Feedback on Ep 3 (Spoilers)

[LucidFugue]

Finished up the episode last night. Super impressed! 

I loved the survivor rescue mechanics both from a story and gameplay side. A really unique challenge, different than anything we've seen before. It worked superbly to reinforce Astrid's motivations and character as a doctor. Contrasting Astrid's outlook on the situation with Molly was also great. It's a really interesting choice to imbue Molly with that spirit of somebody who sees the collapse as a breaking of the shackles of society. I feel like this is a perspective that's normally attributed to disaffected men who feel like modern society removes them of agency - of masculinity. Centering Molly's position on one of regaining a sense of lost agency in this new world while remaining critical of her choices was nuanced. Particularly as she appears to be taking out a lot of her anger on the convicts, who are led themselves by someone who sees the Collapse as the start of a new world ruled through strength. I thought of Misanthropes hut in Coastal Highway, and I wonder who might be in there and what perspective they will have about the Collapse. Looking forward to it. 

The wolf packs are also finally here! This wasn't a feature I had been anticipating, but I enjoyed the way it was implemented in the story experience. I've played so much survival sandbox and I have been accustomed to evading combat with wolves in almost all circumstances. That meant I barely used the rifle in Episodes 1 and 2 because food was abundant and I didn't need to hunt outside of side objectives. Old habits die hard. Suddenly realising I really needed to have a weapon on me on every outing was an adjustment. The plentiful ammo made me feel more comfortable letting loose. It was a nice way to spice up the journeys between objectives and I enjoyed the episode more because of it. 

Overall, I'm impressed with the quality level achieved across the episode. The pacing feels great, and the time and care taken with the NPCs is so far beyond what we saw in the initial release of Episodes 1 and 2. I can see how going back to redo those was necessary to bring them up to the standard that the team have hit on this one. Congratulations!