Don't Starve Together and its Current Direction

[TheKingDedede]

Hello. It’s been a while.

My name is TheKingDedede. I used to be much more active on the forums in the past, but have become something of a lurker over the past few years.

I’m creating this topic today because I wanted to share my opinion on the game’s direction. I will not use spoiler tags, so consider yourself warned.

Before I start, I also want to state that I am aware that every single update has been free, and before sharing my opinions, I wanted to thank the developers for that. While I will share some of my grievances with updates as of late, I am grateful for all that the developers have put into the game, despite my grievances.

Back then, the developers were focused on giving players new frontiers to explore. The Ocean was introduced and with it a new way to navigate the world. Not only that, but they were also putting in the work towards adding in new enemies and bosses, some of which were creative in what you needed to do to fight them If you had told a new player what they needed to do in order to fight the Fuelweaver and how to get to it, they’d think you were lying to them. Getting back to the Ocean, though barren at first, was given more content later down the line. New items and events were added, so on and so forth. They were great additions to the game.

Before the Ocean was added into the game, the developers announced on January 22, 2019 that the characters would start getting refreshes/reworks. Winona’s rework came out first on March 7, 2019. The last character to be reworked was Wilson and his refresh came out March 17, 2023, with the unique gimmick of being given a skill tree. It took a little over four years to rework each character and give them an accompanying animated short as well. At some point, the developers had to slow down their update cadence, which was understandable as other large scale updates were also being released during that time frame. They were starting to feel burnt out on all of the character refreshes and wanted a change of pace.

Now this is going to be an abrupt change of subject, but I want to state that I’ve always admired DST for giving players the opportunity to explore and discover new content, the same that can be said of its predecessor via its DLCs. Which is to say, I’ve always liked being able to explore the worlds to find new locales and points of interest that can be scattered around due to the game’s map generation.

Now, combat has never been the game’s strong suit, and it comes off as an intentional design choice to me. We’re using characters in a scenario where a majority of them have little to no formal combat training, and combat, at least in my opinion, was never meant to be the main way to interact with the world. This is shown in how they use spears as swords and slashing implements instead of poking their enemies with them. It feels simple and rudimentary in its design, yet conveys perfectly that the characters are out of their element in a strange setting that for the most part, wants them dead or to see them suffer for all eternity.

Which is why I then consider the shift to combat that the developers have been doing for a while to be one of the most befuddling things I’ve seen. The latest boss is an absolute monster to take down and before this there were bosses that the community commonly referred to as ‘raid bosses’. That they were such damage sponges that it would usually take a concentrated effort between players showed that they wanted to provide more multiplayer focused content. I am aware that there are videos of players showing how to defeat these alone, but I am aiming to create a conversation of what the majority of players will most likely go through when tackling the bosses, not the minority.

Tying into this is the whole skill tree system that many characters have received. They receive damage bonuses against either Lunar or Nightmare mobs based on their allegiance, with some characters having a set path and unable to choose freely, which makes sense in some instances. However, it leads to the game giving yet another focus on its simplistic combat focus, which is something that hasn’t appealed to me these past years. I understand that the skill trees also give characters more abilities to deal with certain niche situations, but the game itself seems to highlight the capstone skills that help characters deal with the new enemies. Moreover, I am under the belief that the developers are building towards their own interpretation of Terraria’s Hard Mode, where after meeting certain conditions, the world would change drastically and new mobs would spawn in to increase the game’s difficulty while also introducing new weapons, armor, bosses and changes to preexisting biomes.

However, DST lacks somewhat in the introduction to its interpretation due to its currently limited armory for tackling both factions. They’re unique for sure, but again it leads to the game’s increased focus on combat, which is again its weakest aspect. There’s an argument to be made that due to the characters and their in-game meddling that the increased focus is justified. However, the reward doesn’t feel like it matches that payout as it then just ties in to using it to engage with the same or opposite faction via combat. I’m not a fan of having to engage with Deadly Brightshades entering farms as they become nothing more than constant nuisances and a hurdle to overcome with no real payout for having dealt with them. I’m not a fan of dealing with acid rain in the caves when I know there’s no real reason for me having done so by unleashing that element in the first place. It leads to me feeling like I brought the new content upon myself for no real reason other than for bragging rights since it lacks meaningful progression. I understand that there’s more to come via the game’s story progressing, but as it stands now, I’d rather not deal with what can potentially be unleashed upon the Constant when the payout or reward just isn’t there.

To tie my ramblings up and end this wall of text, I don’t think that the game’s focus on combat has been all that satisfying to deal with. While the ability to increase the game’s challenge is certainly there, it doesn’t feel all that satisfying to engage with. I would rather not have to activate it, and I appreciate that the option to not do so is there. However, it leads to me wondering that any new content added in will only be accessible once you go past the point of no return and deal with the consequences of your actions. I can only hope that someday in the future, the reward for doing so will be there. For now, I am hoping that new content in the game introduces more ways to interact with the world outside of difficult enemies and instead turns to using new mechanics to interact with them, or using old mechanics and giving them a new spin as a sort of innovation. It almost feels like at times, I can feel the developers and their burnout, but I’m hoping I’m wrong.

