DEV DIARY -- OCTOBER, EPISODE THREE LAUNCH INFO

[RegentRelic]

Ever wonder if people bother to read the thread before asking questions.

[Guest jeffpeng]

4 hours ago, Raphael van Lierop said:

The Lost & Found box should help with anything that would have been lost otherwise.

I imagine this wasn't too trivial to implement. Moving from deactivated containers, okay, I can see that being not worth a hackaton, but items that would get buried in terrain due to changes to the terrain itself .... prolly not an easy feat. Hope it works out well.

[dalan42284]

On 10/18/2019 at 1:36 PM, Raphael van Lierop said:

OCTOBER DEV DIARY -- EPISODE THREE LAUNCH IN 4 DAYS!

It’s been a long time coming, but Episode Three is just around the corner. At 6AM Pacific on Tuesday, October 22nd, you’ll all have the opportunity to jump in to CROSSROADS ELEGY, and learn more about the story of the Quiet Apocalypse. We’re very excited to share this new part of the story of Mackenzie and Astrid, the mysteries of the aurora, and what’s happening on Great Bear in the midst of this (potentially?) world-changing disaster.

But before that, we have a few “housekeeping” things to update you on, so here goes!

A NEW PERSPECTIVE

For those of you that have been following The Long Dark for years, you’ve known that our intention with WINTERMUTE, our story mode, has always been to show aspects of the story from each of our main characters’ points of view. Episodes One and Two were presented from Mackenzie’s viewpoint, and Episode Three picks up the story of Astrid after she and Mackenzie get separated in Milton at the opening of Episode One.

We’re excited to be able to share part of Astrid’s story with you, and we know you’ll find her version of events just as compelling as Mackenzie’s. 

ALL EPISODES UNLOCKED

Since you are playing as Astrid, you aren’t continuing your same playthrough or save from Episode Two. So, we decided to just unlock the three episodes for existing and new players, so that if people prefer, they can start by jumping directly into Astrid’s story in Episode Three, and then go back and play the first two Episodes. There may be some minor spoilers for the earlier episodes, but in general we think this flow can work. We still recommend new players go through the episodes in order, but this way you have the choice!

LOST & FOUND

Historically, making significant changes to existing regions in the game has sometimes resulted in people losing stored items. Since we’ve just done a major overhaul of the Pleasant Valley region for Episode Three, we’ve implemented a new system designed to avoid us accidentally wiping out your hard-earned loot. The Lost & Found box will appear any time we have changed a scene to the extent that your loot would have been deleted -- we just respawn it all in the Lost & Found box for you to grab it. You can only take things out of the Lost & Found, not put things into it, and once you have emptied it, it disappears. 

THESE ARE NOT LOOT BOXES. These are just our way to safeguard your items in the event that a scene edit would have resulted in us deleting your stuff.

CONSOLE VISUAL ENHANCEMENTS

With the Episode Three update, we are also including our enhancements to the Xbox One X and PS4 Pro. These enhancements include HDR lighting (works on Xbox One X, XBox One S, PS4 Pro, PS4), and High Resolution support (4K on Xbox One X, 1440p on PS4 Pro). All versions of High Resolution support feature dynamic scaling.

You’ll notice we’ve added a new calibration screen for HDR settings. Keep in mind that there is currently no standard implementation of HDR lighting so your results will depend heavily on the TV you are using. If you run into issues with these enhancements, please submit a ticket to our Support Portal: www.hinterlandgames.com/support

NO MORE 32-BIT CPU SUPPORT

This shouldn’t affect 99% of our players, based on the statistics we pull from Steam’s hardware survey, but we have stopped supporting a 32-bit version of the game. This only matters if you are still running a 32-bit CPU, which would be fairly old by now. The main CPUs impacted by this would be:

• Intel Pentium 4E (released in 2004)
• AMD K7 (released in 2004) 
• Intel Atom CPUs (released in 2013; mostly used for netbooks and tablets)

So if you have a system that uses those CPUs, The Long Dark will no longer work for you. All our other builds have been 64-bit only for a while, so this switch to only supporting the 64-bit version of Windows for The Long Dark will result in some nice performance gains, and also helps eliminate some crashes that were only occurring because of the 32-bit support.

FOUR DAYS OF NIGHT (4DON)

We will be reprising our annual Four Days of Night Halloween event this year, starting at 10PM on October 27th (Pacific) and running to Nov 1st. Unfortunately, given our focus on shipping Episode Three, we weren’t able to add any new twists on last year’s formula, so the 2019 event is the same as 2018, but with updated Badges to reflect 2019 participation.

