Recent reviews by *internal screaming*

I really wanted to like this game, the graphics are beautiful, the premise really interesting. Unfortunately, as-is, the matchmaking aspect of the game is incredibly tedious. There's no variety to the memorization mini games you need to win in order to successfully match people. I really wish that there were more unique dates, mini games, and the ability for townsfolk to marry and divorce mostly autonomously.

A few quality of life improvements would make this game an absolute gem. As it is, it's so close but not quite there.

In-game tutorial needs more info, or some kind of documentation for how things work. This game has a TON of potential, but as someone who's never played Rimworld or the other popular colony-management simulation games, this had a steep learning curve.

I kept making mistakes or missing various steps that held me back (like accidentally using all of my Basalt early in game before realizing I needed it to build the Blacksmith station, and not being able to find any more of it on the map, not understanding how pipes and irrigation things work (also irrigation pipes aren't demolish-able AFAIK?).

Just needs a little bit more work before this can really shine, but it's a good way to spend a weekend even in it's current state. Challenging in a good way, but frustrating at times due to the stuff I mentioned above (that are hopefully on the dev roadmap).

This game is absolutely stellar! I'm always a bit nervous about getting EA games, but this one hasn't disappointed me. The developer seems to be really invested in making the game the best it can be. When all of the content comes out, I anticipate preferring Littlewood over Stardew Valley. This game takes so many elements from Animal Crossing and SDV and just,, makes them better. The skill grind doesn't feel unrewarding or boring, and there are so many different things to do! The customizability of the town is amazing.

A couple things I wish were implemented:

- Longer sunset/better sun positions. As it stands, the night comes in really harshly, like some kind of intense solar eclipse type of thing, and there's no darker day/sunset period that eases the transition. Also, if seasons could kind of bleed over into each other (ie. grass gets progressively more brown around the end of summer, slight bits of snow at the last days of fall) could really make the game feel more realistic and dynamic.

- Mod capability. This game is great as-is, but oh man, with mods? a whole 'nother level.

This game is pretty fun, but it crashes essentially every other game and all my progress gets lost each time, so, pretty much unplayable.

This game is beautiful, but the universe you set out to discover the mysteries of and explore ends up feeling, well, empty after a while. At first you don't notice how empty everything is because of the grind for resources and the need to build bases and finish up the main storyline, but when that's over, and all is said and done, an empty universe is lonely. I understand that the character is coming into the game when all the major empires are just remnants of what they used to be, but large cities and NPCs that have really distinct, memorable personalities would be great additions to the game. Greater customization and more narrative-driven side quests would be good too. Give greater customization, greater diversity in planets, city ruins. Give me a reason to stay in this universe, something like careers or an actual reason to join the guilds besides better rewards.

If you like a sandbox where you can do anything, this is the game for you, but just keep in mind that this universe can feel empty.

10/10 would create socialist utopia and get assassinated by the religious right again.

The Long Dark is a lot of things, but most importantly: it's not another unfinished game on Early Access. This game is going places. The Devs work really hard, and this game has been virtually reinvented in the time I've owned it (about a year). Hinterland has laid out a roadmap for where they want the game to go in the future, and those ideas are being regularly implemented in updates every three to four months or so.

What are in the updates? New features and additions to the Sandbox mode, the best part of the game at this point while we wait in anticipation for Story Mode. The Sandbox is amazing. The wildlife simulations aren't perfect, but the whole weather systems and the places you can explore (mountains, lakes, mines, dams, scenic overlooks and seemingly endless forests) and the things you can do (kill deer, wolves, bear, craft items, balance cans of soup on the corpse in the camp office of mystery lake) are what makes this game great. The sunsets are surprisingly beautiful at the end of the world.

The only game where you can clock over 200 hours and still not be good at it.

edit: the only game where you can clock over 1,000 hours and still not be good at it.