Every day this game does not get a sequel is a day wasted.

Bottom line up front: The quality and style I've come to expect of Scriptwelder. If you liked Don't Escape 1, 2, or 3, you'll probably like this. If you haven't played them, go try it, they're free on plenty of online game sites.

Pros:
Style is stylistic without being too simple. The amount of detail in environmental effects over time is neat.
Plot is solid.
Variable scenarios enhance replay value.
The entire presentation is solid and fun.

Cons:
Sometimes gets a little pixel-hunty.
Occasionally puzzles are very obscure.

Commentary:
I loved this game. It's better than what I expected. However, it occasionally ends up with wandering around or save scumming because of obscure puzzles or items I couldn't see. It's still excellent, and while I just finished it, I'll be going right back in after this review.

For people who played the first three games, this game is much less strict about getting everything perfectly, but sometimes only getting close means you make it to the next day, but not without some real pain.

It's nice to show my appreciation not for one great game, but seven years of great games. I highly recommend this game.

Edit: Removed "There's some scenarios that, as far as I can tell, are no-win." from cons. Unclear situations and bugs that stonewalled me have been dealt with since launch. You can still back yourself into a corner, but every problem you have is of your own creation.

Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive is one of the best point & click games I've ever played, and it'd be easily considered a masterpiece if it was released back in point & click games era.

What really shocked me is how well the game mixes point & click elements with actual post-apocalyptic survival. The moment I launched a second playthrough and realized that majority of the events that happen are now COMPLETELY different compared to my first playthrough, I was speechless, it's not just a really good point & click game, it's a point & click game with actual replayability factor, and now THAT'S something the game can be really proud of.

I don't know what else is there to say, it's a very decent story in awesome setting with very interesting mechanics and general idea for itself, done by a single person with two more supporting him. I consider it a mandatory pick for everybody who is interested how point & click fallout/wasteland could look like, and even if this isn't RPG game, the vibes and inspiration is clearly visible.

My opinion - a masterpiece in point & click genre, must-play with very unusual (in this genre) replayability factor.

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At first, I didn't realize that Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive (DE4) was the 4th game from the DE series. The first three are available as a compilation on Steam, but I played them on Kongregate. With each entry in the series, the gameplay expanded and got more complicated, though the general idea was fairly constant: travel around nearby areas and scavenging for materials you can use to fend off a threat. Since the previous games were originally free, I had to wonder whether DE4 would make enough changes to warrant a purchase.


There isn't a drastic change in how DE4 plays in comparison to the previous titles. It's a point and click game, where you'll have to determine the best means available in order to deal with the obstacles that cross your path. This will include gathering up supplies you find in the few places still standing and worth checking out, doing patchwork and puzzle solving with tools you acquire, and having to decide whether it's worth your time to complete tasks like building a bridge or tearing down an old greenhouse.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2338182218
Since DE4 is a point and click game, you'll play it with nothing but your mouse. At times you might 'R click' in order to get more information on an item, but the vast majority of the time, you'll just 'L click' everything. Some features are kind of fickle. You can double click in order to dash over to other parts of the screen, but if you try doing so while using an item on something, it makes you disengage with the item. What you'll want to do is double-click to run over next to the thing you're going to interact with, and then use the item on it.


Taking the perspective of David, you find yourself alone in a desert, with meager items on hand. Making your way to a small, abandoned town you're plagued with memories from a nightmare you recently had, and scavenge whatever possible in order to make it through the night. Over the next few days, the threat keeps shifting, and you'll be able to bring on allies to survive through each event as it arises. As David and his comrades come to trust one another, more information about what led to this apocalyptic event will surface, and how you can survive.

