Wish we had cooking

[desertedone]

Would be nice to develop food recipes with the food items we find or hunt. 

[Pencil]

It's a great idea, but I can't think of anything that can be cooked with the food already in the game. 

It would be cool if they added pancake mixes... the Just Add Water boxes of pancake mixes can last a long time before going bad, so maybe you can make pancakes with a box mix, water, and cooking pot. Gotta have something to go with the syrup...

[UTC-10]

With New Cooking we got the capacity to walk away from the fire and do other things.  An expansion of New Cooking to add things like recipes, even simplistic ones, have been requested since New Cooking appeared.  It would have been a natural expansion. 

At this point, it maybe a late in the game to get that but certainly it would be something that might be implemented once Wintermute (story mode) is concluded.  Assuming that the devs have not been sneakily planning to change New Cooking to add recipes in episode 4 or 5.  

It would be nice to be able to cook a HOT meal (not drinks) which cannot be done in the current game unless one is "cooking" certain canned goods.  

[ajb1978]

I would love recipes that require you to cook them, and eat them fresh. Like none of this "cook a moose and leave it in the snow for 3 weeks" nonsense. This would of course necessitate addition of more accessible renewable firestarting methods, like the oft-requested bow drill. Otherwise people like me would continue to hoard matches as if they were gold coins, waiting for sunny days to mag lens up a fire and grill that moose.

I mean I audibly curse IRL when I have use a match.

[Lord of the Long Dark]

It’s a survival game. Not a camping game.  People fighting off frostbite it search of firewood are not interested in making s’mores. 

Edited October 5, 2021 by Lord of the Long Dark

[Leeanda]

10 hours ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

It’s a survival game. Not a camping game.  People fighting off frostbite it search of firewood are not interested in making s’mores. 

So you keep saying! But people still need to eat!

[ajb1978]

13 hours ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

It’s a survival game. Not a camping game. 

The two are not mutually exclusive.

[Cr41g]

On 10/3/2021 at 3:43 PM, Pencil said:

 Gotta have something to go with the syrup...

anything goes with real maple syrup...

[Valuable Hunting Knife]

Like many suggestions I think this is a really interesting idea that is probably more likely to appear in TLD2/whatever Hinterland have next.  I have mentioned before though that foods that need some form of prep before eating could be possible and add a new element of decision making to the current game:

A list of 30 foods and drinks (and some other features) - Wish List - Hinterland Forums

As an aside on the importance or otherwise of cooking/variety of diet in a survival situation, the development of military rations from cans of bully beef and hard tack to today's menus probably tells a tale:

Meal, Ready-to-Eat - Wikipedia

finally, if this thread is making you hungry check this out...

What's Cooking in your 2 liter pot? - General Discussion - Hinterland Forums

[Lord of the Long Dark]

7 hours ago, Leeanda said:

So you keep saying! But people still need to eat!

That makes no logical sense. How do you not eat if you are surviving?  

[Leeanda]

21 minutes ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

That makes no logical sense. How do you not eat if you are surviving?  

Yes of course people need to eat. But that doesn't mean they can't cook using recipes! Just because it's survival it  doesn't make a difference!  It doesn't take any longer to cook bear meat even if you add something to it does it? 

[Bimbobjoejr.]

Even if it's only a survival game, the characters are still human. Being the only person left alive can take a toll and they might make a meal they've had in better times for a feeling of warmth and hope. Just because it's a survival game doesn't mean it has to be hardcore like all the other survival games and be specifically made to the interloper players. Some of us want to just go on with our time, have fun and do silly stuff.

[Lord of the Long Dark]

1 hour ago, Bimbobjoejr. said:

Even if it's only a survival game, the characters are still human. Being the only person left alive can take a toll and they might make a meal they've had in better times for a feeling of warmth and hope. Just because it's a survival game doesn't mean it has to be hardcore like all the other survival games and be specifically made to the interloper players. Some of us want to just go on with our time, have fun and do silly stuff.

