What is the 1 thing you enjoy most about The Long Dark?

[LinieBurrito456]

Explore the open world - I love it.

Sometimes I wish I could tame a wolf, so I`m not longer alone. :-)

[Jra]

The tension between gathering resources and my safety

[tortuosit]

The atmosphere.

[Warg]

The "for real" quality of the game, immersion in the situation. Exploring also.

[thegrendel]

As a previous poster said: Atmosphere... and a sense of immersion.

[Greenbacks]

If I had to pick one thing it would be the audio. Someone really did an amazing job here. I've noticed so much attention to detail in the audio. For example, if you're carrying lots of water you can hear it splashing around. The sounds really make the game for me.

[bethany]

If I had to pick one thing it would be the audio. Someone really did an amazing job here. I've noticed so much attention to detail in the audio. For example, if you're carrying lots of water you can hear it splashing around. The sounds really make the game for me.

That would be Glenn Jamison and Dave Chan. They're pretty amazing! As is the rest of the team, I think

This is one of my favourite threads to come back to. Thanks to everyone for sharing, and welcome to our new members!

[Co1d_War_Vet]

Starting the game and seeing that it was saved properly.

[stwfun]

... the hope to play it on ps4 soon!

[Boss Llama]

Survival without sci-fi.

[Eachna]

If I had to pick one thing it would be the audio. Someone really did an amazing job here. I've noticed so much attention to detail in the audio. For example, if you're carrying lots of water you can hear it splashing around. The sounds really make the game for me.

Thumbs up to Glenn Jamison and Dave Chan since we were told their names.

The sound is amazing. The change in breath, the atmospheric sounds (wind, creaking wood and ice, fire). Animal/crow calls (the wolf howls are EERIE), the different weather sounds for different levels of storm. It's all great.

Aural cues are something I comment on in other games and it's usually a comment about how they're lacking. Here they're pretty much perfect.

Another thumbs up to whomever made sure we had a female sound set on sandbox mode. As a female player it really helps for immersion. I know it's not "me", but it helps give me that tiny bit of extra investment in keeping my girl alive.

[druffzilla]

the alternative graphics, the atmosphere and the unforgiving environment.

[Fritz Loxen]

I shot! Repeatedly and the bear fell. I questioned whether to shoot or not almost too long. I weighed the pros and the cons of success and failure. In the end my desire to conquer nature won. I skinned and gutted my trophy becoming encumbered in the process. My greed drove me across the frozen water to my home. Someday that game will be found frozen to death far from home dragging 80lbs of pride.

poetic and true

[eelcoholic]

the satisfaction of gathering resources and supplies to then finally craft that great gear. New areas. You know, things to look forward to.

Also, the beauty of the landscape. Killing a wolf with a bow or knife.

[c00per]

Even better if you can do it in 5 words or less.

Random start, please random map !

[palmic]

I love LD because of combination of things which creates the resulting feel about it.

Most important parts of the combination are general atmosphere (loneliness, absolutely f***king great soundand visuals) and the fact it tries to be real simulation. I really need to plan things or i'll not make it.

Sorry, i cant take one thing and pitch it, because its so many things without the game which it could be even half as good without.

This is the simplest explanation i can write.

[an_actual_puppy]

The meaningful decision making, how the tide can turn for better or worse in a matter of minutes depending on your luck!

Warning: self indulgent story ahead.

This happened to me recently. I'm determined to get the wrapped in furs achievement. I have everything, I just need the bedroll... After scouring ML I found a black bear skulking around in the clearcut. I have three rifles and 16 rounds in total, no problem right? I bring a fully loaded rifle and some bandages with me in case things go pear shaped. By the time I get to the clearcut I had about six hours of daylight left. I spot it from afar, too far to get a good shot. I'm thinking I'll shoot the bear once and wait for it to bleed out. As I crouch down in waiting, I hear the unmistakable sound of a deer being killed. It must be a wolf. Nothing better than a wolf and deer with one bullet, right? The bear can wait, I'll get it tomorrow.

I make my way to the sound of the feasting wolf. I'm quite tired at this point, but I crouch and try and get close enough to get it in one shot. I aim, its head in my iron sights, and pull the trigger. Instead of dying instantly, the wolf runs away. Ridiculous! I popped it right in the head. My exhaustion must have caused the barrel to sway too much. Dammit. I get up and walk around for a bit, looking for the fleeing wolf. It seems to be staying in the area. That's good; I'll get it tomorrow. As I make my way to the deer carcass, ready to harvest it, I notice the bear. It must have spotted the deer too and is making its way there for a snack. We're suddenly a lot closer than before. Thinking on my feet, I decide to shoot it now. I'm fairly close to the path up to the forestry lookout, so straight after I shoot it I'll spend the night there. Before I can think of doing that, I catch sight of a wolf. Thinking it must be the wounded one from earlier I ignore it and get into position for the bear.

