The Long Dark Impressions And Suggestions

[cat5niper]

The long dark starts as a scary icy world full of dangers and surprises. The challenge to survive the first 24-48 hours is thrilling and gives the player a good range of challenges to overcome. Where can i shelter? Where is my next meal coming from?

However this starting excellence doesn't continue forever, by day 20 most players will have gained a stockpile of food, a rifle and a decent set of warm clothes.The game has several mechanics that are designed to increase challenge as time goes by, mainly the damage of equipment and lack of replacement supplies.

This mechanic is a clumsy way to extend the difficulty, especially when it sacrifices all realism and allows objects kept in cool dry storage to degrade away in a matter of weeks. Dried food and tins can often last for years and are sometimes still edible after decades while clothes, knives, hatchets etc last will last longer than the life of the player if properly stored.

Instead of using these types of mechanics to lengthen the game, why not allow the player a more realistic setting. Make the focus of the game, "Why is everyone dead?", "Why did I Survive?", "Where do I go to find other survivors?". Whilst keeping the challenge of survival too keep people on their toes.

The end game could consist of building a radio, preparing for then making a long distance hike through the wilderness with no indoor shelter or even the conclusion of a story explaining the event that caused the plane crash and deaths of everyone you encountered.

To conclude I hope you take this a constructive criticism, I have thoroughly enjoyed your game and it is definitely one of the best survival games I have played to date.

I have a few additional suggestions that could be added/changed.

* Written notes or other indications that might give the player a sense of the lives of the people who's houses you end up living in.

* The log filled with personal writings, more journal like

* More stagnant water sources

* Menu to see skill progression

* A Tent

* A Flask

* A Map or Maps

* A Compass

[Shanti]

I think you have a lot of excellent points. Most of these ideas have been brought up before, and your idea of the "end game" is what it sounds more like what the dev's are doing with the story mode.

I also feel like the current degradation mechanics are clumsy and annoying. However, I would like to see the difficulty as the game progresses come from longer storms, colder temperatures, less daylight, the need to have a light source while crafting, or reducing the amount of wildlife to make hunting more difficult and realistic.

I like your additional suggestions, especially a menu to see skill progression. I'm curious of what stagnant water sources you are envisioning, since even interior temperatures are at or slightly below freezing. Also, what purpose would a flask be, when we already have unlimited water-carrying containers?

[cat5niper]

Flasks would contain several servings of any hot drink, so you could make your coffee and drink it hot whenever you like. They could be topped up or just contain water etc

Stagnant water such as lake water taken from ice holes. Potentially allow the player to get water by breaking the ice of streams and rivers to get at the trickle of water underneath.

In addition having a way to preserve meat for indefinite amounts of time such as creating jerky (which is very light weight) would add to this ability.

Several of my other suggestions, A Tent, A Compass, Maps etc add to this.

All of these changes would allot a player with good enough skills and equipment to spent maybe a week traversing an ice shelf without any trees for wood or houses to sleep in.

[selfless]

I agree the struggle to establish survival in the beginning is the real game. Once settled and explored there must be a new goal. A reason to leave camp. A possibility of winning. Many options are possible. Almost all involve story development. Until then I choose "Quit. Start New Game."

Realize what we are all playing right now is a sandbox. The simulated world without story. A test to explore the mechanics of this world by walking around in it. There is no victory condition and trying to find one will only exhaust those who try find it.