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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon May 16, 2016 1:04 

Joined: 23rd Sep, 2010
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I'm getting to the point where Pete has convinced me to buy more games than I ever want to think about.

Got this today since it was on sale - and Pete helped guide me through some of the basics. Quite enjoyed what I've played so far, haven't died yet - although that's likely from me deciding to go for easy-mode on the first time playing so I didn't have to worry about animals attacking me when learning about other bits of the game. Can definitely see myself putting a fair amount of hours into it in the future :)


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Sat Jun 25, 2016 11:06 
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The Long Dark is just over a fiver until the 4th of July. If you want to escape in your head to someplace far, far away from UK right now and live in a remote cabin checking your rabbit snares and watching the sun come up over the frozen bay, now's the time. Another new update has just been released adding skills, badges, feats and snow shelters too.





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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Sat Aug 13, 2016 11:59 
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I have survived 90 days, another ten and I get a shiny achievement, showing that I am quite the Canadian wilderness baddass.

I almost died the day before, though. I began to get itchy feet in Pleasant Valley. I was living in my farmhouse, quite comfortable but all the time aware that my tools were slowly breaking down, and without a new whetstone, would soon be quite blunt and useless. Also, the two rabbit runs within easy striking distance of the farmhouse had been effectively ethnically cleansed of rabbit my constant depredations, and so I came to the conclusion that I would have to move on.

No easy task, making your way between zones. I had to decide whether to make one trip with a dangerously heavy rucksack or several lighter runs. In the end I opted for one,, as blizzards were too much of a threat in Pleasant Valley to risk exposure for too long. I began by experimenting with how much I could carry, figuring 40kg to be the furthest I dare push it. Any heavier and I would be reduced to a weary crawl, unable to jog in emergencies. As it was I was already drastically slowe'd by the weight. It came time to make an inventory of what I would take with me. Necessities were:

Knife, axe, rifle, bow, my eight arrows, storm lantern, crowbar, five flares, three brands, rifle cleaning kit, two sewing kits.

Ten scraps of cloth and ten sticks, one log for emergency snow shelter, clothing repairs and fire.

One litre of water. Four rabbit steaks, and four eaten before departure.

Medicine supplies; antibiotics, disinfectant, bandages and such.

Waiting for the right break in the weather, I said goodbye to my cosy farmhouse and began the long walk over Heartbreak Bridge and Contemplation Bridge to the Rural Crossroads. Finding luck with the weather and a lack of wolves, I investigated two abandoned houses there, unearthing a few tins of food. I decided to sleep the night in a comfy cabin, figuring I was two tired to strike on into the unknown. Little did I know that my little stay at the deceptively cosy Rural Crossroads would bring me closer to death than I had ever known. ..

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Sat Aug 13, 2016 12:18 
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I'd made a schoolboy error. Shut indoors for the day and a night due to a blizzard, I'd munched through my supplies and decided to risk the past-date sardines. Their gift to me was a night spent clutching my stomach and groaning, quaffing antibiotics and drinking litres of water. In the morning another blizzard rolled in, and out of food and water I knew that I would havery to risk the blinding snow to check the small store down the road. I'd been holed up for too long already, and left weak from the poisoning I could not stick out a long stay without more supplies.

The store was disappointing, just two candy bars that I greedily wolfed sown and a half litre of water. I pushed my way back to the cabin, into the teeth of the wind. I still needed more water, and there was no stove inside the cabin. Setting up in the lee of the cabin, sheltered from the wind I started a fire and began to melt and boil some snow. Night had fallen, and just as I was finishing up I heard it. That low, gutteral growl and frenzied barking. I leapt to my feet and ran round the cabin to the door. The wild snarling I heard right behind me... almost on my heels... I just managed to slam the door in its face. My heart was beating wild and hard and fast. In real life, too.

In the early morning the weather cleared, and I knew then that it was time to move on, lest I die in that cabin. My burden on my back, I emerged blinking in the morning light to see the wolf eighty yards away across the road, nosing amongst the trees. I would risk it, I began to creep up the road. It sighted me and began to follow. I pulled out a flare and lit it, backing my way up the hill painfully slowly, halter now and then by a drift of snow I had to work around. The wolf followed at a respectrum distance, teeth bared, growling. The flare kept it at bay, but every time I turned to move more quickly it would suddenly pad faster, closer, before I'd whip around again with the hissing, blinding flare in hand, keeping it at bay. I was locked in a deadly game of creeping Indians, and I did not know how long until my flare would give out...

