Is TLD the best ("realistic") survival game ever made?

[MarinusMaximus]

I bought this on GOG (who has a big discount atm) and altough i suck at this, i LOVE this game.
The look (graphics), the sounds, ambiance and the overal gameplay. Amazing!

What are your thoughts? Is there another (similair) game that sucks you in like this one?

[Frau Blücher]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von mmille14:

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Maenethal:

One of the most realistic survival games I've played is UnReal World. It's a roguelike, but it's got a lot of great detail.

If you like zombies, then Cataclysm: Dark Days Ahead is a great game, too. It's also free!

UnReal World rules!!! It is a nice game and would be fantastic if upgraded to a modern 1st person experience.

How neat! I'm going to have to give that a go at some point!

[StealthHUNTER]

Wanted to buy this game but there are suddenly so much negative reviews after the last update that I am going to give it a miss.....see if the dev"s is going to do something about it...why fix something that is not broken?

[mmille14]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Frau Blücher:

Ursprünglich geschrieben von mmille14:

UnReal World rules!!! It is a nice game and would be fantastic if upgraded to a modern 1st person experience.

How neat! I'm going to have to give that a go at some point!

It is available free/donation on the unreal world site, at least it use to be.

[Sadist_cain]

The majority of folks here appear to have barely left their gaming chair and make 'realistic' comparisons by way of spaceships, zombies and so forth.

I'm a survival instructor who has worked in the Arctic, so methinks I'm qualified to comment reasonably ;)

Out of what's out there right now TLD is one of the most realistic offerings you can get which is true survival against the elements.

• When you screw up you can die from sheer exposure in minutes
  
• You will sustain injuries for the dumbest things i.e. carrying too much weight and charging down a slippery slope. (Yes Bear Grylls is wrong again here)
  
• The clothing balance, heavy duty bushcraft gear vs super light expedition gear, is an everlasting conundrum depending on whether you're staying put or planning on going for a journey and will have a serious impact on how effective you are.
  
• Fire is a real ♥♥♥♥♥.
  
• You require a lot of water and calories to keep yourself going through the physical activities and long walks
  
• Fire is even more of a ♥♥♥♥♥ after a long walk when it's dark, windy and cold...
  
• A good axe, knife and firestriker is all you really need, that and the knowledge of how to use them
  
• Stripping an area of resources can be crippling, balance with your environment is key
  
• Reaching into the unknown is a perilous endeavour that requires resources and planning to conduct effectively
  
• Pure survival, trapping, fishing, chopping wood all to keep yourself going in order to do the same thing tomorrow can be tedius and draining.
  
• A small injury can become a BIG problem

All whilst working with the elements to stay alive as long as possible, the nuances within this particular game are difficult to find in any other.
It's rare in a 'survival' game to have the moment of shtf as you wake up locked in a storm with your trainers soaked, nothing to burn to purify the water you need to drink with your condition deteriorating as the slow death creeps in, soon you'll be too exhausted to do even the simplest of tasks just to keep yourself alive.
Find a cabin, absolutely exhausted, dehyrdated and hungry. go for a doze to get your energy up and before you know it you slipped into the long dark :)

[mmille14]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Sadist_cain:

The majority of folks here appear to have barely left their gaming chair and make 'realistic' comparisons by way of spaceships, zombies and so forth.

I'm a survival instructor who has worked in the Arctic, so methinks I'm qualified to comment reasonably ;)

Out of what's out there right now TLD is one of the most realistic offerings you can get which is true survival against the elements.

• When you screw up you can die from sheer exposure in minutes
  
• You will sustain injuries for the dumbest things i.e. carrying too much weight and charging down a slippery slope. (Yes Bear Grylls is wrong again here)
  
• The clothing balance, heavy duty bushcraft gear vs super light expedition gear, is an everlasting conundrum depending on whether you're staying put or planning on going for a journey and will have a serious impact on how effective you are.
  
• Fire is a real ♥♥♥♥♥.
  
• You require a lot of water and calories to keep yourself going through the physical activities and long walks
  
• Fire is even more of a ♥♥♥♥♥ after a long walk when it's dark, windy and cold...
  
• A good axe, knife and firestriker is all you really need, that and the knowledge of how to use them
  
• Stripping an area of resources can be crippling, balance with your environment is key
  
• Reaching into the unknown is a perilous endeavour that requires resources and planning to conduct effectively
  
• Pure survival, trapping, fishing, chopping wood all to keep yourself going in order to do the same thing tomorrow can be tedius and draining.
  
