Pours one on the curb for Don't Starve

[FlowerChild]

Ok, so instead of fixing the giant gaping unfinished and unbalanced hole in the game that they mysteriously decided to create immediately post-release with caves, turns out that the Don't Starve team decided to work on something else entirely with this release, in almost Mojang-like "we broke it completely so now we're going to procrastinate about that by doing something else" fashion.

http://youtu.be/F6eeO1tPBz0

Seriously..."wtf" doesn't seem to cover it anymore. I haven't touched DS in weeks now because of the circle jerk that is caves.

[DaveYanakov]

I posted my feelings on the youtube reveal which will assuredly be lost amidst the sea of people saying thank you for making the game so much easier. I cannot bring myself to create a frum account over there anymore.

[BinoAl]

*sigh*
Why can't FC just become designer of every possibly good game? I hate that the developer probably thinks that this is all positive changes, too. After all, the fans of most games will flood with praise for any half-assed new feature that doesn't increase difficulty

[Taleric]

I was equally sad to see DS take this turn and head the way of vMC. Really it appears to be the trend now to add anything that maintains buzz.

Gamers will all get to the point where they appreciate rewarding difficulty and design like DarkSouls, BTW, ect. I feel like there is little incentive for developers to design anything thought out when they can just pile on cut scenes, items and graphics.

[FlowerChild]

I feel like there is little incentive for developers to design anything thought out when they can just pile on cut scenes, items and graphics.

Well...unless we're making games that we actually want to play ;)

[FlowerChild]

Ok, I give up. I think I just need to accept that the game is still in alpha/beta/theta or whatever the fuck it is, despite the official "release" designation. I think the disappointment over thinking I had some kind of "final" version, or at least a version with the final balance in place is the source of most of my frustration over it.

I ranted on the forums about it for awhile, but decided to withdraw before it escalated into "Notch: Wolves Are a Bad Idea" territory. The thread kept running in circles, nobody seemed to really grok what I was saying about the difference between in game and out of game decision making, the developer gave me the same answer I got a month ago (slightly more lengthy) that they'd be fixing it in time, and there you go.

Here's the thread if anyone here is interested about my full thoughts on the matter. And yes, I was rather tipsy last night when I made that first post ;)

http://forums.kleientertainment.com/sho ... s-going-on

[BinoAl]

11 pages, going in circles of "Just don't play then!". You still got it!

EDIT: Read the whole thread. It's disappointing that despite getting a response from the dev, he didn't even seem to get what the issue was.
*pours another on the curb*

[EpicAaron]

Reading other forums is so hard now! D:
Your design views seem to have grown into a part of me.

[jorgebonafe]

Yeah, FC's ideas contaminates us like the groth...

[MoRmEnGiL]

More like spoil us I would say. It's hard following a game's update process after following btw's, the expectations are soaring.

As for DS, eh, you must accept that not everyone shares your tight airproof design philosophy.. I'm sure they intend to work further on the caves, they just don't see it as big of a priority as you, evident by slapping a disclaimer and releasing it. Annoying as it might be, they have their own way of doing things, and giving feedback and advice is all one can do.

Were I you, I'd just be happy that the warnings reached them, and not feel too disappointed as there's really not much you can do.

I'll say, after what you have done with btw, I probably won't be really disappointed by another game's update cycle, simply because I know it will never match up to the forethought, quality, and extreme care you put in your releases. But on the other hand, I can tell it permeates your entire being, and it is a borderline obsession of yours. Can't really expect everyone to invest this much of themselves in a project..

[JakeZKAM]

Wealp I read the thread and since it was still arguing in circle for awhile decided to chime in on FC's side and got accused of being an Alt account of his o.O I just love how friendly the community over there is. Reminds me of the lovely folk at MCF -.-

[BinoAl]

Welp, I've been sucked in. ;p

[BinoAl]

Hey guys,

I've thought about it some more, and I think that a good solution will be to put an option in the world gen screen that will let you toggle caves on or off. This is in-line with the way that that screen works anyway, so it's not like we'd be adding a lot of front-end cruft or anything.

We develop things a bit differently with Don't Starve, and this can make some players a bit uncomfortable. The line between playing and testing and community can get a bit blurred. I personally think that this is a good thing - I really enjoy the dialog that I have with you guys, but I can see how some players would want to keep the magic circle a bit more sacred.

So look for a hotfix later this week after the main update that will add a caves option.

Bam.

[Stormweaver]

FC wins again!

...by them adding options to the game. It's a vicious cycle.

[FlowerChild]

Oh wow. That was unexpected. Mad props to Kevin for seeing my point in the end. Christ, I think that just increased my respect for Klei many fold.

FC wins again!

Wait...that implies I've won before. Can you remind me when that might have been? :)

[Stormweaver]

Wait...that implies I've won before. Can you remind me when that might have been? :)

You always win. Normally people are just too stubborn to admit it.

[mazer246]

Yeah, I too was surprised to see an unfinished feature in the default settings of a supposedly complete game. But nothing could prepare me for that logic that some of those guys used... and also how your point went a couple feet over their heads.

"Don't like it, don't use it?" Oww... that hurts

[FlowerChild]

Yeah, I too was surprised to see an unfinished feature in the default settings of a supposedly complete game. But nothing could prepare me for that logic that some of those guys used... and also how your point went a couple feet over their heads.

"Don't like it, don't use it?" Oww... that hurts

I've been hearing that same reasoning for a couple of years now. It hurt so much it's one of the main reasons BTW exists ;)

[PatriotBob]

Yeah, I too was surprised to see an unfinished feature in the default settings of a supposedly complete game. But nothing could prepare me for that logic that some of those guys used... and also how your point went a couple feet over their heads.

"Don't like it, don't use it?" Oww... that hurts

I've been hearing that same reasoning for a couple of years now. It hurt so much it's one of the main reasons BTW exists ;)

See, now I'm sad... I was going to buy Don't Starve after hearing you talk about it being so well made.

[Gilberreke]

FC wins again!

...by them adding options to the game. It's a vicious cycle.

Not the same thing actually. Adding an option that allows you to disable alpha content does not increase the complexity of gameplay design beyond a normal "new content" cycle, which already seems to be in place (unlike Minecraft, they finish features before starting new ones, more or less).

In my opinion, it's a good compromise.

[logorouge]

It's impressive how most players don't even see "throwing balance out of the window" as a problem. :P
But now I don't really know when I'm supposed to pick up this intriguing game if I want to play the real/as intended DS experience.

[FlowerChild]

It's impressive how most players don't even see "throwing balance out of the window" as a problem. :P
But now I don't really know when I'm supposed to pick up this intriguing game if I want to play the real/as intended DS experience.

I honestly have no idea anymore either man. I'd like to recommend the game without hesitation like I've done in the past, but despite the positive resolution, I'd like to see how this turns out.

[Folrig]

Wait...that implies I've won before. Can you remind me when that might have been? :)

Better. Than. Wolves.

[Sarudak]

Sanity prevails?

:)

[FlowerChild]

Oh wow. That is absolutely awesome news. I've had very little desire to play DS as of late.