but when I dropped my hatchet and everything ended, I realized it was just another speedrun.

There was no sound or fanfare that plays after you win the challenge, just a black screen with some white text over it. And your game immediately ends.

My 2 Cents:

I think the satisfaction of winning a challenge would be greatly improved if there was some sort of conclusion to the challenges, rather than just an abrupt ending with a black screen. Like actually shooting the bear in the Hunted challenge, or actually outlasting part of the storm. Even just a little music that plays at the end of the challenge, or an animation of your badge appearing onscreen. Something satisfying to do or watch after all that hard work that lets you know "hey! you did a good job!"

Currently, the challenges are quite unsatisfying to complete.

Let me know what you think.

[hauteecolerider]

Hello @sirsupreme!

I haven't yet played the challenges (I'm not that kind of player . . . though I'll probably give them a try, eventually). However, I do know that the Hunted challenge is only the first of two parts. I suspect that the second part is where you get to hunt down and kill that bear.

Though I haven't the heart to blame him. After all, you shot him first. He's pissed off at you for sticking that arrow in his head ... 

[Dirmagnos]

At day 30 storm should rip gas station off the ground and carry you with it to Oz... where you from impact of a fall... stoned out of your mind due to fumes and co₂ buildup in the station.

[sirsupreme]

4 hours ago, hauteecolerider said:

Though I haven't the heart to blame him. After all, you shot him first. He's pissed off at you for sticking that arrow in his head ... 

 

I just suspected that this was a bear that everyone hated and that that arrow is really deserved. 

[Loppysaurusrex]

Strongly agreed.

 

I think you should be able to continue playing after you beat the challenge.

 

Shoot the bear, survive the blizzard, what have you.

[sierra 117]

yeah I personally think the whiteout challenge is an awesome concept,but having it end as soon as you have the listed gear , is way to game breaking and easy.

I personally think this leads to the wrong mentality when playing,as it becomes a speed run and not true survival/preparation for a storm.

Therefore I think the challenge should be that yes you have to stockpile x amount of supplies but you must survive until the storm hits(30th day). And still have all the supplies needed set aside,at that time.

then this becomes an actual challenge,as we have to gather the supplies for the storm over a longer period of time, all the while hunting and gathering additional supplies to keep us alive until then.

which will give us a chance to see and have to survive the worsening storm pattern ,that the devs have introduced for this, we will have to rely upon and pay attention to the weather almanac provided.

Also the last few days of the challenge will prove quite tricky for those who haven't gathered enough to sustain themselves through the blizzards, might just have to dip into the stockpile or can you push it a bit further?

this is when It becomes a real challenge.

Just one more thing IMO a final tweak to the stockpile requirements.

change food needed to include a certain amount of canned goods, mushrooms and rose hips . And meat should have to be cooked/over say 50%condition raw.(simply so you cant trick the game by just shooting a bear early on and having a locker full of spoiled meat at the end)

[sierra 117]

Also back to the original poster, the ending of the whiteout and hopeless rescue could do with some better endings.

even just a small vid at the end 2options for whiteout if you had enough supplies, you get a timelapse of the Quonset,lit up with a warm glow from the fire during storm,maybe a lull ,rifle shot wolf death cry,storm again then it clears,Challenge complete

if you dont have enough , wood/bullets/food, then the animation could fail at any one of those three points, fire fades you die.

really simple but id say quite effective,

Also something along the same line for Hopeless rescue, maybe if you make it under 7days you fire the flare and get an animation of ship lights in the distance,could be rescue /might not. It doesn't need to be anything major just something to refine them a bit.

[MarrowStone]

This is all very good. 

Save the shooting of the bear for part 2 though 

[simarson]

I had the Whiteout challenge done after 5 days. Didn't see even 1 forecast storm. It was fun but in the end short and to easy. It need to be altered. Make it shorter and let you outlive the storm.

[ShawnB]

I was super disappointed with whiteout and have no urge to play nomad now. I had more fun strategizing long term storm survival in my head than playing this challenge. It is just another speed run at this time as mentioned above.

Let us endure the storm. The challenge should be awarded after surviving 30 days of the storm but your game and the storm continues after that. 

Dont give us challenges that list arbitrary missions we have to complete. Create unique and difficult environmental challenges and leave it up to the players to decide how they will survive.

[TLD Survivalist]

Agreed with everything said here... No sense in quoting the entire thread +1s all around... I was extremely bummed when the challenge ended after gathering everything, super lack-luster... On a related note I just finished it.... And.... No badge showing I did it so I figured its a bug, right? Playing on Xbone btw....

