THE LONG DARK SANDBOX UPDATED TO v.423 -- "FAITHFUL CARTOGRAPHER"

[slackhideo]

18 hours ago, avronnel said:

I was very excited for the update. However, this is the worst update I've ever seen on any game. The interface was clean and user friendly and now it looks like a kid with sticky fingers was let loose on the chalkboard.

 

15 hours ago, JAFO said:

Thank you.. you're not alone with that impression.

I was excited as well... until I played v.411T. It was a tremendous letdown for me. Actually I felt no desire to play the game any more in that state.
After a LOT of negative feedback, Hinterland changed some things, so the game is better in v.423 than it was in v.411T (at least for me).
But considering the pros and cons of this Faithful Cartographer update, I prefer much more the Resolute Outfitter version, that's why I'm sticking to v.393.

You guys are definitely not alone.

[Patrick Carlson]

On 6/8/2017 at 1:18 PM, Gleudal said:

"All profile data will be preserved, however -- this means that all Badges, Feats, and Journals will still be saved." From the save wipe-tread. Well mine are gone. completly  (Win 10) 

@Gleudal Sorry to hear that. If you haven't already, please go ahead and email our support account (support@hinterlandgames.com), they will want to hear from you if you lost all your profile data. 

[Crimson Foxx]

I quite honestly have had nothing but incredible fun and i am very pleased with the new changes and challenge of the game now. My personal opinion (and i guess seems to be of the minority) is that this game has gone from great to amazing.

I love the new UI and HUD and i love that Stalker mode is hard work and the wolves are a frightening threat. I never want to struggle with a hungry wolf and now find myself doing everything i can to avoid them. I had a huge fight with a bear that i lost against on day 38. Shot it 3 times with my rifle ( not a great shot) and struck it twice with arrows and it still mauled me to death LOL. 

I cant explain why i find this game now so much better with the latest update when others want to just rage quit. For me this game is a true harsh survival experience in an incredibly beautiful landscape and cold unique world. Its not just pain and suffering. Its a unforgettable journey and every day i wake up in it i thank the cosmos i am still alive. I value every precious moment i get and if this is even a glimpse of how exciting and enjoyable the main story is gonna be then i could not be happier. 

I am finding it hard to play any of my other games as this is just so addictive. I know my voice is humbly tiny in this huge community but i hope Hinterland hear my praise, they deserve it and have my full loyalty

[slackhideo]

37 minutes ago, Crimson Foxx said:

I know my voice is humbly tiny in this huge community but i hope Hinterland hear my praise, they deserve it and have my full loyalty

Hahaha of course they will hear you.
I read what people post and it's obvious that you are happy with the recent changes. And I'm happy that you are happy, to be honest. I'm pretty sure you are not the minority here. From what I read around here, most people seem to like the new update. So I guess I'm the minority 

After this test branch, I won't even waste my energy complaining anymore. Now I know that my opinions are quite different from that of the guy who makes decisions in this game.
I'm still here because I truly find most people really nice, helpful, and respectful. I like to read what the community writes, but I don't expect that the game will be better with the future changes, if the latest update is anything to go by.

But yeah, have fun

[The Boy]

Nah, not really happy with the new update release. The game, though enthralling, is, safe to say, already 'plodding'. Now, unfortuantely, some aspects have become tedious and boring. A crime for a 'game'. Holding the button down to enter doors and open containers is just plain time-wasting and RSI inducing. And as for using the first aid, time consuming, confusing and awkward. An annoyance, not an improvement. And I still haven't worked out what the three flames in the center of the screen mean. But that doesn't matter as it's obviously not important, as so far not knowing has had no effect on my game play. I think!
At least the wolves no longer eat the rifle. Thank you!

[JAFO]

3 hours ago, The Boy said:

And I still haven't worked out what the three flames in the center of the screen mean. But that doesn't matter as it's obviously not important, as so far not knowing has had no effect on my game play.

Those are your "scent strength" indicators.. if all three are lit up, it means every wolf for several kilometers around is making a beeline in your direction. (and that's no exaggeration.. I mean it literally) So you might not want to spend too long in one place, when that happens. 

[palmic]

So we are supposed to get well made torches out of the campfires again?

Where those beautiful branches disappeared?

[QQsha]

Hello, Hinterland!

Really happy for the new update, good job. Not even mad about wiped saves. I'm fond of this game, and maybe you will be interested in some review. (Don't really know if it's right place to do so. If I need to move that to another topic, please respond).

HUD changes.

Well done: moving from letters and direct numbers to icons really makes game more atmospheric and better matchs the game's aesthetic. It was a bit disappointing to know exactly how many hours i need to wait before sunrise. One more bastion needs to be taken — temperature values representing weather.

Charcoal Map.

Community was asking for that since the very beginning, and you managed to find an elegant solution. But it got some issues.

