This game is awful! Glad I only paid $7.99

[David Vacchi]

Movies take too long to play, controls are horrible, can't even get out of the silly ravine in the 2nd episode - nice try - feel good that you got my $8 while I feel good that I didn't spend $30 for this nag. No tutorial? No how to videos? Really was hoping this game lived up to the commercials you played on Steam, but you have fallen short. Solitaire is more fun.

[odium]

i think i paid $10 or $20 5 years ago.  easily have 1000+ hours, best value i can imagine

[vta4ever]

Ok before everybody starts screaming and getting mad, lets just remember that everyone has different tastes in video games. I for one love it, but that doesn't mean he has too. I think we can agree that it is not very beneficial to come to the forums just to complain about the game, but if you are having technical issues or would like advice this is a great place to find it. 

[MarrowStone]

Being compared to a classic card game feels... fitting. It's a very quiet, strategic singleplayer game with replayability.

If both games aren't for them, so be it. Plenty of others will gladly brandish the torch. 

I just wish they would've given it a bit more time. 

[Admin]

We’re sorry to hear you didn’t enjoy the game. There are player guides on YouTube from the community if you want more guidance, and our community is quick to provide tips for new players. 
 

Thank you for trying The Long Dark. 
 

For others please allow people to express their opinions. Negative views on the game are allowed and shouldn’t be met with insults. You can disagree and argue why you like the game but don’t insult others on our forums. 
 

Thank you. 

[odizzido]

If the movies are indeed upskipable that is pretty bad. I do agree that the controls could be a fair bit better, but unfortunately they're unlikely to change as they've been designed that way intentionally likely due to consolitis. I have other issues with the game too, it's certainly not perfect.

However there are quite a few things I do like about the game and they heavily outweigh the not so great parts. Since it's still in development I am hopeful that at least some of the weaknesses can be solved but in the end if they're not I will be okay with that.

[acada]

I still do remember my begginings in the game. It was rough in comparisson to other games I played at the time. I start the story game as tutorial to sandbox game. And after while it payed off. But you know what? I am kinda glad for the rough introduction. After that I moved to the sandbox. I have about 350 hours played in it. And you know what? I replayed the story recently. Just for giggles. I do know some things now I did not when played story for first time. And it was still fun. Or more fun.

But I understand the game is not for everyone. Especially permadeath in sandbox. But the permadeath gives the game a little spice.

[peteloud]

I paid the £££ equivalent of $7.99 for TLD and have played it for over 3,000 hours. (I am retired and live alone).  That must be around 4 hours entertainment for 1 cent.  That I have played it for that many hours indicates that I think is superb entertainment.

I suspect that some people find it very difficult initially and lose interest before they build up the skills to make it more relaxing.  This is why I have made a few comments suggesting that the start of the game should be made easier.  Alas some game veterans disagree with me.

 

 

[Rivukis]

I understand the OP's frustration. I just bought the game and played it for an hour. I was so frustrated that I immediately uninstalled it. I was really excited about the game and thought I was lucky that I discovered it while on sale. However, the game does not do a good job showing you how to play. I understand that the idea is to learn how to survive out in the wild. I want that part of the game. Instead, I felt like an infant trying to learn how to move my arms. All while freezing to death in 5 min.

The beginning area didn't do a good job teaching me the basic mechanics of the game. I kept trying to put on a jacket and all it would do is comment on the jacket. Later, I got an objective to put it on. I clicked a button and the jacket disappeared. No idea what happened to it. Originally, I thought it was on my body, but then in chapter two, I found it outside the plane's wreckage. The first time I saw the jacket, it mentioned something about equipment on the circular menu. I looked and nothing on it mentioned equipment or clothing. I kept freezing to death very quickly, so I went to the other bigger menu instead and found the clothing sub menu (also the bigger menu has confusing controls). I had no idea how to read it, as nothing shows what anything means or what actions you can perform. I clicked every button to see what would happen. One of the button's made each item disappear. I still didn't know if I was putting them on or destroying them. If I put them on, then I had on 4 shirts and 2 pairs of socks. None of which slowed down the freezing process. I never found a way to see what clothing I had on or how to equip clothing.