As an aside, I sometimes think that the game struggles at times with its identity. Its predecessor is a roguelite where death is punishing yet preventable and could be cheated out of, so to speak. Nowadays, DST seems to nudge players in the direction of making large sprawling bases that can span across multiple biomes via the numerous skins present in the game that allow a huge amount of player freedom, customization and expression. It came at the cost of the game’s initial difficulty, where now worlds can be easily saved before getting deleted if everyone dies. For the record, I do like skins, but it’s just that nowadays, the game’s various mechanics seem and ways to prevent a world being wiped seems to be at odds with its initial presentation of being an uncompromising wilderness survival game at times.

That’s enough for me. If you actually read all of this, thank you. I do not hate the game, I just disagree somewhat with its direction at the moment.

Again, thanks to the developers for all of their hard work over the years. I can say for certain that it does not go unappreciated by its numerous fans and players. Take care.

Edited August 23, 2025 by TheKingDedede

[Mike23Ua]

There’s this old game me and a buddy used to play I can not recall the name of it but the entire concept of the game was you could live in the world, build on it like a creative mode, but you can also activate a portal & “warp” to the next zone, the new zone would be a new environment with its own atmosphere, scenery, enemy mobs, weather hazards, unique gameplay mechanics ETC.

This is Basically what Don’t Starve’s “Adventures Mode” was, you progress through worlds to attempt to reach the ending.

I realize that people are way too comfortable building Mega-Bases and living in the same boring world they’ve fully explored 50,000,000+ in game days to EVER be open to “Portals of No Return” where they abandon all progress in the Old Zone to move into the New One.

I wish I could remember the name of this game… I almost want to say it was Portal Knights, or Maybe Core Keeper? Eitherway- whatever the game was it does what DS Adventures mode Did, and what I Wish DST did as well.

If your looking for a multiplayer survival game that features more frequent Non-Boss enemy combat encounters, and randomly generated temples full of traps and loot & swinging pendulums of doom: Try The Survivalists if you haven’t yet.

[Edible Coal]

5 hours ago, TheKingDedede said:

However, DST lacks somewhat in the introduction to its interpretation due to its currently limited armory for tackling both factions. They’re unique for sure, but again it leads to the game’s increased focus on combat, which is again its weakest aspect. There’s an argument to be made that due to the characters and their in-game meddling that the increased focus is justified. However, the reward doesn’t feel like it matches that payout as it then just ties in to using it to engage with the same or opposite faction via combat. I’m not a fan of having to engage with Deadly Brightshades entering farms as they become nothing more than constant nuisances and a hurdle to overcome with no real payout for having dealt with them. I’m not a fan of dealing with acid rain in the caves when I know there’s no real reason for me having done so by unleashing that element in the first place. It leads to me feeling like I brought the new content upon myself for no real reason other than for bragging rights since it lacks meaningful progression. I understand that there’s more to come via the game’s story progressing, but as it stands now, I’d rather not deal with what can potentially be unleashed upon the Constant when the payout or reward just isn’t there.

 

for real? rift provide some best item the game has to offer !!
lunar provide infinite chest size, a super food canteen, perma freeze in all seasons. a AOE options for all characters. a hammer / pickaxe hybird, a shovel / hoe hybird

shadow is more on the combat side i must say , but it also provides

AOE brella, a actual range weapon for everyone, two super beffalo item ( revive / armor ) , a weapon / reaper for fast harvest, a funny spray that i dont really use but good for decor, a battle axe that is a upgraded batbat, and a never decay jello thing that you can keep your food forever fresh

im pretty sure these are the things that people want when they open rifts, not just because of the new mobs

 

[Swiyss]

It's kind of obvious that DST combat is bad. It's just hit and dodge with some inventory management -that once mastered will be just another muscle memory to store in your brain- and even if some could argue that reacting to certain situations and acting on it is quite hard, it's still the bare minimum for a game (hounds showed up = put on some armor). However the fact that the whole game is tied and focused on combat is really stupid. In Terraria, once the rocket boots/wings and Cthulu shield dash are acquired, they flip the game upside down. What was once just jump and run in 1/10 of the screen is now fly and dash containing the whole screen.

And for me that is the biggest reason why DST hurts to play in the long term. The combat is literally the very first thing reviewers will check in a game, and it accounts for 80% of their decision to quit the game or not. It is literally the part where the player will interact the MOST while playing, and if they wanna introduce more bosses than a souls-like would have, then please consider making the very interactions with these bosses a little more interesting would you? The fact that Terraria could revolutionize their mechanics but DST can't is one of the most upsetting things to know about.

