The new crafting and map system ruined the game

[Pappagiorgio]

Engaging from the start. Nothing was planned, nor laid out to the player from the very beginning. You're were just a dude, on the way home(?) on his(?) private plane and then BOOM, there it is! Just like Cast Away, you're on your own now.

Raw, unaltered, unadulterated, undiluted, savage, survival experience and exploration. That heart-pumping tension and basic animal-esque instinct that made you hop from island to island, searching underwater and all over, looking for signs of life, human life or a safer, bigger, more comfortable refuge... like those ***SPOILERS*** Maunsell forts ***SPOILERS***. The interesting, the unimaginable. What else could lay beyond? Maybe some Sealand like forts, rigs, platforms, abandoned stations... or bigger islands, with other animals and creatures, with caves even and who-knows-what. That always keep you going, you were never really at ease at any given time. That feeling of vulnerability and fragility that keep you on the edge of life itself, it kept you clinging, instead of giving up you hoped... HOPE! That was the always implicit experience for me in Stranded Deep. HOPE, in search for somewhere, something or someone... Well, all those emotions and feelings are all gone. All of that is GONE! Absolutely. Stranded Deep has lost its unique, quintessential charm, main drive and sole purpose. Now it feels totally like yet another -not even survival- but sand-boxing type of game, and not a fun one at all, it feels now like yet another, generic, boring-♥♥♥ building-crafting title with no soul.

Before the latest update. You started a game, nothing appeared, no information was provided except for the intro, the interactive crash scene. I liked that lack of information, that was essential to the experience, from top-to-bottom. No ridiculous, out-of-nowhere maps that spelled, and spoiled it all out. Where did I crashed? Where am I? Somewhere in the Pacific... ? Atlantic, Caribbean, Indian Ocean, Bermuda Triangle, Devil's Sea...? I LOVED this game immensely, so immersive. Just you against nature and the elements. It was raw, savage at its core. That lack of map information and orientation, it encouraged exploration from the get-go. It also made you feel uneasy, in a way, that made you to never feel comfortable at any island, you just wanted to keep going and going anywhere, a higher call to explore in search for whatever, salvation as the ultimate goal clearly. Looking for a rescue vessel perhaps or any aircraft that might, lucky for you, be passing through. Who knows? A group of survivors or other stranded castaway, it kept the experience fresh, alive and vivid. but now, now... all of that has changed for me. It feels fake, planned, formulaic and derivative. A staged safari instead of the untamed, feral wanderlust it once was. Simply cannot digest more than 30 mins even, of this "new game". Don't wanna explore, don't wanna settle, don't wanna craft, don't wanna do anything... except getting the heck out, not from any island but the game itself! The fun and excitement is gone.

The new crafting system. Before, it was in a way natural, you just gathered stuff you found and experimented, all in front of your eyes and in real time. It was very fun, didactic, it made you imagine and wonder what else could you create and concoct from the things that you might end up finding in any island, in the shore, the bottom of the ocean or in a sunken ship or one that ran aground. Not having any magical aid, manuals, blueprints, gamefaqs and whatnot. That was key and essence to the savage experience, the savage experience that no longer exists. Is all video game-y now, fourth-wall breaking, it ruins the engagement and destroys the eagerness to explore and search for anything, since everything is shown right away, what you can and cannot build. Press the 'C' button, this chart/guide/GUI appears and BLAMMO! like all other survival games out there, boring and uninspiring. Now it just feels like I'm playing a bare-bones The Forest in a way. Stranded Deep had that unique, sort-of natural and unrestrained crafting system, that made it very welcome and novel in the crowded genre.

I uninstalled this game already, something I thought I would never do. Now I'm engaged with Subnautica, really fun game that's coming along nicely, I recommend to everyone. And I'm back to The Forest again, which I stopped playing for a while after getting hooked with Stranded Deep even tho both games really complemented each other very well, not so anymore, unfortunately. Hope the developers can manage to introspect and rethink about their title and go back on course, hope they manage to get in touch with the spirit of the title and become aware of what really made this game special for many of us.


Thanks for the fun times Wilson, goodbye!

[captsim]

I agree bring back the old version , when you built a hut it look natrual on the island, starting to think I wasted my money.

[fluxtorrent]

I really wish people would search first before ranting. The current ease of use for the system is for testing, but hey if you want to believe its indicitive of end game instead of actually paying attention, your loss.