From the very beginning of the game, the camera movement was super choppy. I had to turn down the graphics to low/medium. The machine I built has powerful enough components that every game I own is always turned on to the max or close to it, so I know it's not my machine. For example, I have an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080, 3.5GHz quad core processor, and 16GB of memory. Should be enough to run this game and not be choppy.

A little later, I was told I can hit a rabbit with a stone, but really there's no way that's happening. I don't understand why it tells you that. I thought it was a hint on what to do next, However, aiming is difficult and this guy can only throw a rock 10 ft, so why bother trying?

Even with all that, I really want to like this game, so I'm reinstalling it and going to give it another shot. It seems like I would given the many positive reviews, which also make me think I'm doing something wrong or missed some in-game tutorial.

My current questions are what do the buttons do?, should I be using a controller or mouse/keyboard?, how do I tell what is equipped?, how do I equip clothing, how do I fix the camera movement jumpiness?

I hope I wasn't too much of a downer in this post and sorry in advance for the wall of text.

[Serenity]

9 hours ago, Rivukis said:

A little later, I was told I can hit a rabbit with a stone, but really there's no way that's happening. I don't understand why it tells you that. I thought it was a hint on what to do next, However, aiming is difficult and this guy can only throw a rock 10 ft, so why bother trying?

Crouch. You're basically invisible that way. Also goes for wolves and deer. Stoning rabbits is absolutely trivial these days. But you can throw rocks long distance. There is an achievement for killing one at 80 feet (search YouTube for "stone age sniper"). Just aim up. Projectile trajectories are a thing. The bow works the same way.

To stop freezing make a fire. Then you can fiddle around with clothing. Clothing alone isn't always going to protect you. Freezing even under the best of circumstances is a thing depending on the difficulty level and your equipment.

Not understanding the UI is your own fault though. It's really obvious and simple most of the time

Edited May 27, 2020 by Serenity

[JJ1]

Quote

My current questions are what do the buttons do?, should I be using a controller or mouse/keyboard?, how do I tell what is equipped?, how do I equip clothing, how do I fix the camera movement jumpiness?

I recommend mouse and keyboard.

As far as equipping clothing and understanding the UI, here is a short guide explaining the basics [note: his explanation is geared towards survival mode, but the basic UI elements are the same in wintermute]:

I have never experienced camera movement jumpiness, so I cannot help problem solve that one.

I hope this helps you get started. It really is a wonderful game once you understand the mechanics.

 

 

Edited May 27, 2020 by JJ1

[Admin]

Thank you to those of you who have responded here since our intervention a few days ago. This is a wonderful example of how to share disagreement and handle negative feedback in a positive way by sharing tips, tricks, and resources rather than just reacting to someone's dislike of the game in a negative and combative manner. 

It's natural to react less than ideally to someone who you feel is insulting something important to you, but sharing why you love it and helping them address issues they might have is a significantly more productive reaction.

[piddy3825]

On 5/26/2020 at 2:00 AM, peteloud said:

I paid the £££ equivalent of $7.99 for TLD and have played it for over 3,000 hours. (I am retired and live alone).  That must be around 4 hours entertainment for 1 cent.  That I have played it for that many hours indicates that I think is superb entertainment.

I suspect that some people find it very difficult initially and lose interest before they build up the skills to make it more relaxing.  This is why I have made a few comments suggesting that the start of the game should be made easier.  Alas some game veterans disagree with me.

 

 

I am so happy to meet a kindred spirit.  I was hesitant to point out that I've logged over 2200 hours since I purchased the game back in August of 2015.  Regardless of what I paid for it, this game has been worth every penny spent.  I'm also grateful to have been part of this outstanding community of players, all of whom  have weathered thru the frustrations that this game sometimes throws our way.  Still playing and loving it!

on a side note... I just hope OP didn't spend $60 USD on Fallout 76!!!  

[JMK]

I did also put the game aside after my first try, I had no idea what to do, no idea how the interface was working .. and wtf ? a game where I have to look at my calories ? no way !