When first checking the achievements, I was annoyed that I'd have to replay DE4 multiple times to get different RNG for what threat arose each day. Without giving away too much, there's actually a narrative purpose behind why there's multiple options you can encounter. It's true that it doesn't remove the need to replay what's functionally the same areas, with only minor differences, but how the story is set-up provides a rationale for it. Plus, if you do things correctly, you can break the cycle in a true ending.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2338048309
The developer, scriptwelder, has a distinct style with their pixel games. I think they do quite well in creating environments, effectively using light sources and shadows to build depth, and making areas that are tense and spooky. The trade off is that the characters have some detail in their attire, but have incomplete faces since they have no mouths. Due to this, they wind up not being very expressive. I had a bit of difficulty noticing usable items once or twice, but most of the time, it's clear what you can pick up or interact with.


Since the situation the protagonists face includes a dying world, it's fitting that the music for the game sounds despondent and empty. Certain songs don't even really fit that description, as they're composed of ambient noise that sounds desolate and haunting. It's rather effective at matching the grim tone of the sucky situation the characters are in. When you interact with certain objects, such as hammering planks together, you'll hear an appropriate sound effect. I think all of the sound effects were done well enough, and I don't remember any annoying noises.

https://steamcommunity.com/sharedfiles/filedetails/?id=2338049359
🌟 In the earlier DE games, I found some of the requirements to setting things up obtuse. Things had to be placed in the right place and order, there was little margin of error, and it could be really unclear what you screwed up. That's still somewhat present, but it's been tampered down. For instance, to protect against the cold, you'll need to insulate the windows. When you hang something over the window, it tells you that he still needs to attach it.
🌟 It seemed like the tasks you were expected to complete were simplest in the first two days, with the gameplay most similar to the earlier titles. The second half of the game wasn't a large change, but they were more complex, and makes you pay attention to your environment, as well as your objectives.


❌ Although it's interesting to find out the entire series is considered to be part of a shared continuity, since each takes the POV of unrelated characters, it doesn't mean very much. None of the previous characters cross paths or seemingly left any lingering effects that'd impact what happens here.
❌ The events that take place are a bit over the top and untenable. I find it a bit hard to swallow.


🔍 I believe the gas tank is infinite, so I always refilled my truck and the gas container when convenient so that I wouldn't have to worry about running out at a lousy time. Also, the truck has storage space in the trunk, and the bridge can be worked on a second time so you can drive over it. Barry can increase the fuel efficiency on the truck if you talk to him about it at his house.
🔍 As long as you're packing up and unloading your inventory intelligently as you go back and forth from your base, the time provided is fairly generous. I wound up redoing a day or two in order to get through ordeals with 100% efficiency, but when I had some idea of what to do, I had time to spare. You'll also want to make alternating saves every so often.
🔍 It's not a bad idea to bring everything back to the base over the first couple of days, even if you don't wind up needing it for the first ordeal, as it might be applicable later. Breaking down and building everything possible with the time you have is also useful.


Out of all the games made by the developer, DE4 definitely has the most meat to it, as the story unfolds further upon a playthrough in Awakened Mode. So even after you beat the game once, you have motivation to go through it again. There will be some change on what items of interest you need to focus on and use, altering things just enough that it's not too repetitive, while also not being so different you have to waste time figuring out new solutions. Most of the cutscenes and dialogue you've already seen can either be skipped or progressed through by mashing the mouse, though it'd have been nice if there was a way to fast forward text you'd already seen.

If you already were a fan of the DE series, you'll like what's on offer here, and I think many fans of point and click games would like it as well. It can be finished in around 10 hours, based on whether you refer to guides or solve it yourself. Overall, I'd suggest waiting for a sale before picking it up.

«Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive" (this is the final name, eh?) - this is a real hidden gem that you can safely recommend. At first I was quite skeptical about the game: oh, pixel art, how they are going to mix survival and point-n-click quest, again the post-apocalypse. However, after 10 minutes of the game, I was sitting with my mouth open, fully drawn into the gameplay, discarding any bad thoughts, because the game is just incredible. They actually took on a very ambitious task, because the point-and-click genre of the quest itself implies slowness, prudent thoughtfulness, and the survival game genre is based on opposite things, and how to mix these absolutely contradictory entities for me a mystery. And to be honest, I don’t even remember adventure games that at least tried to mix these genres, which makes the developers have the courage and ingenuity to respect.

