Friday Forage: April 25th

This week’s forage features international sleuthing, new fodder for my Long Dark shrine, and [checks notes] portion control.

🌲 UnReal World
Version 3.86 (stable) just dropped to the live branch of the game. I really need to pick it up and play. Honestly, it’s mostly the 1980s look and feel that’s making me hesitate, because on paper I love so many of the development choices and mechanics. Argh.

(Though I did enjoy very old school Oregon Trail AND I was able to swallow the look of Odell Lake.)

👉🏼 I’m burning copious amounts of brain cells right now trying to think of any other games that do portion-based cooking. Not the usual “one fish + one apple = one dish” setup where if you have five fish and five apples, you crank out five meals. I mean actual intentional small portions — because you either don’t have enough mats, you don’t need a full meal, or you’re trying to avoid spoilage. Hmmm.

I also really like the straight-up back-to-basics birch containers! Most games either go urban (you’re finding cans or metal pots) or primitive but faster (coconut bowls, turtle shells, chipped rock bowls). Birch bark does everything — you can use it for crafting and building to medicinal and culinary applications.

💉  Serum
Speaking of cooking, let’s talk about what’s not cooking.
(Too soon? Too Dad joke? I have 8 cats, not kids, but I should still hone the art.)
Spent a few days digging into the rise and fall of Serum, all the way to its current frozen-popsicle survival mode. Not gonna rehash it all here, but if you’re curious — go read the article. (I enjoyed working on it!) And if you were thinking about picking it up? Yeah, maybe don’t.

🪓 The Long Dark
First and foremost — if you’re a fan of the game, go read April’s Dev Log directly from the source. More than almost any other game, The Long Dark’s dev logs pack in so much info, media, and emotion that you’re better off hearing it straight from them. Form your own opinions before some publication or creator tries to narrate it for you and maybe steer your view on things.

That said — here’s my take! What a great read. I really like that they opened by addressing Episode 5 and the folks shrieking about it not being here (and rabid about a new game being announced). Again, read the dev log directly to understand how that stuff works, but I think people forget that Episode 5 will mark the end of the story for Hinterland’s first IP — the IP they’re banking a lot of future hopes on (a second game, maybe a movie, etc.). They have to stick the landing.

I really want them to continue updating The Long Dark and leaning even harder into those consequential, punishing mechanics that made the game legendary. While I’m sure BLACKFROST will be an amazing new chapter for the IP, the inclusion of multiplayer is going to completely change the playing field. I’ve yet to find a multiplayer survival game that keeps the same tension and consequence as a true single-player experience — but if anyone can pull it off, it’s Hinterland. (I mean, on paper I could too, but y’know… lacking a studio, funds, etc. Rip.)

If you somehow don’t already own the game (Story Mode + Survival Sandbox) or the DLC, seriously, go grab them. They’re on an absolutely ridiculous discount right now — like 90% off — and the bang for your buck is insane. Also, check out all the cool stuff you get with the paid DLC!

That’s it for this week. See you next Friday!