Then I came back a month later, watched some videos, played sandbox to get the basics, played the (well done) story, and now I interlope my way in the GreatBear

1101 hours of entertainment later, I confirm the Long Dark is definatly worth going through the first frustrations.

The mechanics are very simple, you can focus on your journey, there are no silly complex combinations to craft things.

Watch the survival guide, give it another try.

[Dan_]

I think it's safe to say many people do not appreciate the essence of TLD. I bought multiple copies for friends and family and none of them actually play or even enjoy the game. It takes an appreciation for the humbling loneliness and pensive exploration that the game presents to you, most people find it boring and I've got to admit that it doesn't have the friendliest learning curve in the survival genre. It's only natural that many people won't enjoy the experience firsthand. 

To the OP, I'd truly recommend you to skip story mode altogether and give survival mode a try, it's doesn't have the clunky aspects of story mode, neither does it have it's hand holding features. Just set your expectations straight in the sense that every single one of your characters is expendable, because they'll eventually die. Hinterland has put a lot of effort into Story mode, but survival mode is still where this game it's at. It's just better.

[Rivukis]

Thank you to those who added helpful and motivating comments. I'm going to give this game another shot, knowing that I need to take the time to figure things out. Plus, having a community that is mostly filled with kind, helpful people is encouraging!

[piddy3825]

4 hours ago, Rivukis said:

Thank you to those who added helpful and motivating comments. I'm going to give this game another shot, knowing that I need to take the time to figure things out. Plus, having a community that is mostly filled with kind, helpful people is encouraging!

Well said, indeed!  Party on Garth!

[Lohaan]

$8 = more than 2000 hours played and still excited to log in. "No tutorial" is a deliberate design choice that may not make sense from the onset...but it's literally part of the survival experience. This game is arguably the best value for money out there...if you're into this genre of course. Not to mention that this game has a therapeutic effect on so many of its players.

And oh....the days of getting lost....not knowing the maps or what to do....those were some of the most exciting times. Please...don't listen to the first 4 chords of a song before you decide if it's good or not. Allow the symphony to play... At the end of the day, this is a masterpiece...but it may not be evident right from the start. And watch some Youtube videos too if you can. I learned a lot from watching others play instead of getting stuck in my own bad habits. 2-3 hours of Youtube videos with good commentary can really boost your own gameplay and get you past that initial hump.  Hopefully you stick around long enough to experience Bear Island in its full Wintery glory. 

[Janazza]

Hey! I'm pretty new to the game having bought it months back and going through random binges but I can definitely understand the game is tough to newbies. I mean, that first episode when you gotta bandage a wound first thing? Yah, I accidentally used it for pain and wasted it. I think there's two ways to look at the game that depends on your experience: try and die or a very cautious run. And to be frank I started very cautious and now just test things whenever I can. Like I thought if the sleep/energy meter depleted I would instantly pass out. Not true! And after learning that, I realized there were so many times I wasted resources to set up camp to sleep for an hour or two that I didn't need to. 

I think The Long Dark sort of has a similar issue to Subnautica. It's a game that launched and slowly had more and more updates with a lot of people watching that journey, so when updates were added long time players were mostly unphased. But if you're brand new? You don't know what's lootable,  what's edible, what is the character's limits, disease risk, frostbite risk, your objective. In Subnautica, if you don't know how to make a scanner and scan the bladder fish, you're not going to know how to get fresh water, an absolute key resource. In TLD, if you don't realize how resources effect the chance of getting a fire started, you're probably going to get frustrated and freeze. 

But still a big part of TLD is reacting and has the most gameplay. You get injured? You react by finding/making bandages. Get sick? make medicine. Out of food? Time to hunt/forage or move on to the next region. It can be tough to deal with because it isn't a game that allows perfect runs. It's not always your skill that let's you survive just as it isn't always your fault something bad happens. And it can feel like you were forced to make bad decisions and people don't like that. BUT, I can say nothing feels cooler than when your low on everything and you think you're not going to make it but you made a split second decision that saved your life. Episode three kicked my butt but it was some of the most intense gameplay I got to play and I wish more people get to have that same adrenaline rush as I did (no spoiling!).