[samBTG]

Originally posted by fluxtorrent:

I really wish people would search first before ranting. The current ease of use for the system is for testing, but hey if you want to believe its indicitive of end game instead of actually paying attention, your loss.

Word.

The amount of time taken to write this post (don't get me wrong, appreciate the effort) could have been spent more constructively by looking for the information already posted by us that makes this post unnecessary and puts everyone's concerns to rest...

[TBoneDiggs]

They gave us a sandbox to play in, so I play in it.
I have a bunch of screenshots up (public) of my island and several kinds of huts you can make now. The old ones were all more or less the same. Now you have different scrap to mess with.

The island is a big lagoon with low mountains all around. Lots of deep water for the big ones. I put in rocks to climb up on when the sharks get too friendly, mountains with craters like volcanoes, it's cool making it how you want it.

I don't really need a compass anymore but I carry it around anyway.
They'll open it back up when it's ready.

I think it can be fun, for a couple weeks (gametime) at least.

[Yah]

Exactly the same for me, I really miss the feeling I first had with this game. So sad.
I have tried the new crafting system, the map editor, I really tried ... but no, nothing to do, just no the same feeling anymore.

[MV-Play]

I have the impression that there will be several modes later on. Going from easy going, happy settling, to a balanced gameplay and hardcore and co-op modi. Just a feeling though :-)

[ImSexyAndiNOED]

Same here. I tried to play ,but couldn't.
But don't lose all hope ,it seems the devs are trying to improve the game.Updates are still coming and who knows what might change with time .

[demonist]

you guys do know the only fun part of testing is when your making the game yourself?

[Roboglobi]

the game is unplayable in experimental build version.Thats a fact. I hope the developers creates a good version(the game looks amazing,but it is full of bugs) in quartal 1 of the next year and i wish them a nice christmas and new year party.

[Viking Mana]

Originally posted by spraycanmansam | Beam Team Games:

Originally posted by fluxtorrent:

I really wish people would search first before ranting. The current ease of use for the system is for testing, but hey if you want to believe its indicitive of end game instead of actually paying attention, your loss.

Word.

The amount of time taken to write this post (don't get me wrong, appreciate the effort) could have been spent more constructively by looking for the information already posted by us that makes this post unnecessary and puts everyone's concerns to rest...

Well. why not be as constructive as you suggest we be and give us some direction towards this information instead of being passive-aggressive towards paying customers and long-time supporters who are invested in this title?

(Ironically then everything I said would come to pass almost a year ago has come to pass.)

I looked at the thread for the update, and I don't see any information about what's for testing purposes and what isn't.. Am I expected to sift through a 160-page long thread to look for relevant posts?

Please throw us a bone instead of sighing at us.

[demonist]

no need, they dishing out updates weekly at the moment

[Malak]

OP, checkout The Long Dark. Your post was well-written and many of those emotions are felt in TLD.

[Omen3608]

Originally posted by Viking Mana:

... Please throw us a bone instead of sighing at us.

Start reading HERE then. There are links to Trello, Sam's and Ben's postings and more.

You will have to understand though, that it is tiring to read ranting posts by people who have no interest in informing themselves beforehand, otherwise this thread wouldn't exist, in all honesty.

And don't get me wrong here, critizism, ideas, and opinions are warmly welcome, some like the lablemaker even made it ingame. ;)

[demonist]

Label maker is pretty funny "heres my stick, his name is Bob. Alright bob lets go!" sprint around with it like u gonna pole vault, and instead throw it like a javelin, it somehow lands into the fire pit, "BOBBBBBB NOOOOO"

[Viking Mana]

Originally posted by Omen3608:

Originally posted by Viking Mana:

... Please throw us a bone instead of sighing at us.

Start reading HERE then. There are links to Trello, Sam's and Ben's postings and more.

You will have to understand though, that it is tiring to read ranting posts by people who have no interest in informing themselves beforehand, otherwise this thread wouldn't exist, in all honesty.

And don't get me wrong here, critizism, ideas, and opinions are warmly welcome, some like the lablemaker even made it ingame. ;)

You know, I understand that, but you guys are developers, and you're selling a product here. Lashing out at or being passive aggressive towards your paying customers isn't going to get you anywhere. If anything, a rude response to genuine concerns about your game is only going to make you look bad.

Besides, it's not like you can run from the fact that compared to what was promised when this game initially showed up on Early Access has hardly been held. You may have picked up the pace now, but for a very long time development on this title was sluggish at best, even leading some to believe it was already dead in the water. >.>

You gotta be professional if you want to make this your profession.