[Ohbal]

I tend to agree with most of what has been said here. I don't mind the hunted challenge being a two part story, although I surely mind waiting for the second, but that's just me and my impatience. For self-concluded challenges as hopeless rescue I'd say a small cut-scene, even if its just 2D art, would be great to have. 

On the whiteout topic, here is what I would change: I'd make reaching the storm a requisite, so you have to stockpile and survive for 30 days, passing through some of the forecasted storms. These storms could get really long, like 3 to 5 days if you are unlucky. However... I wouldn't really want to play the survival of the long storm, as that would involve just eating-drinking-sleeping, not to mention the cabin fever that would surely reach us and for which we wouldn't have any remedy (if the storm is what the challenge describes). The challenge is about getting ready to survive, as far as I understand it. 

What I would really like is some of these concepts making it into the standard sandbox game: the almanac, the long storms, the man-eater bear, scarce radio messages when the aurora is up that would lead to short quests (like the hopeless rescue). That would be awesome   

[ShawnB]

I think surviving the storm could be fun, but a few conditions/issues would need to be addressed.

First, the storm would have to last longer than it takes for meat to spoil.

The hibernation problem with consuming condition instead of calories needs to be fixed. Maybe a reduced calorie intake while below 100% condition. So a 800 cal steak only gives you 600 cal when you are below 100%.

The challenge shouldn't specify a location for you, like the Quonset hut. You can pick and move as desired.

Storm conditions need to be brutal to make mobility very difficult, but not impossible.

+1 to you @Ohbalfor challenge events in the sandbox.

 

[Jolan]

On 6/26/2016 at 7:35 AM, sierra 117 said:

Also back to the original poster, the ending of the whiteout and hopeless rescue could do with some better endings.

even just a small vid at the end 2options for whiteout if you had enough supplies, you get a timelapse of the Quonset,lit up with a warm glow from the fire during storm,maybe a lull ,rifle shot wolf death cry,storm again then it clears,Challenge complete

if you dont have enough , wood/bullets/food, then the animation could fail at any one of those three points, fire fades you die.

really simple but id say quite effective,

Also something along the same line for Hopeless rescue, maybe if you make it under 7days you fire the flare and get an animation of ship lights in the distance,could be rescue /might not. It doesn't need to be anything major just something to refine them a bit.

ooh, good suggestions, that would be cool!

 

[Jolan]

actually, I was expecting the challenge to not end until the 30 day mark had been hit - basically, I was planning out my strategy of how to keep the supplies stocked up for the next 9 days, while not being eaten by wolves - because Quonset hut.  

Also, other than the endless opportunity for wolf struggle why the Quonest hut? Those things are a bear to keep heated, and the bed is very meger.  If I needed to stay put in that area, I'd set up in one of the houses with a fireplace and a +14 bed.  

Considering the decay rate and food quality issues, they should probably add antibiotics / mushroom cups to the list.

[cowboymrh]

I, like so many others was bummed at the ending of WHITEOUT! I was really looking forward to see what Hinterlands was going to dish out as a CAT 5 STORM, and seeing how long the wood and food I had stockpiled would last!! The Challenge is such a great concept but needs a better ending that would satisfy all!!

HERE"S MY VERY SIMPLE SUGGESTION: Keep everything the same, but use the items in the list as a minimum "suggested guideline" of what will be needed. You would still get the badge for collecting those needed things.

THEN, ONCE EVERYTHING IS COLLECTED: have an "END CHALLENGE" OR "CONTINUE CHALLENGE" button.

If you press "END CHALLENGE" the challenge ends just as it does now.

If you press "CONTINUE CHALLENGE" the challenge continues and the weather gets worse until it gets to CAT5 at day 30. Once it gets to CAT 5, it STAYS THERE CONTINUALLY, EVERY DAY, ALL DAY!!

The challenge of trying to gather a few meager sticks to burn or find any kind of food in CAT 5 weather that would freeze you in a couple of minutes would really make this a dramatic and compelling challenge!!

THE CHALLENGE WOULD END when you pick up the LAST ITEM OF FOOD to consume, or THE LAST PIECE OF FIREWOOD to burn in the Quonset Hut!!  That simple!!

You don't even have to have a death scene, just simply the black screen with "Congratulations, you survived 43 days, 7 hours, and 24 minutes!!!

And if I know most people in here, they would play again, try to gather more stuff, and try to improve on there best time!!!

This, in my opinion, would make this a CLASSIC (AND ADDICTIVE) CHALLENGE that would make everyone satisfied and wanting to play over and over again!!