And for all of you who will tell me that DST is not a game to have a better combat, or that the bad combat that we have right now is justified by the simplicity of the game, you're just objectively wrong. A game can have good flashy and consistent combat while ALSO being a farm-like chill experience, one thing will NOT affect the other. The simple lack of interesting weapon proficiency, identity and personality is what ruins the experience. Why does Walter has a fully upgradeable slingshot with an amazing skill tree and super niche but cool rounds, but other characters like wolfgang or wilson are just HIT HIT HIT RUN RUN RUN if ALL of us are going to have to face a boss at one point or another? I am extremely glad that Klei took a HUUUUGE amount of development time to make a shocking stun-stagger state for every single and each monster in the game, while also considering that plants would burn while affected by it, but still refuses to let us throw the freaking spear lol. And even if we got a bunch of nostalgic link to it, it is way more important to let the game experiment to be something more, than to limit itself to it's old ways (+1 for progress, -1 for conservation).

And even though the weather pain is just a throwable area-of-effect tornado and the bee mine is just a minion spawning trap, I still think that with great implementations, Klei could do something creative to those items similar to what they did with the electric state from morning star and electric damage.

If Klei could just try to give the characters a more interesting and satisfying combat for late game, alongside more challenging bosses and flashy rewards, while still maintaining optional survival perks, side-quests and objectives (like Terraria has the Anhk Banner for example) and also working towards making the journey to reach end-game a little more inviting and easier and not locking so many important objectives to certain in-game days and conditions, then I would be extremely impressed and really hopeful for an awesome future this game could offer. 

Klei, please make a combat update.

Edited August 19, 2025 by astareus

[Jakepeng99]

53 minutes ago, Edible Coal said:

for real? rift provide some best item the game has to offer !!
lunar provide infinite chest size, a super food canteen, perma freeze in all seasons. a AOE options for all characters. a hammer / pickaxe hybird, a shovel / hoe hybird

shadow is more on the combat side i must say , but it also provides

AOE brella, a actual range weapon for everyone, two super beffalo item ( revive / armor ) , a weapon / reaper for fast harvest, a funny spray that i dont really use but good for decor, a battle axe that is a upgraded batbat, and a never decay jello thing that you can keep your food forever fresh

im pretty sure these are the things that people want when they open rifts, not just because of the new mobs

 

They are strong but i have realised recently that for the gear, they dont add to the dst gear gameplay loop, i feel like they replace it and make the pre-riff gameplay super easy or sometimes remove the rewards for them.

I feel like before riff content i could play a multiplayer world for ages and progress myself alongside the base everyone progresses, i could gather or setup resources for everyone, i can visit the ruins for loot, but post riff stuff makes alot of that a waste of time. You dont need hambats or football anymore, so much gear becomes not as useful, and ect. DST lategame for me was most fun as a social game in multiplayer where everyone can progresse themselves and follow their own goals.

Most post riff stuff is not for me, i often hate joining a multiplayer world i was playing and see that riffs were up, and replace my progression with riff gear.

Its hard to explain but i wonder if anyone can symphasise with a similar feeling? I used to exclusively play longterm worlds, i just dont believe hardmode fits in dst as an RPG survival game as it pushes everyone behind. I felt like CC was the peak.

[Uedo]

6 hours ago, Mike23Ua said:

There’s this old game me and a buddy used to play I can not recall the name of it but the entire concept of the game was you could live in the world, build on it like a creative mode, but you can also activate a portal & “warp” to the next zone, the new zone would be a new environment with its own atmosphere, scenery, enemy mobs, weather hazards, unique gameplay mechanics ETC.

This is Basically what Don’t Starve’s “Adventures Mode” was, you progress through worlds to attempt to reach the ending.

I realize that people are way too comfortable building Mega-Bases and living in the same boring world they’ve fully explored 50,000,000+ in game days to EVER be open to “Portals of No Return” where they abandon all progress in the Old Zone to move into the New One.

I wish I could remember the name of this game… I almost want to say it was Portal Knights, or Maybe Core Keeper? Eitherway- whatever the game was it does what DS Adventures mode Did, and what I Wish DST did as well.

If your looking for a multiplayer survival game that features more frequent Non-Boss enemy combat encounters, and randomly generated temples full of traps and loot & swinging pendulums of doom: Try The Survivalists if you haven’t yet.

You're thinking of portal knights I think. 

None of what you said is true though - Adventure mode was maps with specific tilesets and event triggers. Thats it, also if you failed you were returned back to the main map so I really don't know what you're talking about in relation to DST.

'comfortable building Mega-Bases' - You mean defeating all of the content and survival elements a regular player experiences plus doing it multiple times to get resources to waste on aesthetics? Yeah Mike, that seems so comfortable - How's it going beating FW? Obviously you have a harder time due to us mega-basers having it so easy.