• A small injury can become a BIG problem

All whilst working with the elements to stay alive as long as possible, the nuances within this particular game are difficult to find in any other.
It's rare in a 'survival' game to have the moment of shtf as you wake up locked in a storm with your trainers soaked, nothing to burn to purify the water you need to drink with your condition deteriorating as the slow death creeps in, soon you'll be too exhausted to do even the simplest of tasks just to keep yourself alive.
Find a cabin, absolutely exhausted, dehyrdated and hungry. go for a doze to get your energy up and before you know it you slipped into the long dark :)

Thanks for the info. Nice to hear from an expert. I am no expert but from my military training I do know a few things and the one thing drilled in to us was extreme cold magnifies errors and minimizes gains. "Brrrrr, the pain the pain."

[Frau Blücher]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Sadist_cain:

The majority of folks here appear to have barely left their gaming chair and make 'realistic' comparisons by way of spaceships, zombies and so forth.

I'm a survival instructor who has worked in the Arctic, so methinks I'm qualified to comment reasonably ;)

Out of what's out there right now TLD is one of the most realistic offerings you can get which is true survival against the elements.

• When you screw up you can die from sheer exposure in minutes
  
• You will sustain injuries for the dumbest things i.e. carrying too much weight and charging down a slippery slope. (Yes Bear Grylls is wrong again here)
  
• The clothing balance, heavy duty bushcraft gear vs super light expedition gear, is an everlasting conundrum depending on whether you're staying put or planning on going for a journey and will have a serious impact on how effective you are.
  
• Fire is a real ♥♥♥♥♥.
  
• You require a lot of water and calories to keep yourself going through the physical activities and long walks
  
• Fire is even more of a ♥♥♥♥♥ after a long walk when it's dark, windy and cold...
  
• A good axe, knife and firestriker is all you really need, that and the knowledge of how to use them
  
• Stripping an area of resources can be crippling, balance with your environment is key
  
• Reaching into the unknown is a perilous endeavour that requires resources and planning to conduct effectively
  
• Pure survival, trapping, fishing, chopping wood all to keep yourself going in order to do the same thing tomorrow can be tedius and draining.
  
• A small injury can become a BIG problem

All whilst working with the elements to stay alive as long as possible, the nuances within this particular game are difficult to find in any other.
It's rare in a 'survival' game to have the moment of shtf as you wake up locked in a storm with your trainers soaked, nothing to burn to purify the water you need to drink with your condition deteriorating as the slow death creeps in, soon you'll be too exhausted to do even the simplest of tasks just to keep yourself alive.
Find a cabin, absolutely exhausted, dehyrdated and hungry. go for a doze to get your energy up and before you know it you slipped into the long dark :)

Thank you for chiming in. Always good to have an expert comparison to keep things in perspective.

As for your mention of Bear Grylls, I prefer Les Stroud as an alternative. Seems more true to life and less "let's drink pee for ratings".

[Jericho]

my favourite documentary "Alone in the wilderness" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0437806/

[Frau Blücher]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Jericho:

my favourite documentary "Alone in the wilderness" http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0437806/

This could be a whole separate forum topic, actually!

[Jericho]

yup, there have been some already http://steamcommunity.com/app/305620/discussions/0/385428458178746797/

[MarinusMaximus]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von placidus33:

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Dobbler:

This War of Mine is a very good survival game, but totally different than TLD. It's a side scroller, you play mulitple characters, and a great deal of the tension comes from having to make moral choices, and dealing with the psychological consequences. It's set in a realistic setting (a war torn city). I don't really care to decide if it's better or worse, but it's very good and very different.

uh oh... -80%.... 3,80 euros.... it's interesting.... very very..... thanks for the advice, Dobbler, at this price it's worth a try, even though not first person.

Sorry, MarinusMaximus, if I used a bit of your discussion.

By all means, don't stop! I'm enjoying the conversation you guys/girls have. It also gives me insight about how people enjoy/play the game. So many different views and thoughts.
Plz continue ^_^

[MarinusMaximus]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von crestandre:

Wanted to buy this game but there are suddenly so much negative reviews after the last update that I am going to give it a miss.....see if the dev"s is going to do something about it...why fix something that is not broken?

Well, i then advise to wait untill the game comes out ( soon ) and read the reviews. Still, the game is great..even at this state and i despise EA. I did a gamble and i'm still not regretting it.