DECEMBER SURVIVAL MODE UPDATE

We’re still on track for a December Survival Mode update. We’ll share more details of what’s in that update after things have calmed down a bit. We expect to be pretty busy in the immediate aftermath of the Episode Three launch, so I’d like to give the Survival Mode update information its own room to breath. You can expect more details about it in November.

***

That’s pretty much it! We’ll be heads down doing support for Episode Three’s launch on October 22nd. We can’t wait to hear what you think about our latest work, and we look forward to hearing from you in the forums at www.hinterlandforums.com, and on our social media channels. And remember, if you run into any issues, please use our Support Portal at www.hinterlandgames.com/support to get help.

We’re really excited for all of you to experience the next chapter in the WINTERMUTE story. Watch out for those Timberwolves!

- Raphael

Thank you 2 days, Do you have a time for October 22?

[Guest Paphalophagus]

14 minutes ago, dalan42284 said:

Thank you 2 days, Do you have a time for October 22?

Read the first sentence of the first paragraph of the post from Raph that you quoted.

[Sceh]

9 hours ago, RegentRelic said:

Ever wonder if people bother to read the thread before asking questions.

That, or ANY kinds of news or info, really. So many times I've had completely pointless debates with people who simply did not believe my premise because they were uninformed.

Me, in some public thread: So since we will have A and B, should we also expect C? - Random person who lives in the respective forum 24/7: I don't believe you, you are wrong and there never will be neither A nor B, so assuming that there will be C is laughable. - Me, slightly confused but willing to educate: Okay, here is the exact quote, time and date where A and B were announced. Could we please go back to discussing C now? - Random person, now pissed for no discernible reason: Yeah, well, I still don't believe you, so why are you even still talking to me and talking up my time?

Sigh.

[Sceh]

I'm so friggin' hyped for the new episode!

I'm on GMT+2 so your 6am is my afternoon ... I've taken the next day off work so I can play through the night Planning on taking it slow and doing every single side quest (assuming there are some).

Stocked up on snacks and rose hip tea!

SO. FRIGGIN'. HYPED.

[Morrick]

I'm excited for Episode 3 coming even if I never played Wintermute. But also excited for the upcoming 4DON. Knowing that it's going to be the same structure as last year's is actually a good thing for me, as I can try a completely different approach — a bit more daring this time, if you will.

As always, thank you Raphael + Hinterland for the hard and dedicated work.

[RegentRelic]

1 hour ago, Morrick said:

a bit more daring this time, if you will.

I just hide in the Quonset four three weeks. 

1 hour ago, Sceh said:

Planning on taking it slow and doing every single side quest (assuming there are some)

It is safe to assume there will be plenty of side quest, pleasant valley just such a big region there are so many unique side quest to be done. Now the question is will we go to Timberwolf mountain. I really hope so a side quest in timber wolf mountain that involves getting to the summit would be like a mini episode. 

[Tylor9261]

I know the Survival Mode update is coming in December...but are we going to see any visual or audio bug fixes with the Episode 3 update on consoles (besides the graphical improvements)? Regardless, really excited to see everything new being brought to TLD! And also congrats Hinterland on everything thus far!

Edited October 20, 2019 by Tylor9261

[RaukGorth]

5 hours ago, Sceh said:

I'm so friggin' hyped for the new episode!

I'm on GMT+2 so your 6am is my afternoon ... I've taken the next day off work so I can play through the night Planning on taking it slow and doing every single side quest (assuming there are some).

Stocked up on snacks and rose hip tea!

SO. FRIGGIN'. HYPED.

I did the exact same thing! I have taken off 23th, and I am working from home on 22th. So when the time comes I will simply disconnect my remote work desktop and jump into episode three!

Also got some nice freshly dried wild rose hips for the tea 🙂

[Wade]

Same 4DON, what a bummer.  I was really looking forward to that event.

[dalan42284]

12 hours ago, Paphalophagus said:

Read the first sentence of the first paragraph of the post from Raph that you quoted.

Yup, Could have read the whole thing, Thanks

 

[Gazbeard]

 

[ThePancakeLady]

19 minutes ago, Gazbeard said:

 

Lol! 

Dying
Here...

🤣

[alillybitzz1]

@Raphael van Lierop This game is getting so Addictive...Devs have been doing a great Job!!! Just want to say thanks for all Your Hard work to everyone at Hinterlands and Unity!! can not wait for updates !!