But it's not the injured wolf from before, it's a new one with its sights on me. Before I can register it quickly enough to light a torch it's attacking me. Now I have a sprained wrist and am at about 75% health. The wolf runs away, yelping. I quickly take some painkillers and look for the bear. It's closer, now. In hindsight I should have backed up and tried from a height, but I was feeling impatient after the trouble with the wolf and thought it would run scared after being hit once. I lift the rifle and take a shot. The bullet hits it in its side. It starts running, seemingly away, but then it turns toward me. Oh no, oh no, oh no... I decide to try and deter it with another bullet. It does seemingly nothing and continues barreling toward me. Why do these things seem to happen in slow motion? I fumble to light a torch but its too late. It's on me. By the time it's done with its attack I'm at 7% health. My scarf is ruined. It's almost completely dark and my vision is blurred; I hadn't even harvested the deer yet. I start a fire and take what I can from the corpse.

After I finish it's pitch black. The trees hide the light of the moon and I don't have a lantern. Why I didn't I think this through better? I'm exhausted. My health ticks down to 6%. I need to get to the lookout, get some food in me and heal up. I begin the climb. My vision is making me see double. The path winds more than I remember. Is that a fence or a rock? I try and stay away from the edges but it's hard to tell where they are. Every so often, I look towards the sky for some light from the moon. How could this have all gone so wrong? I think about what my remains will look like on the path to the lookout tower. Amazingly, I don't die and get into a bed with 4% health. When I wake up the next day I'm at about 50%. Time to harvest the bear.

I see the corpse the second I make my way down the mountain. No wolves in sight. This time I'll be careful. I check my rifle and start a fire next to the bear. This will take a while, but the pelt will be worth it. Just think of the bedroll! I drink some coffee and begin harvesting. I'm only able to get about ten kilos of heavy duty bear meat when I realise the corpse it too degraded to harvest anything else from. No pelt to speak of and only ten pieces of meat. The two wolves from yesterday are nowhere in sight and I'm encumbered anyway. I decide to cut my losses and make my way back to base before anything else can go wrong. Just my luck, huh?

[cowboymrh]

I enjoy reading about everyone's own particular style of survival. Where they like to live, hunt, favorite maps, and just the way each person has their own particular way of surviving.

It really is facinating!

[Lifferds]

The music

[haltux]

I love what I feel when I glimpse my shelter in the blizzard.

[-Shrike-]

Where to start..

Well, first of all, I was a bit skeptic about the graphics by looking at the game's trailer for the first time, but after installing it and playing for few minutes, I just fell in love with the graphics.

So simple, clean and well made. And one thing is for sure; If graphics were to change to something usual and main stream (you know, high res, super HD 3D models and sh!t), the game would most likely lose its charm entirely.

Secondly, the atmosphere.

A bit hard to describe but... you know you can set the fire anywhere (if it's not windy), but you simply WANT to find some kind of safety, like rock face, a steep overhead cliff or something, to set the fire or two underneath it, prepare your meal, repair clothes and just rest for a while.

Combination of graphics and sound is responsible for such a great atmosphere, and for that, I never pause the game, I simply leave it un-paused and enjoy the feeling of actually being there, while doing normal stuff (like rolling a cigarette, drinking coffee/tea or eating).

Third thing.. the music.

Those unobtrusive, short compositions when you enter a new area, or start suffering from the cold/hunger/injury, are really something special. I usually turn off the game music when playing any kind of game, but for some reason, I've set the music on 20% before the first gameplay, and TLD is now the only game where I've left the music on, simply because its stunning.

The whole survival concept, and the idea is right there (will need more tweaking of course, but for Alpha it's amazingly well done).

And for some reason, although I know I'm only one inside of the game, I always have a feeling that some other person is there, on the map, in the forest or just wondering around, waiting somewhere or... stalking me.

That could be just because of the constant fear you have from wolves, and the sounds you hear while inside of cabins. You know no one's there but... :?

( I know, you said "ONE thing you enjoy.." but lets face it, there can't be just one thing )

[Belwe]

realistic

[slinkywizz]

it is utterly charming.

[Giga]

Atmosphere, realism, difficulty (I'm playing on medium difficulty and it's pretty challenging, whereas most other single player games I find easy even on hardest difficulty).

[grovester]

Getting yourself nicely set up in a cabin, with lots of food, firewood, and crafting some nice new clothes. Resting up for a few days. Then realising you have to go out, as your food is getting low. You wander out into the bright, reddish morning, and see a wolf. Damn. So you climb up a hill, come across a deer, it runs away from you, into the path of the wolf. Wolf kills deer. You fight the wolf, kill it. So now you have more meat, more skins for crafting.

So you hole up for a few more days to wait out the storm that's blown in. Craft some more clothes, maybe fix a few of your tools. And your food is running low...maybe go fishing?