Raphael van Lierop

We did a bit of digging into the Airplane sound question because it just seemed too crazy to me, and it was hard to imagine how that video couldn't be doctored in some way. Turns out this is a rare but totally possible occurrence in the game. I asked Glenn, my audio director, to explain what's going on. His words: Who would have thought! He's going to make some tweaks to ensure this doesn't happen anymore. I'm almost sad to know the true cause. It was more fun to imagine all the other possible explanations.

We tweak the mechanics and tuning between Story and Survival, focusing on what makes each experience "tick". Players are motivated by different things in Story than they are in Survival. For example, the focus in Survival is on long-term survival, so Skill progression makes sense there. In WINTERMUTE (Story Mode), long-term survival is not the focus, therefore we removed the Skills system from it. Rest works differently in Story because there's no benefit to limiting the player's access to Rest there, whereas in Survival, managing Rest is a big part of how you maintain Condition. Etc.

Hello community, Not a huge list of community questions today. Please feel free to provide feedback regarding the Mailbag format in general. We'd like to see this grow over time and ensure the community is benefitting from it and it's a wise use of our time, so if there's anything about it that you think could be improved, we'd love to hear it. You can post suggestions right in this thread. On to the questions! ***** Question (comment) from @Tom Trottel: Understood. I can see why people would want to do this. I have some ideas. ***** Question from @Kitsune_Wizard: We don't add horror elements, but we intend for some of the experience to be deeply unsettling. I think some players interpret it as horror. It's probably one of those things that changes depending on what you bring to it -- some players might find Carter super frightening, others might find it peaceful. I think being alone in an empty world makes everyone feel a bit more nervous than they would like to admit, which is definitely intentional on our part. ***** Question from @thepatsbro: Please post the video. Maybe a plane flew over your house when you were playing the game? 🤣 ***** Question from @Tsayers1068: Yes, we would like to improve wildlife behaviour in general. We're working on some stuff (it won't be in the next update however). ***** Question from @pi972: We took a big step towards this with Redux, by moving away from third-person cinematics and bringing everything to first-person. I don't think we'll achieve the same level of choreography as you see in Half-Life 2, but you'll see us continue to improve this in future episodes. I'd like to get us to a place where in our next game, we can hit the Half-Life 2 level of interactivity in our narrative moments (which are really just constrained first-person scenes, similar to what we do with Grey Mother in Ep1, or Jeremiah in Ep2, we just take a bit more control in some cases). Episode Three's scenes build on what we did in Redux and Episodes Four and Five should be even more ambitious. ***** Question from @ThePancakeLady: The answer is: Mostly 1, with an eye to 2 in the future, so basically 3. But mostly 1. ***** Question from @Sgt8taco: You can already "farm" metal by harvesting it with a Hacksaw. You can then currently use that scrap metal to repair (some) things or craft (some) new things, like improvised Knives, Hatchets, etc. In terms of adding new ways to maintain firearms -- it's not really our goal to make The Long Dark endlessly survivable, so really the resource constraints of having to live with a limited number of Rifles, Cleaning Kits, Whetstones, etc. is kind of on purpose. You should cherish the "easy" tools while you have them, and work your way towards more self-sufficiency using tools that can be crafted. So, when the Rifles are gone, you'll have Survival Bows and Arrows (for example). This is how the game has always been -- initially it's about finding the easy supplies left behind, and gradually you have to harvest from what's available in the environment. That said, I know the idea of making more ammo, improvising weapon attachments, etc. is a real "prepper" fantasy and while that's not really our primary focus, I could see us building up some of those ideas in the future. Not sure how much that gameplay would fit into the WINTERMUTE timeline or gameplay, however. ***** Thanks for reading and have a great weekend, all! And make sure to let us know what you'd like to see us try with future Mailbags, to make them more interesting for you! - Raph

To be clear @Hawk -- because this isn't what I said -- I was referring to older versions of Windows that MS no longer supports like Vista and XP (which used to be in our min-specs). We've since removed them. Win 7 and Win 10 should be fine until we finish the game.

Only players of this game could experience a moment like that, face a choice like that, and then worry about why they didn't get to "keep the knife" after.

Doesn't the choice change you as a player?

We're getting pretty close to 2.5M copies these days, FWIW. Not bad for our small game and studio.