[michaelyork777]

I did a test near the Barn in Pleasant Valley, I had one wolf stalking me, and I veered off near another wolf so that their paths would cross, and one wolf

locked in place, with it's head alternating in a side to side motion, and the other wolf also froze for a moment, with its pathing in conflict,  then he came after

me and the other turned away on a path. It will be quite an experience to deal with a collaborative wolf pack, hopefully they have multiple attack types that

are random, to keep us guessing. I have never fully figured out the wolf activity in this game, which is half the fun. Thanks Raphael, Thanks Hinterland

[FluffyComeHome]

Love that you guys are planning to take a day off! I wonder how just many people will be calling in sick tomorrow? 😁

 

[odium]

very excited to see what features may make their way into survival mode!  maybe someday ill actually check out the story mode, im just very content in sandbox with my limited gaming time 😕

[ManicManiac]

8 minutes ago, odium said:

im just very content in sandbox with my limited gaming time

There's nothing wrong with that.  The good news is that Wintermute will always be there should you ever want it.   
 

[Nervous Pete]

By 'eck I can't wait to play this. The Long Dark is arguably my favourite game of all time, so having Episode 3 only a few hours away is giddy stuff. 

Plus a follow-up to my favourite ever camera the X-Pro 2 is being released by Fujifilm the day after, so that's exciting as well, what with me being a very keen photographer an' all.

Oooh, plus-plus the BBC are shortly releasing a period mini-series of one of my favourite ever books, The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. 

Flibble, plus-plus-plus Utah is being released for American Truck simulator in November, a game I love for the ability to road-trip in atmospheric settings whilst chilling out to podcasts and old-timey radio. 

Gibber - plus-plus-plus-plus Red Dead Redemption 2 is being released on the PC in December, and I adore westerns! Finally I'll be able to pretend I'm in Lonesome Dove - but on the computer!

Err, I think I've got to sit down. One thing at a time. The Long Dark first, and the rest can wait. After all, I think it's the most hauntingly beautiful and evocative setting in a game I've ever played. I'm just imaging Astrid talking to people by the campfire now, torn by worries and guilt over Will, trapped perhaps by the need to help people, but ever feeling the urgency of her mysterious mission and her fears over the missing briefcase. The poor lass is going to have a lot on her plate, and I'm really eager to see how it plays out. I wonder if we'll see more elements of magical realism?  

[ProsPex]

I'm sure I'm not the only one who can't wait to explore Pleasant Valley while in Survival to see the changes. Yes, I've been waiting for Episode 3 just like everyone else, but nothing beats exploring a new map in Survival for the first time.

[Luciën]

I am really looking forward to this update! Can't wait to set foot in the lovely unpleasant valley in story mode. Wonder how things will fall into place in the stories of doctor Astrid. Will she take just as long to move from one place to another as Will did? I always thought: "Will hurry up!" as I slowed him down leaning over to get some rosehips

I am exceptionally happy to find that Episode 3 will be unlocked for everyone. I just booted the long dark through steam and it replaced all my local save files, including the finished episode 2. Ooohhhh how devastating that felt. For a minute.
Because of these unlocked episodes. The Bear Hunt, was still a bit too overwhelming for me. The inevitable. The stress. Although it felt like a big accomplishment afterwards I wouldn't necessarily have to do that fight over again. Which is great. Yay.

About these old saves in Survival Mode... The good thing about losing an old save game is being able to start all over again. And the early beginnings are always special. Even for a pilgrim such as myself. So in the end it's only a minor bruise, mainly because I will not see the lost and found section.

So... jeszcze raz: Merci beaucoup! En tot ziens!

 

[Scribble]

Y'know, I love coming back to the Lond Dark this time of year when the nights are drawing in and the weathers getting colder.

Nice to have this update to look forward to today. Can't wait to see the console graphical improvements and maybe finally play through the story episodes properly. And really looking forward to playing the Survival update in the middle of Winter!

[sierra 117]

12 hours ago, Nervous Pete said:

 

Oooh, plus-plus the BBC are shortly releasing a period mini-series of one of my favourite ever books, The War of the Worlds by H. G. Wells. 

Oh really I'll need to  check that out. I'm also just about to start  the book for the first time.

[hozz1235]

0709 here in MST.  I can see there are some new achievements available, but no download yet.

0713 - UPDATE QUEUED!!!!!!!!!    2.7GB.

0717 - I'm in!  Have fun all!

Edited October 22, 2019 by hozz1235