Grounded

[Moonface]

I hadn't given this game much care or attention from its initial announcement to the official release, but someone I watch on Twitch played it and this game looks like a lot of fun! I definitely want to pick it up at some point and would totally be up for playing it with others if anyone else here is interested.

Anyone else here have interest in this game?

[ShiraNoMai]

Definitely a game I'd love to try with others. Seems quite long though, definitely one of those long-term play games with friends.

[Moonface]

Seems quite long though, definitely one of those long-term play games with friends.

I wonder if it would be as long with multiple people if everyone could head out individually or in groups to tackle different tasks, like how we did in Minecraft with @Karo.

A little bit of a shame the game world isn't procedurally generated at all though, since basically after you get everything done there's not much reason to play a new game right away like in Minecraft or Terraria. Not to say I lost interest in the game in any capacity; I just thought at first it wasn't a pre-made map.

[Moonface]

So I started this game two weeks ago and kept forgetting to post anything about it.

Anyway, based on what I've played so far I'd definitely recommend the game, but also man this game might have one of the hardest starts for a survival game that I've played. I'm playing it blind in co-op with @ShiraNoMai and despite there being two of us I don't feel strong enough to fight anything above an ant even though we've been upgrading our stuff as soon as we're able to. Any time I think I'm strong enough to go fight something tougher like a mosquito I very quickly get put in my place.

I also didn't know this game has multiple NG+ cycles that are influenced by your actions in the most recent playthrough and each cycle adds new stuff into the game so that the pre-made world doesn't just become dull quickly on repeat playthroughs.

[queenzelda]

I've only seen other people stream this game, though the story seems interested I however am not. I'm not a fan of many survival games. Especially ones with bugs bigger then you, no thanks. I will say that Bee gear is really good from what I saw another streamer do in order to get it. But you better be prepared too cause the bees are not easily taken down. Same with the spiders.

[ShiraNoMai]

I don't blame you, queen. Especially playing in first person, the bug situation does become exponentially more horrifying of an experience. Luckily, you can third person view, which has helped me significantly deal with some of that anxiety (though I wind up just spooking myself a lot cuz the camera enjoys clipping and I'll see frayed shadows, not realizing they're my own...)

I think it doesn't help with the really rough/unfair start, because the horror is actually compounded by the real threats of the game. It'd be one thing if you felt some kind of level of fair playing field but nah, everything can just absolutely rip you to shreds if you breathe incorrectly.

I think we have made some fair progress, though, since Moony last posted. Some minor upgrades in our weaponry and armor have made fights quicker, and thereby making them less risky to encounter.

[Moonface]

I've only seen other people stream this game, though the story seems interested I however am not.

For me the story has become a little whatever currently, mainly due to far too much dialogue in-game and I feel like the premise of being shrunk down in a backyard is interesting enough by itself that the supposed story of good versus evil scientist that the game seems to be heading towards just isn't strong enough to hold up alongside the interest of the setting itself.

Right now we've just beaten the third lab (we're going in intended order) and I'd say that the labs have gotten progressively disappointing for me. The Hedge Lab was a highlight for me that the Pond and Haze Labs haven't really matched for me, but fortunately for me the labs in this game are like the divine beasts in BotW; they're okay but exploring the open world is what grabs me enough that other areas being weaker isn't a big deal breaker for me to keep playing.

[queenzelda]

Usually for me most games I'm interested in are usually story heavy, which I know this is. But with having to build a base, survive and my not liking bugs: this game turns me off. I don't mind watching someone else play it or stream it. But playing it myself, is a whole other thing. 🤷‍♀️

Idk, it's just survival games have never been something I like playing.

[Moonface]

Usually for me most games I'm interested in are usually story heavy, which I know this is. But with having to build a base, survive and my not liking bugs: this game turns me off. I don't mind watching someone else play it or stream it. But playing it myself, is a whole other thing. 🤷‍♀️

Idk, it's just survival games have never been something I like playing.

Fair enough. I don't know if building a base is really necessary or not yet; I get the feeling you could just toss down the crafting devices needed somewhere out of reach of most if not all bugs and make do with just that, which is what Shira and I were doing prior to making an actual base building.

The biggest gripe I have with the game though is how utterly unforgiving it feels all the time even on normal difficulty, and some of the game design is just punishing regardless of difficulty. For example, we travelled all the way to the black anthill because that's where the next lab is, and discovered that you can't actually gain access to the lab without an explosive. That meant we had to go all the way back across the map to our base and farm for explosive ingredients, and then walk all the way back to the anthill again, because one of the key ingredients for explosives is nowhere close to the black anthill area. I'm not a fan of a critical item being required to progress and having no idea of that fact until I've spent 10+ minutes travelling to somewhere that needs that item without having it on me (because I didn't expect I needed to have one).