Hello community,We've just released some fixes in follow-up to yesterday's release of RUGGED SENTINEL.Windows and Mac fixes are available immediately. Linux fixes will be released shortly. Hotfix to version 1.17 [33486] -- RELEASE NOTES * Fixed issue where some localized strings were not properly integrated into the game.* Fixed issue where some interiors would be duplicated and have duplicated gear items, when playing using a Custom Experience Mode.* Fixed issue with code-entry for the Custom Experience Mode appearing "all caps".* Fixed issue where Antibiotics were not curing Infections.* Fixed issue where all caught Fish had the same weight.* Fixed issue where some customization options would not persist when modifying a "baseline" Experience Mode using the Custom Experience Toolbox.* Fixed issue where Feats Badges could not be enabled when using a Custom Experience Mode. Progress playing when using a Custom mode will not count towards Feats progression, however, and this is by design.### END OF RELEASE NOTES ###

Great stuff. This is the kind of thoughtful, mature discussion that I like to see. Just to set expectations -- we're far into the December update work and Cabin Fever tweaks are not on the list, but it's something we could possibly look at for the next Survival Mode update.

Look in your Library, where you would normally fine Games, Software, etc. There is a Music category. Once you've bought the Soundtrack DLC, you should find it there.

No apologies necessary! I'm only sharing my POV. Ultimately everyone is going to feel the way they're going to feel about the game, the story, the film, etc. It's a tough lesson to learn, but I can't feel responsible for that. I can only produce work that feels honest and true, to me. Some people will like it, others won't. And somehow, that has to be ok. I'm glad you like it. But it's also ok if you don't.

I watch this more than I care to admit:

What writing is entirely original? I won't claim to be a great writer. Never have. All I will say is that Elegy came from the heart. Just as with the game, I'm less concerned about whether people think I'm a good writer, and more concerned with if I feel the writing reflects my own creative values and inner voice. Just like the game's art style, gameplay, sound, music, etc. are all expressions of my creative values and inner voice. That's what it means to direct something. Anyone is free to take their own shot and writing a short film, designing and writing a game, running a studio, etc. if they think they can do better. There's no shortage of experts on the internet! But it takes very little to write a comment online, and a lot more to actually create something...

XBOX ONE PATCH 4 - Updates The Long Dark to version 1.12 (32503) WARNING: There may be Story spoilers in these notes. * Fixed issue preventing "Lake Gunshots" mission from completing correctly. * General cinematics polish. * Clarified Survival School "Harvestable Plants" mission requires adding plants to crate outside Jeremiah's cabin. * Fixed issues with Distress Pistol animation. * General memory optimizations. * Fixed issue where storage container in Lodge appeared to be interactive when it was not. * Fixed issue where duplicate Trust option appeared for Grey Mother. * Fixed issue where Torch Blueprint would not unlock correctly when starting a fresh Episode Two game. * Fixed issue where players could return to Milton after completing Episode One. ### END OF PATCH NOTES ### We're continuing to fix additional issues as quickly as we can. Thank you for your patience.

Literally trapped in the car?

The vast majority of the fixes should apply to existing games, although you won't benefit from fixes that happen earlier on in the episodes than your current save, for example. Unfortunately, there are some fixes that will only apply to new games, but we try to call those out when we can.

STEAM PATCH 6 For The Long Dark -- Updates the game to Version 1.08 (32384) Warning: There may be story spoilers in these notes.* Memory and performance optimizations.* Fixed issue where Methuselah may not trigger correctly in certain circumstances in Episode Two.* Fixed issue with "Hank's Hatch" side mission in Episode Two.* General fixes to various cinematics.* Fixed issue with players teleporting when exiting the Lone Lake Cabin in Episode Two.* Fixed issue where players could get stuck in Grey Mother's Fuel mission in Episode One.* Fixed issue with text jittering on some screens.* Retuned Food and Fuel requirements of respective Grey Mother missions in Episode One.* Fixed camera crashing during Climb and Harvesting animations when FOV is over 90 degrees.* Fixed a variety of annoying collision bugs throughout.* Fixed issue where the Flashlight's "high intensity" setting was ineffective against Aurora Wolves.* Fixed endlessly feeding Wolf in Milton.* Fixed issue where players could sometimes get stuck in a dialogue sequence.* Fixed issue with overlapping text in the Give Items portion of the Trust interface.### END OF PATCH NOTES ###We're continuing to fix additional issues as quickly as we can. Thank you for your patience.- The Hinterland Team

Good news! After all that explanation, our Xbox One Patch 2, and all the PS4 versions were both updated today. Just in time for the weekend. PS4 Version 1.08/1.09 Patch Notes: Xbox Patch 2 Notes: Hope that helps all of you out.