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Sun Oct 02, 2016 10:39 
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£8 at the moment.

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Tue Oct 04, 2016 4:15 
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It's really good, although I've been getting all my survival sim goodness from DayZ recently as it has an Dave and an Ian.

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Tue Oct 04, 2016 7:41 
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Paws for thought

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Lonewolves wrote:
It's really good, although I've been getting all my survival sim goodness from DayZ recently as it has an Dave and an Ian.

And no bugs.


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Tue Oct 04, 2016 10:55 
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NervousPete wrote:
I was locked in a deadly game of creeping Indians, and I did not know how long until my flare would give out...


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Wed Apr 26, 2017 9:23 
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Currently £7.49 (half price) on Steam.

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Sat Jul 29, 2017 16:20 
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Heads up guys and girls, at long, long last The Long Dark is almost here! To say I'm excited is almost an understatement, for the first time ever I've taken time off work for the launch of a game. Here's hoping I'm not setting myself up for disappointment, but all signs point to something special. The game is being released on August 1st, around 4:00 in the UK apparently. With it you get the first two episodes of 'Season One' of The Long Dark, which will run to five episodes. All these episodes, plus future sandbox updates, are included in the price. If Season One is a success, they'll tell a new story in The Long Dark world with Season Two. The first two episodes run between fifteen and twenty hours of game-play total, and since the sandbox has already given me 150 hours of fun I have to say this game is pretty damn good value, even at full price.

Recently the game was updated with 'The Faithful Cartographer'. Initially reaction was mixed as to the new UI style, but it's grown on me. There's some neat new elements and they can be seen in the video below.



Now for the meat! Hinterland Studio initially blundered two months ago with a countdown to a countdown, which is patently ridiculous, but we did get a pretty neat announcement trailer out of it with a cracking song. Here it is below...



And finally as of last night a new trailer launched for the game, featuring the voice acting, new regions and locations and the spooky aurora. I've been skipping around excitedly ever since. I love quiet, contemplative post-apocalyptic fiction and the game really seems to be tuned into that.



Finally you can read some rambling from me on post-apocalyptic fiction and possible directions the Long Dark might take. It's mostly wishful thinking on my part, but it will make a good bored-lunchtime read. You can find it on the Long Dark forum here: http://www.hinterlandforums.com/forums/ ... long-dark/

Aside from Cities: Skylines I've never been this excited for a game launch before. (Fortunately my hype for SimCity diminished appreciably the moment they told us how big the maps would actually be.) I'm not sure which of you have bought the game on my burbling recommendation, but I hope to hear of some adventures in The Long Dark if you have done. It's available on X-Box One and PS4 as well, if you don't fancy it on Steam. Be aware though that the UK PS4 release has been put back a week, owing to Sony making Hinterland resubmit it again after it unexpectedly got a PEGI 16 from the European Ratings committee.

Eeeep!

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Sat Jul 29, 2017 16:41 
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In the meantime, here's a selection of screens taken on my various chilly adventures around Great Bear Island...

Attachment:
LDPleasantValleyRoad.jpg


That Cormac McCarthy vibe...

Attachment:
LDPleasantValleyBear.jpg


"Just keep walking..."

Attachment:
LDPleasantValleyHeartbreak.jpg


Heartbreak Bridge, Pleasant Valley. One of the safer spots on Great Bear Island. Over the hill on the right, not so much.

Attachment:
LDPleasantValleyBroken.jpg


It may look beautiful, but cloudless days are the coldest. At least you can see the wolves coming. Usually.

Attachment:
LDHibernia.jpg


Hibernia Processing Facility. You have to really run a gauntlet of prowling wolves to get in, but there's great loot to be had here. Rather forbidding atmosphere though.

Attachment:
LDHibernia2.jpg


Leave not one inch unexplored...

Attachment:
LDDesolationSunrise3.jpg


Desolation Point's lighthouse is pretty cosy, but has a rather bad wolf problem on its doorstep.

Attachment:
LDDesolationSunrise2.jpg


However the views are breathtaking...!

See previous post for new trailers of which I am endearingly excited in a childlike manner.