 '50,000,000+ in game days' - Worlds will corrupt before then. Plus if we had 'portals of no return', we would use them until they didn't provide anything we need anymore and then what? Go to the 1000th version of a world with nothing new in it? 

I just don't understand, how do you believe the things you do? You're wrong about so much, so confidently, when you get curious do you not seek out the answer? Or do you just guess and assert that your guesses are true?

A tip for life Mike, just because you think you're able to sound convincing doesn't mean you are - Just because you're guessing at things you don't understand, doesn't mean other people can't see that either.

Just say you don't know sometimes mate?

[Ridley]

I remember the days when Klei was afraid everyone would say DST is too much like DS. Now they get complaints the games are too different. 

[Mike23Ua]

4 hours ago, Uedo said:

You're thinking of portal knights I think. 

None of what you said is true though - Adventure mode was maps with specific tilesets and event triggers. Thats it, also if you failed you were returned back to the main map so I really don't know what you're talking about in relation to DST.

'comfortable building Mega-Bases' - You mean defeating all of the content and survival elements a regular player experiences plus doing it multiple times to get resources to waste on aesthetics? Yeah Mike, that seems so comfortable - How's it going beating FW? Obviously you have a harder time due to us mega-basers having it so easy.

 '50,000,000+ in game days' - Worlds will corrupt before then. Plus if we had 'portals of no return', we would use them until they didn't provide anything we need anymore and then what? Go to the 1000th version of a world with nothing new in it? 

I just don't understand, how do you believe the things you do? You're wrong about so much, so confidently, when you get curious do you not seek out the answer? Or do you just guess and assert that your guesses are true?

A tip for life Mike, just because you think you're able to sound convincing doesn't mean you are - Just because you're guessing at things you don't understand, doesn't mean other people can't see that either.

Just say you don't know sometimes mate?

I’ll answer this by asking you series of questions: What do you expect from the actual true “final” ending to DST?

Do you expect to Go on an DS Solo Adventures Mode like Journey through several different randomly generated sets of “Worlds” to eventually do all tasks & beat the game to watch the end credits roll?

And what happens after that?? Do you start over from the beginning again (perhaps like you did in solo DS where if you managed to beat the game as Wendy she gets trapped on the nightmare throne becoming unplayable while your forced to play as Maxwell until you reach the end again as him and trade places with her?)

OR do you think the true final ending will just be yet another pointlessly meaningless boss that gives you pretty base decorations the games credits May roll but it’ll throw you back into your megabase sandbox to keep playing After you’ve reached the true final ending?

Perhaps maybe Klei will just someday out of the blue decide to drop support for the game like a TV pilot that’s seasons ended abruptly In a disappointing, unfinished and unsatisfying way?

These are my points.. answer these questions, and you’ll know why I think the way that I think.

Edited August 19, 2025 by Mike23Ua

[Well-met]

I don't know where this idea of combat being bad in dont starve comes from

for me its literally the most exciting and fun part of the game and I would have quit ages ago without it and if I had to guess im probably not the only one

[Maxil20]

51 minutes ago, Well-met said:

I don't know where this idea of combat being bad in dont starve comes from

Blame This
 

51 minutes ago, Well-met said:

for me its literally the most exciting and fun part of the game and I would have quit ages ago without it and if I had to guess im probably not the only one

I myself agree with this notion of combat being relatively noteworthy to my interest back then (at least before I really got into comical megabasing). DS/T combat is inherently quite simple, but because of it's simplicity opens up a lot of unique ways to try to either maximize the amount of hits you get between attacks or encourage the use of unique strafing methods to get more hits in. It's pretty good at rewarding aggressive players that know what they are doing while allowing less skilled players to get by without feeling like it's impossible to perform combat.

It's been this way since vanilla and the ruins to me. I know a lot of people back then used to use rock lobsters to clear the ruins. It did work, but that is both very time consuming and also leaves you highly vulnerable during the nightmare phase. Comparatively, learning how to fight/kite in the ruins gives you significantly more leeway in terms of clearing them out and can be more time efficient if you know what you're doing. It's pretty much been carried since.

Recent updates have been pretty good at adding bosses that require unique kiting patterns that break from the standard most people are used to, as well. Nightmare werepig is a particular fan favorite, and the mutant bearger/deerclops are also very nice candidates. I myself really like the mutant bearger because it directly punishes the usual pattern of "move in the opposite direction the boss is attacking in" and rewards sidestepping the swipe just enough to land a few extra hits. It feels really nice to pull off!

