Making this game even more fantastic!

[algerous]

I think we should all have a talk about ways in which we can improve this wonderful game. I'd like to start by saying this really is a breath of fresh air. I mean, even in terms of these building/surviving/crafting games! This genre has been kind of stale with so many imitators etc but this is something special.

The biggest factor of this game not being straight up the best thing ever are some mechanics holding it all back, such as things that prevent it from being infinitely replay-able. Games that fall into a similar category as this (Minecraft for its resource management and crafting and The Binding Of Isaac for its Rogue-like elements) are only as successful as they are because of how replay-able and addictive they are. Currently this game is very addictive but that addiction completely halts at a certain point, and all motivation to continue playing leaves once you feel like you've done and seen everything the game has to offer!

One of the more glaringly obvious culprits of this is the research point mechanic. It is currently far too easy to get research points! I love the idea behind it, and the longevity it adds to the game, but once you realise that digging out grass and bushes gives you twenty, yes TWENTY (5 more points than GOLD!) research points completely breaks the game. Need 500 research points for something? Literally 3 mins of my time just digging up soil and BAM, 500 points.

The quickest method of solving this I think is making things worth less research points. I also think research should be completely reset once you make a new world. This seems like a good trade off for new environments, and helps it fit in line with being more of an "unflinching survival game" that its touted as.

I personally have hardly progressed in the game (havent even properly left the first area!) and am holding myself back on purpose because I want to wait for new updates etc so I dont burn myself out.

I had a browse through the suggestions forum and found a thread from a guy named NomadCF, (inb4 two accounts) and think he bought up some good points on problems with and ways to increase game length and replay-ability.

At the end of the day this game is (even without taking in future updates) one of the most fun games I've ever played, and cant wait to see the other monsters and areas, but it really can be a breakout success if it weren't for its perceived longevity.

Thanks for the game and stay classy, Klei.

[algerous]

Just wanna add I wanna throw more money at you guys so find a way to do it and I will. Not saying charge for updates, but maybe massive quarterly expansions, kind of like the Binding of Isaac update called Wrath of the Lamb.

[501105]

I completely agree with your post. I have played dozens upon dozens of games in the past year and honestly only a few games have really grabbed me from all of those. The game that has managed to do so most is of course dont starve and that is because it combines two games I love, The Binding of Isaac and Terraria. It gives you a world to explore with lots of resources and things to explore and build like Terraria and the harsh reality and addictiveness of The Binding of Isaac.

Now onto the issue of longevity, I think that the research mechanic is indeed far from perfect, and Kevin (if memory serves me correctly), one of the devs has said that he is not happy with it either. Now making everything worth less points could be a solution, but that could also turn it into a very large grind in order to get enough points to research something.

Now on to the other part of longevity and that is the fact that it is still a beta. Terraria grew a lot thanks to its updates and has become a rather large game. Dont Starve has grown a lot and grows a lot with each update, but it takes time to reach a certain point.

However from what has been posted on the forum, I dont doubt that the game will look very different and contain much more content in 3 months or so.

Now your second post is about post release content. I too hope that they will continue updating the game after it has reached the ready for retail point. If that would mean an extra payment in the form of an add-on or so, then that would be fine by me, but not much has been said about it yet (which makes sense, it is still a beta after all).

[deskp]

If the make the normal game harder I would want a "compromise" mode, where it's not as hard to research stuff.

[algerous]

Thanks for your thoughts, glad to hear there'll be more thought put into the research mechanic. I think Terraria is a great example of how the updates have shaped the final product and you're right about it being very different by the end.

And again, I agree with your point about it being too early to talk about add-ons, I guess I really just want to give more money to the devs. Feel bad about how many hours I'm sinking into this game for the entry price!

I had a read of the Penny Arcade article on this game, needless to say it was very insightful and kind of re-assured me in the sense that these guys know exactly what they're doing.

If the make the normal game harder I would want a "compromise" mode, where it's not as hard to research stuff.

I dunno, 20 research points for each bush is kinda broken right now, so even if they make it harder it wouldn't warrant a separate game mode.