What’s the right way of playing legit?

[Lem3n]

You could say this is a debate. I keep thinking of this thing over and over. What’s consider playing legit? 

Yes this is a fairly simple question but he more I think of it. The harder it’s for me to answer it myself. My friends like to change the setting as for example:more grass & ect. Also mods. Is all of those consider cheating? I’m a person who like the expierence the game raw untouch thus to improve my own skills at the game. I dislike when people miss witht he setting or have mods. I do admit I use some mods that help player like geoplacment , player stats, and ect. I guess that’s one of the confusion I have within myself. Rather if those are consider cheating or not? Also Dosent killing the ancient guardian by making it stuck consider cheating? I feel werid out. I think it’s fine because the ancient guardian is annoying to deal with. Just want to hear your opinions on this matter.

NOTE: this is a easy question for some, it may be hard for other like myself to answer

[MondayNight]

This "problem" has been discussed in past without a definitive answer... or even a general consensus.

"Your world, your rules" kinda underlines what Klei is thinking in regard to vanilla world settings. Also Klei encourages mods and modders, and judging by the plethora of modded servers out there in your server list I think a lot of players fancy them mods as well. What you impose on yourself is your doing, and if happy with it no need to give an ear or otherwise to anything else - at least is what I for one think.

And then there are the pretty obvious glitches like the one with Ancient Guardian or possibility to get out of map without actually dying (as you apparently walk on the Sea or Abyss - although, as some suggested, all world can be just a stage). Or Ancient Fuelweaver being stopped dead in its track by a mere meat bulb. They are exploits of certain poorly implemented mechanics (or even intentional ones?! - who knows if Klei wasn't intending to give a *wink* to dedicated and clever solo experimentalists) but then again, if you like "cheese" (and I certainly do, YUM!) in your solo worlds or with 1-2 friends, go for it. Yet if you have groups of people going at a boss, is way more fun and engaging to do it "legit" for nice memories, or at least is what I believe.

 

PS: not using console commands is fairly obvious cheating, need it even be mentioned?!

[WilsonGuy_]

Don't use console, bugs or exploits and try to use default world settings (I usually change caves to rain less and surface for more spiky bushes).

[Altari]

There is no answer

 

 

[Lumina]

2 hours ago, SavageLemon said:

 

Yes this is a fairly simple question but he more I think of it. The harder it’s for me to answer it myself. My friends like to change the setting as for example:more grass & ect. Also mods. Is all of those consider cheating?

No, they aren't cheating, they are options the game is providing so you can adapt and play the way that is better for you, or funnier or whatever are your criteria. These options are needed for some players to enjoy the game, for various reasons, so they are important and not cheating. Especially since the game can't adapt to everyone and we all got different skills and things we like, dislike, or aren't able to do.

 

They could make the game easier, and you could be against a decrease of difficulty for personal taste and reasons, but this isn't cheating, just something not fitting your taste. You can prefer the "original" experience, even if i would say that the "original" experience isn't better just because of itself. It's important to know why you like or dislike something, or even allowing yourself to change things so you can enjoy the game more, avoiding a part you find too tedious or stuff like this. You can even prefer one setting when playing alone and another when playing with friends, or adapt the difficulty to the different players being here.

[CaptainChaotica]

To me, the most REALLY plain vanilla experience is:  No mods at all and leave all the world settings alone.  Done.

...but that's not the only way of playing "legit".  The game has different settings you can modify without the use of any outside-party code for a reason, after all.  And I consider any method of playing that doesn't actually use the console to be not-cheating.  Some are harder than others, sure, some are more METAL, more badass, but...spawning the Deerclops out in the middle of nowhere and then just ditching him in the wilderness until spring is just as not-actually-using-cheats as fighting him one on one.  (shrug)

The player's own circumstances should be considered as well...in addition to the fact that sometimes people do play Don't Starve Together alone, and single players have different dynamics than player groups (try fighting a Ewecus without somebody else there to distract it while you're glued down...), there's also skill levels and just play styles.  Some players COULD fight bosses singlehandedly...but don't enjoy that part of the game as much as others.  Some do, and prioritize trophy-hunting over farming.  Both are completely legit.