PS4 Patch for The Long Dark -- Updates the game to Version 1.08/1.09 (32384) We're happy to announce that both the SCEA (North/South/Central America) and SIEE (Europe, Asia, Middle East) versions of The Long Dark have been patched to 1.08 and 1.09 versions respectively. NOTE that the versions are actually the same, but currently have different version numbers due to how they were patched. Warning: There may be story spoilers in these notes. ***Changelist includes fixes from 1.08 (which was already released in the "Americas", and 1.09 which is new for all PS4 versions.*** * Fixed blocking issue where the Aurora would not appear in Episode Two, between completing the Bear Hunt mission and awaiting the aurora's return to get through the Dam. This fix is compatible with current in-progress games so you should not have to restart to benefit from it. * Added missing translations for Trust dialogue * Fixed issue with some books disappearing when dropped * Improvements to checkpointing to help avoid getting into a low-Condition death spiral * Buffed the Condition-restoration boost when player reloads after Death * Added a Bedroll to the Cave after the Crash Site in "Survival of the Fittest". This can be used to Save your Game. * Removed requirement to drink Rosehip Tea in Survival Bowl; it is now an optional objective * Fixed issue with Rifle Cleaning Kit disappearing after reloading a save * Fixed issue with environment geo near the Climbing Park section in Milton * Fixed various cases where audio could cut out * Fixed locked controls when throwing a stone and picking up a rabbit at the same time * Fixed floating necklace when speaking with Grey Mother * General cinematics polish * Fixed scrollbar issue when transferring items to NPCs * Fixed place object shader so objects tint correctly over decals * Fixed issue with radios playing music when aurora isn’t present * Fixed save/restore issue that could result in missing loot in scenes when reloading from a checkpoint. This bug was preventing some quests from being completable after reload. * Fixed the Bear struggle. * Fixed issue that could cause player to spawn on top of a campfire in "Survival of the Fittest". It should now be impossible to place a fire and then spawn on it the following day. * Memory optimizations to reduce chance lower memory systems will exhaust memory and crash * Added some more tools in Milton. * Fixed issue with Wolf AI not fleeing correctly when the player throws a lit Flare, Torch, or Stone at it. * Fixed issues that preventing the WINTERMUTE soundtrack from playing correctly; you should now hear more music as you explore the world. * Modified Fire objective on Day 3 of "Survival of the Fittest" to track how long fire has been burning, vs how long it will burn. * Fixed issue where unlocked Crafting Blueprints could carry over to a New game. * Fixed issue with Condition tutorial triggering after every death. It will now only trigger once. * Add some missing subtitles. * Fixed issue with Map Marker not clearing after retrieving Distress Pistol in "Light Up the Night". * Fixed issue with “Echoes of Astrid” objective marker appearing during Grey Mother mission set * Fixed floating campfire in Milton. * Fixed issue where looping Wolf "feeding" sounds remained even when the Wolf AI was absent. * Fixed issue where feeding Wolves could face the player while still playing feeding animation. * Fixed issue where Wolves would sometimes not go into their Hold Ground AI state when approached with a Flare or Torch. * Fixed issue with map icon showing up for some Stone spawn regions. * Fixed issue where player could get stuck on geometry in Milton. * Added missing audio for picking up Astrid's Hardcase on Day 4. * Added additional checkpointing in Ep1 and Ep2. * Difficulty tuning of Wolves in Episode One. Struggle should be more survivable for new players. * Fixed issue with Rope Fall section of Episode One, where players could get stuck due to a scripting bug. * Improved cover flow UI for Episode Selection to make it more obvious that there are two available episodes. * Fixed issue with Aurora probability in Survival Mode. Auroras should now appear more reliably. * Fixed some camera popping in Episode One cinematics. * Fixed scripting error in "Fix My Rifle?" that could create mission logic issues. * Fixed issue in Bear Hunt mission where the Ear would not spawn under certain circumstances. * Fixed issue with Mackenzie clipping through the chair in some Episode One cinematics. * Fixed issue with missing Milton Knowledge strings. * Fixed issue with not being able to pick up the Bear Hide in Jeremiah's "Survival School". * Fixes for Save system to help prevent loss of save files. * Memory and performance optimizations. * Fixed issue where Methuselah may not trigger correctly in certain circumstances in Episode Two. * Fixed issue with "Hank's Hatch" side mission in Episode Two. * General fixes to various cinematics. * Fixed issue with players teleporting when exiting the Lone Lake Cabin in Episode Two. * Fixed issue where players could get stuck in Grey Mother's Fuel mission in Episode One. * Fixed issue with text jittering on some screens. * Retuned Food and Fuel requirements of respective Grey Mother missions in Episode One. * Fixed camera crashing during Climb and Harvesting animations when FOV is over 90 degrees. * Fixed a variety of annoying collision bugs throughout. * Fixed issue where the Flashlight's "high intensity" setting was ineffective against Aurora Wolves. * Fixed endlessly feeding Wolf in Milton. * Fixed issue where players could sometimes get stuck in a dialogue sequence. * Fixed issue with overlapping text in the Give Items portion of the Trust interface. ### END OF PATCH NOTES ### We're continuing to fix additional issues as quickly as we can. Thank you for your patience. - The Hinterland Team

Thanks for sharing those thoughts!