 

13 hours ago, TheKingDedede said:

However, DST lacks somewhat in the introduction to its interpretation due to its currently limited armory for tackling both factions. They’re unique for sure, but again it leads to the game’s increased focus on combat, which is again its weakest aspect. There’s an argument to be made that due to the characters and their in-game meddling that the increased focus is justified. However, the reward doesn’t feel like it matches that payout as it then just ties in to using it to engage with the same or opposite faction via combat. I’m not a fan of having to engage with Deadly Brightshades entering farms as they become nothing more than constant nuisances and a hurdle to overcome with no real payout for having dealt with them. I’m not a fan of dealing with acid rain in the caves when I know there’s no real reason for me having done so by unleashing that element in the first place. It leads to me feeling like I brought the new content upon myself for no real reason other than for bragging rights since it lacks meaningful progression. I understand that there’s more to come via the game’s story progressing, but as it stands now, I’d rather not deal with what can potentially be unleashed upon the Constant when the payout or reward just isn’t there.

As another person has mentioned, a lot of the post rift gear is a lot of QoL content, ranging from nice boons to have (the smasher being perfect for the ruins, for instance), or actual gamechanging playstyle shifts (like the polar bearger bin). I couldn't imagine not playing without things like the icker preserves or the elasticspaced chests in an endgame world at this point, let alone with things like the post rift items.

I do admittedly understand enjoying moreso exploration based incentives than combat based ones. It's why I am impressed they haven't done more things like moon quay/waterlogged, where they add a biome with its own unique hazards/benefits. Those seem to be relatively popular updates with the community, and I wouldn't mind the next arc shifting it's focus from endgame content to new mini biomes like those (especially since they do seem to benefit all playstyles as well!)

Also hey there, I think I remember seeing you quite a bit back when I lurked here and there myself. Happy you are alright!

Edited August 19, 2025 by Maxil20
Reasonstuffs

[Uedo]

1 hour ago, Mike23Ua said:

I’ll answer this by asking you series of questions: What do you expect from the actual true “final” ending to DST?

Do you expect to Go on an DS Solo Adventures Mode like Journey through several different randomly generated sets of “Worlds” to eventually do all tasks & beat the game to watch the end credits roll?

And what happens after that?? Do you start over from the beginning again (perhaps like you did in solo DS where if you managed to beat the game as Wendy she gets trapped on the nightmare throne becoming unplayable while your forced to play as Maxwell until you reach the end again as him and trade places with her?)

OR do you think the true final ending will just be yet another pointlessly meaningless boss that gives you pretty base decorations the games credits May roll but it’ll throw you back into your megabase sandbox to keep playing After you’ve reached the true final ending?

Perhaps maybe Klei will just someday out of the blue decide to drop support for the game like a TV pilot that’s seasons ended abruptly In a disappointing, unfinished and unsatisfying way?

These are my points.. answer these questions, and you’ll know why I think the way that I think.

No, Mike. This isn't jeopardy - I'm not entertaining you if you're going to answer my questions with more questions, unrelated at that. 
I didn't reference anything other than what YOU think. Not other games, not sharknado, not TMNT. You.

Edit: Turns out I want to answer your questions actually: 
1. Do you expect to Go on an DS Solo Adventures Mode like Journey through several different randomly generated sets of “Worlds” to eventually do all tasks & beat the game to watch the end credits roll? (No.)

2.And what happens after that?? Do you start over from the beginning again (perhaps like you did in solo DS where if you managed to beat the game as Wendy she gets trapped on the nightmare throne becoming unplayable while your forced to play as Maxwell until you reach the end again as him and trade places with her?) (Probably not, no. Things end. I'd do something else.)

3.OR do you think the true final ending will just be yet another pointlessly meaningless boss that gives you pretty base decorations the games credits May roll but it’ll throw you back into your megabase sandbox to keep playing After you’ve reached the true final ending? (Yes, obviously it will and that's what should happen - I want it to be of a good standard, but yes, that's exactly what I expect to happen, do you want me to just not be able to play my world again?)

4.Perhaps maybe Klei will just someday out of the blue decide to drop support for the game like a TV pilot that’s seasons ended abruptly In a disappointing, unfinished and unsatisfying way? (They've commented on this multiple times, you don't have to make things up - you could do what I suggested and actually look for an answer)

Conclusion:
I feel I know why you think the way you do, but it's not overly important/polite/pertinent for me to bring up, not something i'm qualified to discuss either. 
I just feel that the best approach is to be honest with you, but you seem to prefer to stick to your own conclusions and seek no outside information - that's on you, but you'll have better outcomes in life you accept there are far more things you don't know than things you do know. Again, when people don't know things, if they want to know, it's best they educate themselves - not just make it up and guess.

Your post did not help me know why you think the way you do, you just told me things you wanted to say - It didn't really tell me anything other than the specific content you referenced.

I do love you though Mike, you just do my head-in some times haha

Edited August 19, 2025 by Uedo

[Hungry French]

5 hours ago, Ridley said:

Я помню те времена, когда Клей боялся, что все скажут, что DST слишком похожа на DS. Теперь они получают жалобы на то, что игры слишком разные.