— Now player won't ever get lost. Before update I think everybody experienced that: you decide to make a little walk from some safe place, sudden blizzard starts, you desperately search for a shelter and wait for a day or two in some broken barn or a cave, trying to survive. After all that you find yourself in a totally unknown location, without any idea how to get back. Lost. Player make some tentative moves, and that's the moment when the game blooms. Player looks around for any landmark ("is that the same river, or it is another stream?") and experiences blissful recognition of known places and sudden bright realization "I just needed to cross the hill, and I'll be at home!". That was the magic of this game.

And now half of the magic is lost due to characters ability to determine location and distance with a GPS-charcoal. What earlier was done by player — now done by character. So player "live" in game less.

— Size of the painted part of map doesn't depend on players position. Standing in the forest or at the top of the hill — character will paint the same circle.

Looks like it's almost impossible to deal with these issues. But still that is the best variant to add map. Others are (a) standard, that ruins EVERYTHING (b) map that can be found and can be modified by player, which adds some way to make a plot twist and a huge swing in gameplay. It was fun to draw map by myself, to play with mouse and pencil, and now those days are gone. And the more I think, the more I understand that you made your best to please more casual part of the community and not to disappoint another.

<> this makes all click/press+hold interactions a single click/press. 

God bless you! So convenient.

First Aid Treatment.

Really good. Nice first aid experience and no pre-select treatments.

Inventory controls.

There are two big parts of Long Dark's gameplay: exploring vast areas and managing inventory of the same size. Both are fun and take time, but inventory part could use time more productively. Studio tries to make UI more controller oriented — and that's fine — but designers shouldn't forget about PC players. Inventory controls could be better. Some thoughts:

• In Backpack player can use WASD to move in category, but there is no key that allows to switch category (First Aid, Tool), and using mouse isn't the best way. "R" and "F" buttons can be used to go up and down in categories.
• In Backpack left-clicking on an object uses/equips it, while right-clicking does nothing (and double right-clicking uses/equips it). Obvious missed opportunity. Right click could be used to drop item or...
• ... to solve "Back" problem. One need to reach either bottom right of the screen or top left of the keyboard to go back. Not good. Solution: (a) right click in Status/Inventory/Jornal/Object is "Back" (b) allow players to rebind Pause Menu or add an additional shortcut ("Q" for example), so it'll be easy for players.
• Action in inventory could be binded to Space key.
• Overall weight per category. Great idea! Finally, I don't need to sum weights of all my clothes. But it appears only in inventory, and doesn't appear when character open some container.
• While interact with container Shift+left click could be used to transfer all same objects (all 200 rose hips) without asking.
• In Journal WASD navigation doesn't work in blueprints, no shortcut that allows switching between journal pages.
• In Closing one needs to click on arrows to switch between closing of the same kind (like mittens). That leads to a lot of unnecessary mouse moving. To toggle through closing in the same slot we can apply (a) mouse wheel, while it is hovered on big image on closing on the right (b) "R" and "F" keys. Taking on/off could be also bind to (a) left click, while onhovered (b) Space key.

Just adding rightclick-"Back" and category toggle would increase Fun/Time_played value.

Thanks again for great game and your persistence in developing. Sorry for Ingrish.

 

 

[EricTheGreat12]

1 hour ago, QQsha said:

Charcoal Map.

Now player won't ever get lost. Before update I think everybody experienced that: you decide to make a little walk from some safe place, sudden blizzard starts, you desperately search for a shelter and wait for a day or two in some broken barn or a cave, trying to survive. After all that you find yourself in a totally unknown location, without any idea how to get back. Lost. Player make some tentative moves, and that's the moment when the game blooms. Player looks around for any landmark ("is that the same river, or it is another stream?") and experiences blissful recognition of known places and sudden bright realization "I just needed to cross the hill, and I'll be at home!". That was the magic of this game.

And now half of the magic is lost due to characters ability to determine location and distance with a GPS-charcoal. What earlier was done by player — now done by character. So player "live" in game less.

 

The charcoal map is completely optional; if you want to get lost around the map and explore at free will go ahead. Also, the map does not use a GPS feature, you cannot see yourself on the map.

[ProphetOfDBD13]

 

Thank you developers for the spoiled game. I could forgive you for the destroyed safekeeping, but I can not forgive the corrupted interface and the dead atmosphere ... Here's why I had to do everything under the console, would give the choice of pc players to leave a new interface or old, so no, I do not even have Choice as it all looks awful ... removed the menu in space, and it was very convenient, and to make a tinder you have to do a lot of body movements and kill a lot of time and that's not all. Okay continue to suck the owners of consoles, And I already return a lot of money because I played a whole cloud of hours, and it was one of my favorite games ... 