As for mods...what about the ones that make things MORE difficult?  What if you want to make yourself have less max HP, worry about food allergies, or subject yourself to possibly dying of thirst?  Is that MORE "legit"?  Or just extra credit? (Mods that are completely neutral in terms of game difficulty, such as purely cosmetic ones, don't count for this at all.  Pretty up your game or not, whatevs.)

And then there's cranking _up_ the more dangerous aspects of the game on purpose, or making certain things just plain unpredictable (coughmeandmyseasonrandomisingcough).  More hounds, more lightning, more tallbirds, more killer bees...

It's a sandbox game; at the end of the day I feel anything that doesn't magically give you extra sand for free (beyond what the game's own settings could already do!) is "legit" playing.  : P 

...Notorious

[Starlogy]

everyone and their grandmothers will tell you that "legit" is as simple as not touching the world settings, and no mods. exploits i consider okay, as it's using the game's mechanics to your advantage.

personally, i like playing legit, but there are also times when mods make the game better as well. geometric placement is honestly less of a mod and more of a requirement for me, and being able to see my exact stats without scrolling my mouse over them is really nice too (but i disable the season wheel and temperature since those arent inherently obvious to anyone).

[Catteflyterpill]

Playing legit simply is not messing with any settings or mods or exploits or console commands. But in reality some mods don't actually change that much game play, but offer simple conveniences like geometric placement or stat display, and I think the purpose of DST is to play how you want to challenge yourself and enjoy the game. I usually just play with Mob Health, but otherwise leave everything as is. sweats nervously, trying to cover up that i spawn in the life giving amulet whenever i die

[Lem3n]

Thanks all for answering my questions. I feel better now as I won’t feel as quity for some of my changes of the game or cheats. I think I’m prefer mods to being okay as long as it dosent effect the gameplay much and changing the game setting a no no. NOTE: just my preference 

12 hours ago, Altari said:

There is no answer

 

 

Yeah I can understand why there’s no answer. I just want to get the moral of what’s wrong and good. Hear opinions of others. That’s why I said it’s a debate. ( <= semi)

[CaptainChaotica]

I will say, I do think everybody should at least TRY playing on vanilla settings for a bit _before_ they start messing with anything--be it in-game world settings or mods. I think it helps to get a handle on things (and prove to yourself, even if nobody else, that you CAN play the game at its factory settings), get comfortable with the basics, before you start messing with stuff. 

I started on vanilla DS and played it standard-settings and mod-free until I got my first game where I made it past Day 100, then switched up to Reign of Giants, which despite everybody complaining about how much it ratcheted the difficulty up--and it DID--eventually got to like it better than vanilla.  There's a lot of cool stuff in RoG that I wouldn't give up even when it's being a pain in the butt.  And I eventually got to where I didn't starve even on a spring start as Wigfrid (NO RABBITS? AAAAA!), figuring out the recipes for froggle bunwiches and fishsticks on my own along the way, and could make it a whole year. 

Didn't use any mods until I hit DST and found out what they'd done to poor Willow, and while I don't think it's inherently bad to use mods now (looks at mod list nervously a he he), I do think it helps kind of...ground you, as a player, to start off with everything plain and see how you like that first BEFORE you mess with things, add in extra, trim off bits you don't like...

As for easying up the world settings--that does make it easier, but I still wouldn't say it's actually cheating.  I do get disappointed when I'm watching a Let's Play of total newbies playing DST and they've OBVIOUSLY upped the amount of rocks and berry bushes ahead of time but _don't admit it_*, and it's their very first time so now you won't get to see them have the REAL first-time experience..but it's up to them.  To me only using obviously OP mods or the console (except for totally cosmetic things) is actually cheating...but if you CAN play the "real" way and just felt like messing around to try these mods out for a bit...  (shrug)

The game is tweakable in so many ways, and mods can both add and take away difficulty at the same time, and...basically just try vanilla standard-world first, before you mess with things.  THEN go nuts if you want. 