Because DS has long been forgotten and abandoned. So they complain.

1 hour ago, Well-met said:

Я не знаю, откуда взялась идея о том, что сражения в Don’t Starve — это плохо

Для меня это, пожалуй, самая захватывающая и весёлая часть игры. Без неё я бы уже давно бросил. И, думаю, я не единственный, кто так считает

DST  battles lack cool music and cool battle design. 
Sometimes you just stand there for seconds and hit your enemies... When fighting mobs is more interesting than fighting bosses, it's not cool.

Edited August 19, 2025 by Hungry French

[Cruvimaster]

A significant increase in player numbers was noticeable at the exact moment Klei released the Return of Them expansion (2019), and a new leap with the current From Beyond expansion (2023), which ends this September. I see many questions about Klei's creative decisions, but I wonder what would happen to the game if critics were in charge of the company's management. Of course, developers can make mistakes, but the balance seems very positive. And what might be considered a mistake for a longtime DS player (a game that died long ago) could be considered a success for a new player base. And finally, I know players who love DST and don't even want to have contact with DS.

[lowercase skye]

More than anything I find myself consistently fascinated by the "good old days" cutoff having increased to now include the early Return of Them updates, too. If this post was made a couple years ago it would be bemoaning how bad the ocean updates are and how it's nothing like the good old days of A New Reign, and a few years before that it'd be bemoaning how bad A New Reign is and how it's nothing like the good old days of Reign of Giants. I don't really have much to say on the actual topic or if this time the game truly has gone down the wrong direction this time, but it is really interesting to observe the way that this shifts by a few years each time a new content arc is coming to its conclusion.

[Uedo]

28 minutes ago, Cruvimaster said:

 but I wonder what would happen to the game if critics were in charge of the company's management. 

I don't know - What would plumbers do if they had to wire a cities electric grid?

A game critic, which nobody has claimed to be, may not be good at leading a game publishing company, no. Not all skills are transferable :s

[Evelo]

I've always thought Don't Starve combat was bad. But that wasn't the focus on the game. Besides my best friend, it is good to see I am not the only one who thinks this. 

[Sephirona]

I don't mean to diminish OP's concerns, they are very valid and I can definitely see how people who came to DST from DS have different expectations and desires for the game. Maybe it's because I never played the original Don't Starve, but from the perspective of someone whose first game in the series was DST I'm really enjoying it. Other than the updates that randomly introduce non-toggleable hazards to my structures it's a very charming game. Perhaps it's because I don't have a frame of reference to compare to, but DST as it is right now is a lot of fun to play with friends and family. I read a few links others posted about the devs acknowledging that DST purposefully provides a different kind of experience than DS, and I think it makes sense - most dangers can be pretty easily handled when cooperating with multiple players and different characters even if the learning curve at the beginning can be steep. DS is cool from what I've seen but it's also not the type of game I'd play myself, so I do think DST ultimately attracts a slightly different demographic that DS may not have originally. I actually played for the first time in 2016 but didn't really get hooked until after the Return of Them update.

I'm also a huge fan of Terraria and I do agree Terraria gives the player a lot more control over their battlefield using a larger variety of weapons in the endgame. It seems like DST is adding this variety not so much through weapons, but through character skill trees whose full power is not unlocked until hardmode. I know not everyone likes the skill trees, but the last time I played DST only Wilson had his, and now that I've returned it's been a lot of fun seeing how different characters have different ways to handle combat. I'm by no means a combat veteran (as a Wurt main who relied on merms to do my dirty work in the past so I could focus on building lol), but I've also tried the new Willow, Wigfrid and Wortox in battle against several types of enemies and bosses and thought it was a blast having these different ways to handle encounters when previously all I could do was smack the enemy repeatedly using a melee weapon or pop them with some gunpowder. Wortox encouraging teleports with his special affinity interaction with the Shadow Reaper is super fun in particular. People who aren't as confident with their reflexes also have more ranged options now without needing to farm blowdarts, and different types of AoE from the skill trees. I guess from my perspective combat has gotten a lot more varied. That's not to say everything is perfect, but if many think that combat is not strong in DST, is the solution to just not add any more, or to keep working on it? I'd like more things to explore too so I'm not averse to additions to other aspects of the gameplay apart from combat, but it seems like they do want to improve it from what it was. That said, if the feeling is that they have focused a lot of attention on combat lately and should return after focusing on some other gameplay people want first I get that. Some new biomes on new islands (since I know some people didn't like losing Pearl's island as a base) would be sweet.