 

And yet, would warn about the fact that the preservation will be lost at least a month before the release of this update. So many hours have been killed ... but it's scary that I did not even know that this would happen, now that I can finish playing on the save, I need to download the old version from the torrent and finish the passage there. And if I knew in advance about this, I would not be so upset. Yes, you may have reported that the preservation will be lost, but most of the players do not read blogs, it was necessary to write this in the official news and In CAPITAL LETTERS (if you certainly wrote about this somewhere)...

p.s - Sorry for bad English.

[slackhideo]

Welcome to the forums, @ProphetOfDBD13!

While I kind of agree with you on the interface (but I didn't understand the tinder issue), I must say they warned us many times about the save wiping. They wrote about it here on the forums, in the Steam page, and in the Twitter (at least). I honestly don't think they could have done better than this to deliver the message.
I'm sorry you didn't get this info.

[IanS]

Awesome addition! The cartography aspect adds real value to the game. That being said, I have to admit the weight dynamics need some dialing in. If you've ever sketched with charcoal, you can appreciate how lightweight it is. I haven't done the math yet, but by extrapolation I'm guessing it will take in the neighborhood of 50 lbs of charcoal to finish the map of Happy Valley, when in reality, it would take less than an ounce to sketch a detailed map. If it really took as much as the game requires, imagine how heavy the map would be in the end! Even if you assume a 50% loss rate, with half the charcoal crumbling and being blown away, you'd still have a big ass heavy ass map.

[cekivi]

Welcome to the forums @QQsha and @ProphetOfDBD13 

Sorry for your bad experience @ProphetOfDBD13. Be sure to log it in the "Alpha Feedback" forums. The devs do check the forums regularly and while design choices are certainly not player directed they are player informed

[AerysTarga]

Hello,

My nickname on Steam (French): aerystarga
231 hours of play

Since v.423 I lost all my statistics, my challenges and my badges. All is zero.

With the update, I know I would lose my backups but not the rest!
Can you help me retrieve all badges and badges? I sent a mail to support last week but I have not received a response.

Thank you.

[nicko]

I believe its now v426.

[AerysTarga]

19 minutes ago, nicko said:

I believe its now v426.

Yes but my problem has not been fixed with v.426

[nicko]

39 minutes ago, AerysTarga said:

Yes but my problem has not been fixed with v.426

oh hopefully between the HTS support and steam support they solve it for you, which support team did you email?

 

[AerysTarga]

I sent a mail to support "support@hinterlandgames.com"
I've seen other people affected by this bug too in Steam.

[Patrick Carlson]

1 hour ago, AerysTarga said:

I sent a mail to support "support@hinterlandgames.com"
I've seen other people affected by this bug too in Steam.

Hi @AerysTarga, I'll check in with support for you again. It's hard to say immediately what might be causing this. 

And welcome to the forums!

[AerysTarga]

Hi Patrick,

Thank you ! In the meantime I remain patient.

[selfless]

@AerysTarga The file responsible for stats/badges is called "user001".  If you can find a backed up copy of it from before the update and paste it over the current one and you should get most of  your progress back.  Good luck.

[The Gentleman Bastard]

6 hours ago, Patrick Carlson said:

Hi @AerysTarga, I'll check in with support for you again. It's hard to say immediately what might be causing this. 

And welcome to the forums!

Speaking of bugs, i sent you a message a few days ago regarding an inescapable pit in Mystery Lake near the tower, and a bug with the firesriker when lighting a torch, If no one else has had this happen, it occurs when you go to light a torch and press the button instead of holding it (even though i have the settings set to single press) it makes the Chk-Chk-Chk noise over and over and wont stop until you quit out of game  

[Patrick Carlson]

7 minutes ago, The Gentleman Bastard said:

Speaking of bugs, i sent you a message a few days ago regarding an inescapable pit in Mystery Lake near the tower, and a bug with the firesriker when lighting a torch, If no one else has had this happen, it occurs when you go to light a torch and press the button instead of holding it (even though i have the settings set to single press) it makes the Chk-Chk-Chk noise over and over and wont stop until you quit out of game  

Yes, I forwarded both notes to the testing team to look into. Thanks for the heads up!

[The Gentleman Bastard]

2 hours ago, Patrick Carlson said:

Yes, I forwarded both notes to the testing team to look into. Thanks for the heads up!

Of course! As frustrating as those issues are, I still love the UI changes and such. I could see how the icons could be harder to read on a small screen, but i have no issues (I have a big screen TV). Cant wait for Wintermute and the next Survival Sandbox update. I hope that when/if you add NPCs the the sandbox, there's an option to play without them. I love a game where its just me and nothing else. Very relaxing and tense at the same time, and a quality very few games get right. You guys kick ass!!! 

[AerysTarga]

15 hours ago, selfless said:

@AerysTarga The file responsible for stats/badges is called "user001".  If you can find a backed up copy of it from before the update and paste it over the current one and you should get most of  your progress back.  Good luck.

I found only one file user001 (5Ko) dating from June 10, 3 days after the deployment of v.423. So I can not make any recovery. Thanks anyway Selfless.