...Notorious

*I'm like, "GOLD ROCKS _NEVER_ SPAWN ON GREEN MEADOWS ON THEIR OWN.  YOU'RE NOT FOOLING ANYONE!"  at the screen : P  Just own it.  We'll respect you more rather than less that way.

[. . .]

Games are meant for having fun...so playing in the way that makes the game more fun for you is the legit way of playing it.

[DarXide]

The only right way of playing legit

is to not play at all.

[seffard]

22 hours ago, SuperDavid said:

Games are meant for having fun...so playing in the way that makes the game more fun for you is the legit way of playing it.

That's bs. Fun doesnt mean legit. That's exactly what a cheater in a multiplayer game, who has a selfish fun at the expense of the others, would say.

Cheats and exploits are essentially the same by breaking the game. They are not supposed to be there in the first place if you have the common and moral sense(or do your best) to perceive what's wrong, which a lot of people don't. A game is not a game without a challenge, it looses the purpose of balancing and becomes just a fake way to success because there's zero chance of failure. It doesnt matter if it's a small part of it or the final goal, the game should be present all time at least on easy difficulty, when there's a small challenge to deal with.

The thing is that some default stats(including op chars) are not perfect and is up to you to decide most of the challenge in dst, as it has nothing against cheating in the form of exploits, console or mods as well. I play with mods that better the quality of life, like geometric placement or epic health bar for example, I dont play Wolfgang and Wicker, and I change some world stats that affect the connection quality(my net sucks) or have poor balancing, like less earthquakes, frog rains, ponds, rabbits and more flints.

[. . .]

26 minutes ago, seffard said:

That's bs. Fun doesnt mean legit. That's exactly what a cheater in a multiplayer game, who has a selfish fun at the expense of the others, would say.

Now now there's no need for hostility and accusations, have peace my friend.

I am just stating that games exist then the player playing them can have fun, and whatever makes that player have more fun playing the game they should go for it! If the player enjoys playing with extra equip slot mod, character mods, meme mods, other mods, different world options, or even using a wardrobe to push yourself into the ocean as long as it makes their experience more fun I see no problem in this. As games are meant so you could sit back and have some fun not needless worrying about if you're playing the game "legit" or not.

Also, DST is a pve game where most players want to have some casual fun with their friends, it's not some competitive fps game to make a big deal out of non-existent cheating.

[Rosten]

I think "legitimate" is in the eye of the beholder. At it's core, Don't Starve has always been a single-player experience about testing yourself against the game. The default experience could be considered the most "legitimate" but even still, I meet people who consider koalephant hunting and dragonpie farms as illegitimate ways of getting food because they're too easy, or that using the Eyebrella or Hibearnation Vest is a lame strat because they're great items, or that using WX is cheating because he's busted- and so on and so on and so on. The only place that I personally draw the line is at mods that just make the game easier (I.e. "Backpack Slot" mods), but I can't judge mods or world settings as a whole because I'd commit seppuku if I didn't have Geometrical Placement enabled, aha.

[Kolascay]

I think the most agreed-upon defenition of playing legitamately is to not cheat/alter the game.

Probably the strictest guidelines for legit play are the following:

Default settings/No Giants Here.

With/without Caves.

No mods or console commands.

If Klei won't fix them, I believe exploits are technically legit, since they can be done without cheating/altering the game.

And of course, it can be as relaxed as a world where... 

Altered settings to your liking (with moderation)

Quality of Life mods (Health Info, Player Stats, GeoPlacement, Wormhole Marker, maybe Global Positions)

And perhaps a console command or two if a troll came on and trashed things up, but you don't really want to waist the time to rollback the server.

It's honestly all up to you, but if you even think about making a server called "100% Vanilla No Mods No Alterations", and have everything set to lots, have 7 OP Anime Character Mods, and use console commands to spawn in so much stuff that the server lags...

Spoiler

Please, commit uninstall existn'tn't

 

[Sinister_Fang]

Something that hasn't been brought up much: rollbacks. I don't think using rollbacks whenever something goes wrong is playing legitimately. Now if a griefer ruined your base, then yeah, that would justify a rollback. But if deerclops smashes part of your base for example, then I wouldn't consider using a rollback to undo these events to be playing legitimately.