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Sat Jul 29, 2017 19:06 
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Well up for coming back to this! Especially if it actually has a campaign now.

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Sat Jul 29, 2017 19:21 
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Ooh, PS4!


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jul 31, 2017 21:19 
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Joined: 30th Mar, 2008
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ERMAHGERD!

To further up the hype stakes, they've just released a live action trailer that, defying convention, is actually pretty damn good. In part thanks to the great talents of Christopher Plummer. Y'know, General Chang from The Sound of Music. This clocks in at just over five minutes and is worth watching on a big screen, with sweet sound.



There's also to be a proper film apparently, written by the writer/director of the game but produced by some lug from The Resident Evil movies. Excitement raised and appreciably diminished again!

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Wed Aug 02, 2017 17:26 
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Bad Girl

Joined: 20th Apr, 2008
Posts: 14353
Doesn't sound like the story is off to a good start.

Quote:
[the SP story mode] it's average at best I would say; it's buggy, quality of the cutscenes/animations varies from one to another, difficulty is crazy high (not in a good way) with too many unusually aggressive wolves...
...there isn't a proper saving system, only autosaves,


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jun 25, 2018 0:30 
SupaMod
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I lasted three days until I got food poisoning because I couldn't work out how to cook fish.

Damnit.

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jun 25, 2018 7:50 
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Grim... wrote:
I lasted three days until I got food poisoning because I couldn't work out how to cook fish.

Damnit.

No!Chef

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jun 25, 2018 8:30 
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Lonewolves wrote:
No!Chef

The Yes, Chef!s branding department will be in touch regarding substantial damages for this flagrant abuse of our trademark.


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jun 25, 2018 8:57 
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Doctor Glyndwr wrote:
Lonewolves wrote:
No!Chef

The Yes, Chef!s branding department will be in touch regarding substantial damages for this flagrant abuse of our trademark.


Please be marketing meaning of branding!

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jun 25, 2018 10:07 
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MaliA wrote:
Please be marketing meaning of branding!

You'll find out at MeatUp.


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jun 25, 2018 11:17 
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Doctor Glyndwr wrote:
MaliA wrote:
Please be marketing meaning of branding!

You'll find out at MeatUp.

I won't. :(

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jan 14, 2019 14:47 
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This article about roaming Alaska reminded me of the Long Dark.

In my more despairing moments I often entertain the idea of packing it all in and retreating to the wilds. Ignoring the irresponsibility of such a decision regarding my own family, I really don't think I'd have the patience or constitution for it.


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jan 14, 2019 14:57 
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On a similar tip, we watched "Leave No Trace" last night. A quietly heartbreaking film about a PTSD-suffering war veteran living out in the wilds with his daughter.


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Jan 14, 2019 15:41 
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Prince of Fops

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markg wrote:
On a similar tip, we watched "Leave No Trace" last night. A quietly heartbreaking film about a PTSD-suffering war veteran living out in the wilds with his daughter.


for some reason I was certain this was a documentary. And then I looked it up. Looking at stills, it has a The Last of Us vibe in its more pensive moments.

Speaking of which, anyone seen this travesty?

The Last of Us copycat.


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Feb 10, 2020 16:53 
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Heavy Metal Tough Guy

Joined: 31st Mar, 2008
Posts: 6496
I still love this game. I'm awful at it - I spend my time getting lost, falling off cliffs, being mauled by wolves and passing out from fatigue in the snow, 10 metres short of my lovely warm cabin. My character spend time tearing apart rabbit corpses with their bare hands, trudging down frozen rivers in just their socks after losing their shoes to a wolf attack and, ever so occasionally, sitting in front of a roaring fire and reading books with a full stomach.

Simple supply trips to nearby locations turn into nightmares after I lose my bearings and wander into the woods. Looting runs result in me being worse off than when i started after I have dip into my supplies just to stay alive. My cabins end up filled with sticks and half-cured rabbit gut. My record in survival mode is 14 days, but mostly I manage far less.


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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Mon Feb 10, 2020 18:17 
SupaMod
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Have you been to the warehouse during an aurora?

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 Post subject: Re: The Long Dark
PostPosted: Tue Feb 11, 2020 13:39 
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Heavy Metal Tough Guy

Joined: 31st Mar, 2008
Posts: 6496
Nope! Still so much in this game I haven't seen!


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