The concept of the game can be mastered by the player very quickly, it is extremely clear and accessible. Every day you have a certain amount of time before the onset of some terrible events, and your task is to prepare for them as effectively as possible. Explore the neighborhood, collect the trash of the dead world, strengthen your home, save the survivors, create weapons and useful tools. The available time is spent ONLY on serious actions (long hikes between locations, repairs, etc.), that is, on the one hand, you can always safely explore different places without rushing, but on the other you always know that your important actions need to be carefully to plan. A place in a backpack is limited both in the number of cells and in the weight of objects, therefore, it will not be possible to carry out everything at once, and the choice is often very difficult. And this approach makes you serious about any discovery, at some point I caught myself thinking that I’ve immediately estimated every new thing from the point of view of utility, wondering where to use it. This is a very big victory for such an experimental game. The developers managed to make it so that survival did not block the breath of the point-n-click quest, and that does not prevent the player from feeling a sense of danger, a sense of the constant need to rush and use any opportunity for survival.

And as if this is not enough, the game also offers a great story, constantly moving forward, with very cordial and interesting moments, live characters and an interesting ending. The plot manages to constantly surprise, present some sudden things, brightly blossoming during the whole playing time, constantly maintaining an emotional connection with the player. I just didn’t really like the computer-aided way of presenting descriptions and dialogues between the characters, as for me, it was not very convenient. Pixel art is made on a good technical level, in some places the backgrounds are just incredible. All the puzzles and tasks are very logical, even if they are often difficult (I think this is even an advantage), replayability is also quite at the level (the game offers various types of daily dangers that threaten the player, and you can go through them in many ways).

“Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive” is a very bold and bright experiment, unexpectedly combining very different and dissimilar things, clearly demonstrating that creative courage and resourcefulness can work wonders. Highly recommend.

All my homies hate Sidereal Plexus

After so many years gaming it's really rare to find something new in terms of gameplay. It's even more unique when this rare instance is good too.

Well, I am very very glad I found one such game.

Don't know why, but one of the best games of all time.

I had more fun playing this game than Starfield

I saw the first 2 days on YouTube before deciding against watching anymore and giving this game a go myself, and it was an excellent decision to do so. Don't Escape: 4 Days to Survive is a polished, charming game that while it won't occupy you for 80 hours like some modern triple A games, the time it does garner your attention is an absolute joy.

For the record, I'm not a massive point and click fan - I know it's not a majorly popular genre these days, but if you played stuff like The Walking Dead from Telltale, it does have a similar vein "Your decisions matter!" on a less frequent basis, but more impactful.

But returning to the subject of point and clicks, I think a reason they're a bit hit and miss and why I'm not a big fan is just because the way people think and problem solve varies so wildly from each individual, what's obvious to one person takes another an hour to figure out.

Usually devs seem to avoid giving hints or nudging the player towards the right direction, Scriptwelder does a very fair job, not being too obvious but having well placed subtle comments making you read carefully and understand when the game's trying to point you towards the answer.

I would recommend you watch the first day get played out by someone else on YouTube to see if it might be your thing - and you don't even have to worry about it spoiling your own gameplay experience since there's a pool of potential threats each night your game will randomly select as you play.

The story is quite a complex one, but I think they do a great job of explaining it so that it's relatively easy to understand and gives you a satisfying conclusion, it even weaves in new game plus in such a way that even if you're not normally one to go back and replay a game, the previous feature I mentioned means your next playthrough will feel like a continuation rather than repeating what you just did.

I will add some criticism, but honestly I can't say there's much that put me off. There are some situations that I felt were way too obscure and had no indication of what direction to take, but I've seen others almost instantaneously solve the problem so I think that's just the inherent nature of point and clicks.
It's also pretty easy, I only managed to die once on night 2, so if you want a challenge it'll be trying to achieve perfect nights where the game rewards you for doing so.

I don't usually write reviews anymore, but for the first game Scriptwelder has made that they've put a pricetag on, I wanted to put a good word out there to hopefully sway some folks to support the developer.
Thanks for reading and I hope this helped you.