 

 

[Hungry French]

13 hours ago, lowercase skye said:

Больше всего меня поражает то, что граница «старых добрых времён» расширилась и теперь включает в себя ранние обновления Return of Them. Если бы этот пост был написан пару лет назад, в нём говорилось бы о том, как плохи обновления для океана и как они не идут ни в какое сравнение со старыми добрыми временами A New Reign, а за несколько лет до этого в нём говорилось бы о том, как плоха A New Reign и как она не идёт ни в какое сравнение со старыми добрыми временами Reign of Giants. На самом деле мне нечего сказать по поводу актуальной темы или о том, действительно ли в этот раз игра пошла не в том направлении, но очень интересно наблюдать, как ситуация меняется на несколько лет каждый раз, когда завершается новая сюжетная линия.

And even earlier, we can mention that RoG does not go in comparison with the good old days of DS Vanilla. 

11 hours ago, Sephirona said:

Я не хочу преуменьшать опасения OP, они вполне обоснованны, и я прекрасно понимаю, что у людей, которые пришли в DST из DS, другие ожидания и желания от игры. Может быть, это потому, что я никогда не играл в оригинальную Don't Starve, но с точки зрения человека, чьей первой игрой в серии была DST, она мне очень нравится. Если не считать обновлений, которые случайным образом добавляют в мои постройки опасности, которые нельзя отключить, это очень увлекательная игра. Возможно, это потому, что мне не с чем сравнивать, но в DST, какой она сейчас является, очень весело играть с друзьями и семьёй. Я прочитал несколько ссылок, которые опубликовали другие пользователи, и узнал, что разработчики признают, что DST намеренно предлагает другой опыт, нежели DS, и я думаю, что в этом есть смысл: с большинством опасностей можно легко справиться, если действовать сообща с другими игроками и разными персонажами, даже если кривая обучения в начале может быть крутой. DS — крутая игра, судя по тому, что я видел, но это не тот тип игр, в которые я бы играл сам, поэтому я думаю, что DST в конечном счёте привлекает немного другую аудиторию, которой изначально не было в DS. На самом деле я впервые сыграл в неё в 2016 году, но по-настоящему увлёкся только после обновления Return of Them.

Я тоже большой поклонник Terraria, и я согласен с тем, что в Terraria игрок получает гораздо больше контроля над полем боя благодаря большему разнообразию оружия в конце игры. Похоже, что DST добавляет это разнообразие не столько за счёт оружия, сколько за счёт деревьев навыков персонажей, вся мощь которых раскрывается только в сложном режиме. Я знаю, что не всем нравятся деревья навыков, но в последний раз, когда я играл в DST, только у Уилсона было такое дерево, и теперь, когда я вернулся к игре, мне очень нравится наблюдать за тем, как разные персонажи по-разному ведут себя в бою. Я ни в коем случае не ветеран боевых действий (я играл за Вурфа и в прошлом полагался на мермов, которые делали за меня грязную работу, чтобы я мог сосредоточиться на строительстве, лол), но я также опробовал новых Уиллоу, Вигфрида и Вортокса в бою против нескольких типов врагов и боссов, и мне показалось, что это было круто — иметь разные способы справляться с противниками, когда раньше я мог только бить врага оружием ближнего боя или стрелять в него порохом. Особенно забавно, когда Вортокс поощряет телепорты своим особым взаимодействием с Теневым Жнецом. У тех, кто не так уверен в своих рефлексах, теперь больше возможностей для дальнего боя без необходимости фармить дротики, а также различные типы АоЕ из дерева навыков. Думаю, с моей точки зрения, бои стали намного разнообразнее. Это не значит, что всё идеально, но если многие считают, что бои в DST недостаточно хороши, то что лучше: просто ничего не добавлять или продолжать работать над этим? Мне бы тоже хотелось исследовать больше локаций, поэтому я не против дополнений к другим аспектам игрового процесса, помимо боя, но, похоже, они действительно хотят улучшить то, что у них есть. Тем не менее, если у них сложилось впечатление, что в последнее время они уделяли много внимания боям и должны вернуться к другим аспектам игрового процесса, которые нужны людям, я их понимаю. Было бы здорово добавить несколько новых биомов на новых островах (я знаю, что некоторым не понравилось, что остров Перл перестал быть базой).

 

 

The skill tree system is an interesting thing, but it's bad because skills persist even when creating another world... In addition, Klei made the skills unlock even faster... Both shadow and moon skills are also unlocked simultaneously on all characters...
If there were no skills at the start and they would all be given after 200+ days in the world, then it would be many times better and there would be much less clutter towards this mechanic.
Although the second problem is that skill trees usually don't combine at all with items and their loot that already exist.

I would understand if this subject was studied later and would just be a more convenient version of an already existing subject...

 

 

Worthox... Why can he jump all over the map without punishment, spending a few souls, when Wilson needs to create a special building and staff and spend 3 purple gems at a time and sanity  ...
And Wortox does not combine with this item in any way.

If only he could use this object without spending money. For example, craft special soul-filled gems that are not wasted, including a staff, and he would not lose his mind. This would already be an interesting interaction for teleportation...
who even came up with the idea that spending 2 souls should transfer Wortox to the entire map... This is the price of at least 20 souls...