[MarinusMaximus]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Frau Blücher:

I think it would be interesting if we found games that could compare - apples to apples - with TLD. If we agree on a certain set of criteria (for example: no zombies or OP weaponry), we can then debate the relative realism and game mechanic merit in a meaningful way.

I honesetly haven't found another such game to compare it with, but would certainly be interested in hearing about ones I may have missed.

Indeed! I can't find a similair game either. One of the reason i made this topic. I like to play more of these kind of games

[Dobbler]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Sadist_cain:

The majority of folks here appear to have barely left their gaming chair and make 'realistic' comparisons by way of spaceships, zombies and so forth.

I'm a survival instructor who has worked in the Arctic, so methinks I'm qualified to comment reasonably ;)

Out of what's out there right now TLD is one of the most realistic offerings you can get which is true survival against the elements.

• When you screw up you can die from sheer exposure in minutes
  
• You will sustain injuries for the dumbest things i.e. carrying too much weight and charging down a slippery slope. (Yes Bear Grylls is wrong again here)
  
• The clothing balance, heavy duty bushcraft gear vs super light expedition gear, is an everlasting conundrum depending on whether you're staying put or planning on going for a journey and will have a serious impact on how effective you are.
  
• Fire is a real ♥♥♥♥♥.
  
• You require a lot of water and calories to keep yourself going through the physical activities and long walks
  
• Fire is even more of a ♥♥♥♥♥ after a long walk when it's dark, windy and cold...
  
• A good axe, knife and firestriker is all you really need, that and the knowledge of how to use them
  
• Stripping an area of resources can be crippling, balance with your environment is key
  
• Reaching into the unknown is a perilous endeavour that requires resources and planning to conduct effectively
  
• Pure survival, trapping, fishing, chopping wood all to keep yourself going in order to do the same thing tomorrow can be tedius and draining.
  
• A small injury can become a BIG problem

All whilst working with the elements to stay alive as long as possible, the nuances within this particular game are difficult to find in any other.
It's rare in a 'survival' game to have the moment of shtf as you wake up locked in a storm with your trainers soaked, nothing to burn to purify the water you need to drink with your condition deteriorating as the slow death creeps in, soon you'll be too exhausted to do even the simplest of tasks just to keep yourself alive.
Find a cabin, absolutely exhausted, dehyrdated and hungry. go for a doze to get your energy up and before you know it you slipped into the long dark :)

I'm not an expert, but I did grow up in northern Canada, and I have been lost in the bush during the winter before. Everything you say seems to agree with my experiences, but one thing is sticking out, that I'd like you to clarify. When you say "Stripping an area of resources can be crippling, balance with your environment is key", what are you referring to? To what degree can a single person strip an area of it's resources, in any way that would be meaningfull to their survival?

[Sadist_cain]

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Dobbler:

Ursprünglich geschrieben von Sadist_cain:

*snip*

I'm not an expert, but I did grow up in northern Canada, and I have been lost in the bush during the winter before. Everything you say seems to agree with my experiences, but one thing is sticking out, that I'd like you to clarify. When you say "Stripping an area of resources can be crippling, balance with your environment is key", what are you referring to? To what degree can a single person strip an area of it's resources, in any way that would be meaningfull to their survival?

In game I'm referring more to sitting in one spot and killing all your rabbits, overfishing and things rotting, running out of wood etc. always good to leave your home with a buffer of survival options in case things get more desperate on your later expeditions.

In reality it's just the way of bushcraft, folks wouldn't normally stay in one spot but rather move between several villages between seasons so as to maintain the balance of wildlife in each area. Stripping bark, roots and flax from grasses & shrubs to make cordage, building shelters, hunting animals, foraging etc. all takes its toll and you gotta give the land time to recover.

One of the things I was tought about how some nomadic tribes would mark their hunting grounds was really interesting.
They'd do their thing in their hunting spot and once done would tie the skulls of the animals they'd hunted around an important tree using its own tendons.

The next party that would hunt in that area would see this marker tree and from the condition of the various skulls tied around it or whether they'd fallen to the floor they could get an idea of what was hunted before, how long ago and how much.
They could therefore plan their hunt accordingly so as not to upset the balance too much and give the various species a chance to recover.

There would often be a cache of supplies buried at the base of the tree also, containing things like tinder & birch bark for firelighting, furs for warmth etc. along with seeds of various foraged fruits and berries from the area.
Full on hunters information post complete with emergency kit.
Smart folks :)

[CaptainGary]

Escape from tarkov