Chapter 194: Don't Starve
When the screen appeared, everyone's attention was focused on the sketch of Don't Starve in front of them. Before seeing it, Alex had already completed a simple drawing. In the wilderness, a small figure with messy hair was sitting in front of a campfire, and monsters like spiders and boars were slowly approaching in the distance.
Although it was not colored, the style of the game could be seen at a glance.
"Is it a survival game?".
"Is the artistic style very peculiar, with thick lines and a European and American cartoon style?".
"Similar to It Takes Two and Overcooked, is it a cooperative game?".
Upon seeing the name of the game Don't Starve and the original drawings, everyone present silently speculated about what kind of game it was.
"Just like the name of the game, Don't Starve, the player's mission is to avoid death. Survival is the essence of the game."
"Gather stones and branches, craft hunting tools, master technology, build your own camp, and explore the unknown world to survive better."
"In addition, within the game, players can suffer a mental breakdown and go crazy when they encounter strange monsters, die of cold, die of hunger, or even be attacked and killed by wild monsters."
Alex explained a fundamental concept of Don't Starve to the audience.
"Does anyone have any questions?", Alex asked.
After he finished speaking, Eric stroked his chin and looked at the sketch on the large screen. "So this is a survival game? But, Alex, if it's too difficult, won't they be able to keep playing?".
Jane, standing next to him, nodded. "Yes, Alex, Dark Souls is a large-scale production, with top-notch graphics, plot, and action. But Don't Starve is clearly a small-scale production. Without the appearance that keeps players playing, won't it discourage them from playing immediately?".
"By the way, why do you think this is a suffering game?". Alex was speechless.
The slightly unsettling artistic style, plus the fact that it is a survival game, includes mental breakdown, freezing, starvation, and monster attacks. According to Alex's description, it gives the feeling that the protagonist is under constant threat of death.
Considering his previous work on Dark Souls, Silent Hill PT, and his exciting mallet game, as well as the newly released Death Mode, they unconsciously thought of suffering.
"Of course there is difficulty, but unlike Dark Souls, players can choose," Alex explained, a little speechless.
'Does he look like the type of designer who enjoys tormenting players? That's too much; there's no more trust!'.
"Okay, let me explain the design direction of this game in detail. The core of the game revolves around survival, encouraging players to explore and collect...".
After explaining the design principles of Don't Starve, everyone went back to their jobs.
In its previous stage, Don't Starve was a unique and small-scale game. Despite its low budget, its sales even exceeded those of the big blockbusters. On Steam, Don't Starve sold more than 10 million copies. After its release in the local store through a company, its sales also exceeded one million in its first month, and then three million in a remarkably short period of time.
Of course, there were reasons for this phenomenal growth. Initially, Don't Starve was a single-player game. Despite its unique appeal, it lacked a turning point.
It was not until the release of the multiplayer version that Don't Starve's sales really took off.
The team chose this game as their next project due to the excellence and charm of Don't Starve, and also because it serves as a strategic basis for the subsequent Nebula Game Store.
Don't Starve served as a benchmark to measure players' enthusiasm for survival and sandbox games.
There are many other sandbox options, such as the popular Valheim in previous lives, as well as the unforgettable Minecraft and Terraria.
However, considering that sandbox modes have not yet become popular in the parallel world, although Alex has discovered some games with sandbox features, they have not yet established themselves as a differentiated genre. Players are still relatively unaware of this game mode.
The release of Don't Starve serves as a benchmark. Compared to the games mentioned, Don't Starve has a fundamental feature: its clear objectives.
Being a sandbox game with a high degree of freedom, new players who have not played similar games are likely to be completely bewildered upon entering it. Many Minecraft players in previous lives did not even understand the difference between creative and survival modes upon entering the game. Not to mention the complex tools, many did not even know how to use a workbench.
For most new players, the two main tasks they knew were digging in the dirt and chopping down trees. While this is partly due to the game's guide, it is also due to its excessive freedom, which can make players who are not familiar with sandbox games feel lost.
Don't Starve, on the other hand, takes a more direct approach, whether it's survival, adventure, or cooperative play. The essence of the game is established from the beginning: explore an unknown world, collect resources, build various means of production, and strive to survive for as long as possible.
This gives players a central goal: survival.
With this central goal, players do not feel completely overwhelmed, as they understand that the goal is to survive and that achieving it is all they need to do. Through this goal, players can gradually experience the sandbox game and appreciate the richness of the content of Don't Starve.
The game features a variety of scenarios, including plains, swamps, grasslands, mining areas, forests, and caves. The different terrains produce different production elements and generate different monsters. In addition, the basic rules of the game include seasonal scenarios.
Spring brings frequent rains and crops grow faster than in other seasons. In summer, flammable materials spontaneously combust, causing a rapid increase in the character's body temperature, which can lead to heat stroke. In winter, crops grow slowly, the character's body temperature drops rapidly, and they enter a state of freezing.
Combined with certain random map generation settings, each player's survival adventure is a different experience.
On the other hand, being a sandbox game, another part of the fun lies in the various mods. The fact that Minecraft has been popular for more than ten years in its previous stage can be said to have contributed enormously to its development.
In this area, the Nebula Games creative workshop already laid the groundwork with Overcooked and Fall Guys.
Currently, Overcooked and Fall Guys still have a considerable number of players who maintain their popularity, and the main reason is the creation of the mod community.
The platform users and creative workshops are already ready.
The rest remains to be seen the comments on the performance of the players that Don't Starve brings.
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