 

[Bumber64]

19 hours ago, Well-met said:

I don't know where this idea of combat being bad in dont starve comes from

for me its literally the most exciting and fun part of the game and I would have quit ages ago without it and if I had to guess im probably not the only one

I can't speak for anyone but myself, but I think it's because pressing "F" causes you to automatically walk towards your target* and take a swing. And then you'll swing again, automatically. It's bad enough that "hold F to win" is a meme here. (*Closest valid target. Not necessarily the one you wanted, unless you're using the mouse to attack?)

Pretty much any other game separates attack from movement. Zelda, Minecraft, Terraria, Monster Hunter, Dark Souls, any first person shooter, etc., too many to begin to list. You position yourself, then you act. You can begin to swing your sword with nobody in range. If they enter that range later, it will connect, and you'll have extra time to move away. You do not automatically waltz into their attack range and then begin to start your swing. It's extremely awkward and limiting for any use of reflexes.

The only thing I can compare DS combat to is World of Warcraft. You get into range and your character begins auto-attacking your selected target. You are not really meant to dodge in that game. All dodging is done by walking out of attack range. (More of a boss thing for WoW. Walking away from a normal mob means you're trying to flee combat, as they'll keep landing hits on you.) Celestial Scion damaging floor? Seems familiar.

WoW manages to remain engaging by giving each class a set of abilities, where you can fill multiple hotbars with abilities to help in various situations, usually using your common "mana"-type meter. DS, on the other hand, is primarily resource driven. You will prepare your abilities in advance by gathering certain items first. You'll probably fumble with a spell wheel (if your character even gets one). Most of your fight will actually just involve walking up to the boss, hitting it, then walking away again. Maybe a minion's also hitting the boss for you. (Just like WoW's hunter or warlock.) WoW's combat mechanics are shared with many other MMOs, which DS clearly isn't.

So, given that it's a survival game, and most characters aren't using flashy abilities 24/7, it really ought to have had a better combat system than auto-attack. (Yes, you can anim-cancel to act like you're engaging more. That's janky and not the average player experience.) Even just a dodge button would've been an improvement. Wigfrid and Wortox get something akin to this, but since other characters don't, all enemies must have slow attack speeds that allow a standard character to land at least one attack and then walk out of range (without speed boosts). You will make a decision of how many hits you feel confident delivering before that, or determine if a boss is going to attempt a special attack, assuming you don't just face-tank instead. (You aren't given a cooldown on healing, so it's an obvious option given you're already gathering items.)

There is some variety in combat when a boss fight benefits from using a certain item. However, that isn't any significant portion of the game, since you have to go out of your way to gather those specific items, likely engaging in mundane combat. It's incredibly basic, like you're playing Super Mario Bros, but you aren't doing any actual platforming. Just time your stomp. If you brought a fire flower with you, it'll be significantly easier.

Edited August 20, 2025 by Bumber64

[DVGMedia]

Well f and control f are different. 

Control f often will change targets better than the standard attack  

Most of this is why I still cover just standard stuff in the game Instead of anything new. 

I personally think that everything comvat wise should have been added first then had the skill trees added. So that way could use the items in the game instead of just relying on character buffs

[Mike23Ua]

Just want to add that a lot of games (mostly ones on Consoles or Mobile) use a “Hold Down this Button to Attack” type of combat scheme.

Three such games are: DS/DST, Dungeons&Gravestone/BQM, And Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate.

I don’t feel like DST’s Combat needs this massive Overhaul, and Character Specific Skill Trees (Willows Fire Spells) sometimes help to mix things up.

I have a Million Ideas what DST should strive to be: But no one’s going to actually listen to those ideas so why bother wasting my time typing it all out..?

[Edible Coal]

14 hours ago, Mike23Ua said:

Just want to add that a lot of games (mostly ones on Consoles or Mobile) use a “Hold Down this Button to Attack” type of combat scheme.

Three such games are: DS/DST, Dungeons&Gravestone/BQM, And Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles: Splintered Fate.

I don’t feel like DST’s Combat needs this massive Overhaul, and Character Specific Skill Trees (Willows Fire Spells) sometimes help to mix things up.

I have a Million Ideas what DST should strive to be: But no one’s going to actually listen to those ideas so why bother wasting my time typing it all out..?

how dare you dont mention issac

[Hungry French]

5 hours ago, Edible Coal said:

how dare you dont mention issac

Isaac has a great action movie. It's literally bullet hell. They're always funny. And unlike DST, the final battle is not limited to a 1-minute soundtrack and a set of 3 attacks...

[Hungry French]

Klei before injury 2019 : Peak for DS and DST. 
Klei after injury 2019 : Now DS has forgotten, and DST has become the main game, which will be stuffed with updates that do not correspond to the previous appearance of Klei.