1 hour ago, Leeanda said:

Yes of course people need to eat. But that doesn't mean they can't cook using recipes! Just because it's survival it  doesn't make a difference!  It doesn't take any longer to cook bear meat even if you add something to it does it? 

Yes. Yes it does take more time- and energy- and resources. And you’ll also have to gather and store that stuff or carry it with you. 
 Like I said it’s not camping. If you are weak of mind and you have to have pancakes and syrup to feel comfortable or you need a pet because you can’t stand being alone- that’s why the overwhelming vast majority of people die in true survival situation. It’s the extreme few with superior resolve and mental fortitude that survive. That’s why it’s called survival- and they dont waste time trying to grow spices which provide no nutritional value just to flavor their food. 
 Too many people with ridiculous ideas for unnecessary or superfluous items think the character is camping.  In the first week of interloper when you find a rare jar of maple syrup you see 1/2 a day worth of food, not a topping for your blueberry waffles.   

Edited October 5, 2021 by Lord of the Long Dark

[Leeanda]

4 minutes ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

 

Is it just me you have a problem with?  Some other survival  games have recipes so why not this one? And would it take too much effort to put some maple syrup on the bear steak? I think not?

[Lord of the Long Dark]

And what purpose does that serve for the game. If you want maple syrup on your bear steak then eat the bear steak then eat maple syrup. Geez.  I mean…. Really. What purpose does it serve to mix them. 

[Leeanda]

2 minutes ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

And what purpose does that serve for the game. If you want maple syrup on your bear steak then eat the bear steak then eat maple syrup. Geez.  I mean…. Really. What purpose does it serve to mix them. 

Well what's the purpose of crossing into all the different locations if you can live in just one! And that was just an example of what could be done!   

May I suggest if you have an issue with me then keep it off these pages,it's unfair to everyone else!

[ajb1978]

54 minutes ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

And what purpose does that serve for the game. 

You've answered your own question: It's a game. It inherently serves no "purpose" other than to provide enjoyment to the people that play it. And there is no one "correct" way to play this game either. This is evidenced by the fact that we have four stock experiences, and a Custom option to dial your own style. Adding cooking recipes would add enjoyment to players that choose to partake of that kind of thing. And players that don't want to....they don't have to. Just like the addition of charcoal way back when Faithful Cartographer first dropped. You aren't required to collect charcoal and draw maps, but it's something you can do if you wish. When paint cans were introduced, many long term players spurned them entirely because it didn't contribute anything to their play style. That's fine. I however chose to find a use for them. Could I mark searched buildings by placing a stick by the door? Absolutely. Now I can paint an orange X on the door instead.

The point is, the more options we have, the better. Even if one particular player doesn't gain anything from it, the player base as a collective absolutely does.

[Lord of the Long Dark]

20 minutes ago, ajb1978 said:

You've answered your own question: It's a game. It inherently serves no "purpose" other than to provide enjoyment to the people that play it. And there is no one "correct" way to play this game either. This is evidenced by the fact that we have four stock experiences, and a Custom option to dial your own style. Adding cooking recipes would add enjoyment to players that choose to partake of that kind of thing. And players that don't want to....they don't have to. Just like the addition of charcoal way back when Faithful Cartographer first dropped. You aren't required to collect charcoal and draw maps, but it's something you can do if you wish. When paint cans were introduced, many long term players spurned them entirely because it didn't contribute anything to their play style. That's fine. I however chose to find a use for them. Could I mark searched buildings by placing a stick by the door? Absolutely. Now I can paint an orange X on the door instead.

The point is, the more options we have, the better. Even if one particular player doesn't gain anything from it, the player base as a collective absolutely does.

To each his own but the best part of this game is the LACK of comforts.  If you want to go camping hey that’s up to you. 
I don’t. And I hope if they change the game it’s to add challenge, not comfort. 

[ajb1978]

1 minute ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

 And I hope if they change the game it’s to add challenge, not comfort. 

