MarrowStone

It's hard to say what my favourite part of this update is!

I love the tradition of these little themed names for the updates. I could see a fishing update called, "BUOYANT MARINER/ANGLER" Buoyant is a play on words, it can describe a lucrative business or the property fishing boats (hopefully) have. If a fishing update was paired with a hunting overhaul, you could call it "STALWART LIARS" "It was THIS big!" 🐟

When the humans don't play fair.

Never got it from sardines, it's always those darn granola bars!

You mentioned reworking rifle aiming. I understand there was a decision to zoom the iron sights much closer to the camera to help visibility (especially for consoles), but the animation also now just pulls the rifle back towards the camera in an uninteresting motion now. I liked how the rifle used to push forward a bit before being shouldered as it made it look like the character was preventing the stock from getting caught on their coat's armpits (A real issue I've experienced while shooting in Winter). Its been a long time since it was removed and I understand if you don't remember but was this small detail with aiming intentional? Is there a chance we could see it again? Also, does the tall grass currently affect whether animals see you or not?

Excuse the resolution(screenshot) but this seems a lot like the community hall.

A fun challenge is to start in broken railroad, climb timberwolf mountain, and shoot the flaregun at desolation point on Stalker. Kind of like hopeless rescue but a much longer journey. You then have to survive a week in DP in the lighthouse as if you're waiting for rescue. (wolves and food will be a big challenge here.) After a week your character gives up on rescue and moves wherever. Most likely you take trips up the mountain to bring the rest if the loot down to the pleasent valley farmhouse.

Then that would be unintentional and should be reported as a bug. Sprainchance being affected by boots is something I KNOW the devs have stated.

The list was labeled aspirational. So it wasn't meant as a promise to the community. Somewhere down the road they either figured it wouldn't fit into the game or that it wasnt feasible to work on it. They did add a few things since then that weren't even on the roadmap. Id be interested in the bow drill, and a revamp to how fires operate as a whole.

I've tripped before and sprained my wrist irl, so its not impossible. Ive noticed that wildly turning my camera while on a slope seems to increase my chances significantly. Ive taken to zig-zagging down but turning my camera smoothly and slowly down slopes. Hardly get 'em now. Wearing boots and staying unencumberd/well rested helps.

They've pretty much discussed all the clothing specific stuff, but I'd like to add my thoughts. I've never been skiing, but I've hunted in below zero temperatures. Be mindful not to overdress because if you get hot and sweaty, all the waterproofing in the world won't prevent you from getting soaked. Too much weight can be a hinderence and also add to this dilemma. You will be walking a ton if you ski so favor wind and waterproofing over insulation. The best part about cold weather, (and why I prefer it over hot weather) is you can always take layers off if you're warm and add layers if you're cold. In hot weather you have a limit to how much you can take off, haha . Start with your insulators close to your skin, and then wind/waterproofing on the outside. You can buy cheap disposable handwarmers to stuff in your inner coat pockets in order to warm your hands if they get cold. Don't breathe on your hands to warm them, the moisture from your breath will stick to them and water transfers heat much faster than air. Also dont wear multiple pairs of thick socks, this will just cut bloodflow to your feet or cause sweating. Do pack an extra pair to change into when the first pair get wet. Cotton loses almost all of its insulation when wet as opposed to wool, which keeps a majority of it. If your hands/feet do get particularly cold, dont warm them up quickly! Do it slowly. Run a washcloth in hot water, wring it out and just wrap your hands in it, dont rub them. Or place them inside your coat anda against your armpits. Warming too quickly can be quite uncomfortable, from experience. And last but not least, dont stress about it too much! (anxiety can reduce bloodflow to your extremities.) No matter what you will feel chilly, especially in the urban environment where you won't be as focused and active while skiing. Have fun!

I love the snow effect and the nice blues. I really like the flames too. What programs did you use?

What are some games of this year that you found impressive, or even inspirational, from a mechanical, technical, or even art direction standpoint?

I like how you did the facial hair, it reminds me of a forest and gives it a nostalgic 2014-2015 TLD feel. Nice work!

I think the draw of this map is that it is designed to be a challenge for your character to endure but not to be "conquered". Since there's no crafting allowed it kind of puts you down yet another notch. Nature only tolerates you there and you will have to leave at some point. Get in, go sightseeing (get lost (in the beauty)), meet Frosty, grab the bag, get out. Later on while you warm your feet by the stove and sip tea in Trapper's cabin, you appreciate the rifle on the wall, and crafting bench behind you. You think of how much worse the apocalypse could be for you living in the untamed reaches of the Hushed River Valley, where it has always been... "Quiet". Or should I say, "Hushed"? makes sense now. I also wished for a crafting table there, but I came to accept it once I thought of it this way.

To play devil's advocate, some of us made sacrifices in our schedule to obtain it and feel proud to have the exclusive badge. Perhaps an "Events" tab could be added to the badges section to keep them more outta sight and outta mind. Some games put these events into thier trophies and lock you out of getting a platinum which is even worse! I know I'd be upset if I didnt get it as well, however, so whatever the decision comes down to, I won't be so mad if it becomes re-obtainable next year.

I'm not much of a pie fan, but dang that looks really tasty! You got the colors and the paw print just right too!

I have screenshots of that, it's fun to do!

Ive never gotten poisoning from it.

Do you think polls on this forum accurately show what the community wants in the game? Or is it possible users of this forum might have completely different expectations of the game than the general audience that just play and don't get involved? Being a community informed project, have polls generated by users ever been exceptionally useful?

Which card game does Will play when he passes time? Does he stick to the basic Pyramid Solitaire or take on the fittingly named Klondike Solitaire? Or, does he just play Poker with the wolves much like that one Steam Sale banner? What form of entertainment does he miss in a post-digital age?

Which movie, book, or videogame character (Excluding TLD), could you imagine Will Mackenzie would look up to or emphasize with the most? Who would Astrid's media role model be?

@FireCraft78, I agree. It's turning into a wishlist forum. Here's a fun question: Do you have what it takes to survive the Quiet Apocalypse? What kind of survivor would you be? How far would you go to survive? Im imagining those of us who know the game might have an initial feeling of "Woah! It's just like TLD! Cool!" before we realise we can't play TLD ever again....

What I think Is done right: #1 The Art/Atmosphere/World/Music This is number one because the devs have hit it spot on with how they want their game to feel and what the world should be like. What draws me back to TLD the most is the quality of the game world and how easy it is to immerse myself into it. The desire to learn more about the world and be part of it attracts me. #2 Meaningful game choices---> Emergent Gameplay and Permadeath While plenty of games have dialogue choices that lead to branching campaigns with, (usually) very similar endings, a survivor's story in TLD are crafted by every action you make instead, (but all have the same ending...). Stopping to darn your socks could save your life, or it could *darn* you! Permadeath forces you to learn from your mistakes, and makes death something to be feared. As a result, TLD gives me thrills almost akin to a horror game. However, death never feels too harsh, because in The Quiet Apocalypse, death is inevitable anyways and I learn from it. Not to mention feats and keep a feeling of progress as well. after 4 years I still can't get over how beautiful this game is...

What were the most enjoyable/fun things to work on in TLD? Sound design? Field research? How well documented is the development process? Will a bug reel or any "behind the scenes" footage be released to the public or perhaps unlockable in-game as some reward? Any chance we could meet the team again? Perhaps we could hear what they have to say, like in one of those earlier YouTube videos.