XBOX ONE PATCH 2 - Updates The Long Dark to version 1.05 (32319) WARNING: There may be Story spoilers in these notes. * Added fixes to prevent frequent crashing on Xbox One. * Added missing translations for Trust dialogue * Fixed issue with some books disappearing when dropped * Improvements to checkpointing to help avoid getting into a low-Condition death spiral * Buffed the Condition-restoration boost when player reloads after Death * Added a Bedroll to the Cave after the Crash Site in "Survival of the Fittest". This can be used to Save your Game. * Removed requirement to drink Rosehip Tea in Survival Bowl; it is now an optional objective * Fixed issue with Rifle Cleaning Kit disappearing after reloading a save * Fixed issue with environment geo near the Climbing Park section in Milton * Fixed various cases where audio could cut out * Fixed locked controls when throwing a stone and picking up a rabbit at the same time * Fixed floating necklace when speaking with Grey Mother * General cinematics polish * Fixed scrollbar issue when transferring items to NPCs * Fixed place object shader so objects tint correctly over decals * Fixed issue with radios playing music when aurora isn’t present * Fixed save/restore issue that could result in missing loot in scenes when reloading from a checkpoint. This bug was preventing some quests from being completable after reload. * Fixed issue that could cause player to spawn on top of a campfire in "Survival of the Fittest". It should now be impossible to place a fire and then spawn on it the following day. * Memory optimizations to reduce chance of crashing * Added some more tools in Milton. * Fixed issue with Wolf AI not fleeing correctly when the player throws a lit Flare, Torch, or Stone at it. * Fixed issues that preventing the WINTERMUTE soundtrack from playing correctly; you should now hear more music as you explore the world. * Modified Fire objective on Day 3 of "Survival of the Fittest" to track how long fire has been burning, vs how long it will burn. * Fixed issue where unlocked Crafting Blueprints could carry over to a New game. * Fixed issue with Condition tutorial triggering after every death. It will now only trigger once. * Add some missing subtitles. * Fixed issue with Map Marker not clearing after retrieving Distress Pistol in "Light Up the Night". * Fixed issue with “Echoes of Astrid” objective marker appearing during Grey Mother mission set * Fixed floating campfire in Milton. * Fixed issue where looping Wolf "feeding" sounds remained even when the Wolf AI was absent. * Fixed issue where feeding Wolves could face the player while still playing feeding animation. * Fixed issue where Wolves would sometimes not go into their Hold Ground AI state when approached with a Flare or Torch. * Fixed issue with map icon showing up for some Stone spawn regions. * Fixed issue where player could get stuck on geometry in Milton. * Added missing audio for picking up Astrid's Hardcase on Day 4. * Added additional checkpointing in Ep1 and Ep2. * Tuned Antiseptic so that one dose is sufficient to treat Infection Risk. * Fixed blocking issue where the Aurora would not appear in Episode Two, between completing the Bear Hunt mission and awaiting the aurora's return to get through the Dam. This fix is compatible with current in-progress games so you should not have to restart to benefit from it. * Fixed issue with Rope Fall section of Episode One, where players could get stuck due to a scripting bug. * Improved cover flow UI for Episode Selection to make it more obvious that there are two available episodes. * Fixed issue with Aurora probability in Survival Mode. Auroras should now appear more reliably. * Difficulty tuning of Wolves in Episode One. Struggle should be more survivable for new players. * Fixed some camera popping in Episode One cinematics. * Fixed scripting error in "Fix My Rifle?" that could create mission logic issues. * Fixed issue in Bear Hunt mission where the Ear would not spawn under certain circumstances. * Fixed issue with Mackenzie clipping through the chair in some Episode One cinematics. * Fixed issue with missing Milton Knowledge strings. * Fixed issue with not being able to pick up the Bear Hide in Survival School. * Fixed issue where the note with the Code would not appear in "Hank's Hatch" side mission. ### END OF PATCH NOTES ### We're continuing to fix additional issues as quickly as we can. Thank you for your patience. - The Hinterland Team

You're being far too generous, but thank you.

Thank you -- yes we have a bunch of Linux fixes on the list, and will get to them ASAP. We know you are a small community, but what you lack in numbers you more than make up for in passion.

Thanks. I've posted some things occasionally thank rankled people. In general I don't understand where the hate towards comes from but I get internet culture and I've come to terms with it. Often a small comment can be taken out of context and becomes a "thing". I'm also a vociferous defender of the game and team and so I don't shy away from telling people off when I think they are being unfair. I'm not perfect. But, apart from my family, this game means everything to me, and I've been working 15 yrs to get here. Not making excuses, just showing that this is a personal work of deep passion and not some corporate thing.

You misunderstood. PS4 Pro isn't more stable because of anything we have done. It's just that the hardware is different, which seems to help.