So I do hope anyone who's new gives the game a chance. Look up things when you need to but get that it isn't about having flawless runs. It's about trial and error, discovering the game's limits until you secure yourself enough to look into the hidden plot all around the map.  I hope this can help people who are on the fence give the game another shot!

[Admin]

Once again if you are going to post in this thread please do so in a manner that expresses what YOU like about playing The Long Dark and help others engage with the game in a positive manner. Simply telling someone they're wrong for their opinion, or insulting them, is not helpful. 

[hozz1235]

On 5/26/2020 at 3:00 AM, peteloud said:

I paid the £££ equivalent of $7.99 for TLD and have played it for over 3,000 hours. (I am retired and live alone).  That must be around 4 hours entertainment for 1 cent.  That I have played it for that many hours indicates that I think is superb entertainment.

I suspect that some people find it very difficult initially and lose interest before they build up the skills to make it more relaxing.  This is why I have made a few comments suggesting that the start of the game should be made easier.  Alas some game veterans disagree with me.

 

 

I have about 1100 hours at this point and mostly come back to play when some new content gets introduced.  May I ask what you do in the game to stay entertained for that many hours?

[odizzido]

On 5/26/2020 at 9:21 PM, Rivukis said:

From the very beginning of the game, the camera movement was super choppy. I had to turn down the graphics to low/medium. The machine I built has powerful enough components that every game I own is always turned on to the max or close to it, so I know it's not my machine. For example, I have an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1080, 3.5GHz quad core processor, and 16GB of memory. Should be enough to run this game and not be choppy.

My frame rates in TLD with max settings are great. I am running an old i5 750 from 2009 and a GTX970. Unless you're running one of the first quad core CPUs ever made your PC should be able to crush mine in terms of gaming performance. There must be a software bug which is killing your performance.

[peteloud]

4 hours ago, hozz1235 said:

I have about 1100 hours at this point and mostly come back to play when some new content gets introduced.  May I ask what you do in the game to stay entertained for that many hours?

I don't use mods or fandom to help me, I usually play straight Stalker games, and completely map each region.

Recently I spent several hours over a few evenings just trying reproduce and describe a bug which causes bedrolls in caves to self-destruct, for the benefit of the support guys.

Edited May 30, 2020 by peteloud

[Glflegolas]

How are playing The Long Dark and doing a workout the same?

The first hour is the hardest part.

If you find the game excessively frustrating initially, I would recommend watching someone play the game on YouTube. My favourite series is that of PaulSoaresJr, and it was him that convinced me to get the game back in March of 2019. Since then, I've played a grand total of 200 hours. I think it's truly money well spent, and I record my own YouTube series, making videos about every five days or so.

What I like best about the game is no doubt the artwork. Who doesn't like the look of a multicoloured aurora lighting up the night sky? A beautiful sunrise over the Hushed River Valley? Sunset from the Abandoned Lookout? Combine this with the fact that I am quite an outdoorsman in real life, and the fact that I enjoyed watching series such as Man vs. Wild, and the game was a naturally something I knew I'd enjoy.

In regards to story mode: Yes, some of the cutscenes are excessively long... but if you don't like them, just play survival instead, take up one of the challenges, or make up your own challenge.

[Stone]

"Didn't live up to the commercials" 😄 where have I heard that before since the invention of marketing!

I have similar complaints. Cut scenes, I mean, these cut scenes! You know I've played 1000+ hours now without seeing one! Just surviving day after day with nothing but the odd wolf struggle... i really don't think that's good cutscene value for money.

And the controls goodness yes! I can't find the button to start a car, turn on a heater, flush the toilet - you'd think this pretty fundamental stuff that  play testers would pick up!?

And as for help, don't even think about it! Nothing in my local library, my parents haven't a clue. I even put an add in the local paper 'free 24/7 access to supportive  gamer community wanted' but, nope, zip. I came here to complain but the OP took the words right out of my mouth. Thank goodness.

What a con. Outrageous.