I'd prefer a balance myself. For instance, nix the magic water bottles that appear out of nowhere. If you don't already have water bottles in your inventory, you can't keep that water you just boiled. Either drink straight from the can/pot...or dump the water.

And in return,  make water bottles a super rare item on par with e-stims. But add a bow drill as a craftable firestarter, so we don't have to rely on matches or wait for sunny days. And add a waterskin as a craftable item.

Basically you make the game harder in one aspect, but then add in a method to deal with the problem. Kinda like adding timberwolves and a revolver with which to shoot 'em in the face.

[Lord of the Long Dark]

12 minutes ago, ajb1978 said:

I'd prefer a balance myself. For instance, nix the magic water bottles that appear out of nowhere. If you don't already have water bottles in your inventory, you can't keep that water you just boiled. Either drink straight from the can/pot...or dump the water.

And in return,  make water bottles a super rare item on par with e-stims. But add a bow drill as a craftable firestarter, so we don't have to rely on matches or wait for sunny days. And add a waterskin as a craftable item.

Basically you make the game harder in one aspect, but then add in a method to deal with the problem. Kinda like adding timberwolves and a revolver with which to shoot 'em in the face.

See now you are thinking. Agreed with all of those. I hate the magic water bottles. What I won’t tolerate though is sugar free flavor packets for the water.  That’s more along the lines of what’s suggested here. 
   A bow drill and a slingshot should be the next mods. Not blueberry muffins and butter. 
   The bow drill needs to definitely be added. That’s legitimate survival strategy. It should take a long time so you have a health damage penalty for using it in interloper and it should take so long at fire making 1 it’s nearly useless. In reality you are more likely to die trying to start a friction fire in the game’s weather conditions than to start an ember even. 

Edited October 5, 2021 by Lord of the Long Dark

[ajb1978]

1 minute ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

What I won’t tolerate though is sugar free flavor packets for the water. 

Stuff like that would be a prime candidate for paid DLC. And frankly I'd probably buy it just to support the team. I mean holy monkey I paid what, 15 bucks for this game 5 years ago and I have over 4000 hours of enjoyment. I'd absolutely buy any DLC sight unseen simply on principle.

[Pencil]

1 hour ago, ajb1978 said:

 For instance, nix the magic water bottles that appear out of nowhere.

 

1 hour ago, Lord of the Long Dark said:

 I hate the magic water bottles.

When you search a container, you can hear the character shoving things aside and digging through something, so what is he digging through? Perhaps he is picking up water bottles and coffee mugs. 

I think it would be a cool twist to add water bottles to the game, and wouldn't add that big of a challenge since I don't usually carry more than 3 kilos of water around with me on a regular basis. The only thing this would stop is stocking up water easily. It would cause a problem for the Whiteout challenge unless water bottles were abundant. 

[ajb1978]

2 hours ago, Pencil said:

It would cause a problem for the Whiteout challenge unless water bottles were abundant. 

Excellent point, I hadn't considered that. This would make that challenge an actual challenge, requiring the player to probably craft waterskins in order to store the water in the first place. With 30 days it would by no means be impossible, especially if waterskins are crafted with rabbit hides which can be obtained on day zero with a handful of stones and skilled aim. As it stands I find Whiteout to be the easiest of all challenge modes, and while I know I'm certainly biased...I'm inclined to think I'm not wrong either!

[Leeanda]

Waterskins are a great idea! Possibly  using moose  as it seems the least used for crafting!  

Also wondered about  possibly re-using empty maple syrup jugs. 

[Pencil]

I also think it would be neat to be able to cook soup such as what Grey Mother made in Ep. 1. It is not necessarily a "luxury" food, it would actually be helpful and useful to make. Perhaps we could have some kind of soup that would cure cabin fever. It would definitely provide a warmth bonus. Maybe an energy bonus? If you can get quality food, maybe you could get a little extra energy from it.