I really really want to give this game a positive review....but I just can't. I bought this game last year in February so I witnessed the course of development it took the last months. I have waited since then to write a (positive) review because I think this game has a great potential and when I bought it last year it already had a solid and fun base for an EA game.

What it lacked back then was the longterm motivation. Once you had your basic food and water supplies there was no more need for exploration. All Island were basically the same, a shipwreck here and there but that was it. So I was very very escited for new content. Because the game is developed by only a small team (2 guys if I remember correctly?) updates take some time to be released. But this is where the downfall began...instead of introducing new content to make the game more of a challenge they implemented.....Seaforts! What? Yeah right, Seaforts. The things build by the British in WW2 in the North Sea (!). Other than being totally out of place they provide an additional loot spawn for things you can also find in ship wrecks. Since then (over a year ago now) there hasn't changed much about the amount of content that was released...

To be fair, the developers did a great job updating the engine (e.g. new crafting system - some like the old one better but it's okay) and improving the visuals. For an indie EA game Stranded Deep has stunning and very impressive graphics creating a fantastic atmosphere. Sitting at you campfire at night starring up in the night sky...thats just beautiful ..but that only maks the lack of content more frustrating because I really want to play this game.

So to sum it up: I think the developers are too focused on details instead of expanding the core of the game itself. Wildboars, snakes, tools etc. ... that is all nice to have but once you managed the start the game is basically over. Exploring the ocean and other island...pff, why take a risk when I can sit comfortably in my house once it is build?

This game needs to take a step forward on the macrolevel, not on the microlevel!

I will gladly change this review to a positive one once this happens, until then buy it at your own risk. You might be disappointed after a short time.

Stranded Deep: Start in a plane that soon crashes
The Forest: Start in a plane with your son that soon crashes

Stranded Deep: Have no clue what to do so you go around with your boat
The Forest: Have no clue what to do so you go around with your axe

Stranded Deep: Sharks that want to eat you
The Forest: Naked cannibal people that want to eat you

Stranded Deep: Large emphasis on collecting valuable items deep in the sea
The Forest: Large emphasis on collecting valuable items deep in the caves

Stranded Deep: 2015
The Forest: 2014

Stranded Deep: A buggy Early Access survival game
The Forest: A buggy Early Access survival game

Stranded Deep: Build a base/home to survive
The Forest: Build a base/home/treehouse

Pretty much expect the game to be similar to The Forest, which actually isnt a bad thing.

this game would be great if it was a multiplayer!!!!!!!!

I didn't much like this game. It looks great, and the game is starting to evolve to a point where there is actually some meaningful content, but for me it is too dull and slow. The pace is very casual and everything about the game seems to get repetative too quickly. I've opened this game at the release of each new update and have owned it practically since the day of its release on steam. Over that time I have not been impressed enough with it to play more than 7 hours. Survival games and open world construction are two of my favorite genres, but I feel that Stranded Deep fails to incorporate enough difficulty into survival and makes building too tedious to really consider this game either. More like a castaway simulator. Just like being stranded on an island by yourself, it can get boring at times.

If you like eating coconuts (only coconuts), drowning for an axe and really, REALLY bloody scary sharks, this game is for you.
Yeah, Stranded Deep's pretty awesome, and the game is more or less constantly under development. If/When mulitplayer becomes relevent it'd really complete it.

This game is really great. After about 5 hours of gameplay i still have a lot to explore and never really run out of things to do. The grahpics and the environment are really beautiful. I cannot wait to see what this team does with the game as time goes on. Right now it is in Alpha and is pretty bare bones, i would say there are not a lot of really serious threats at the moment, and i am running out of things to build etc. but with futhur updates this game will be great.

I'm just ♥♥♥♥♥♥ off that since dead fish sink in this game and the great whites only swim in the most deep regions, I can't harvest the great white meat. The things take mad spears and arrows to kill and then just sink into infinity...

It would be interesting if we could build structures onto our boats.

There isn't much incentive to keep going after you figure out a decent system for food and water, but if you're like me, maybe you would just like to hoard shark steaks. I have sooo many shark steaks...

edit*
I forgot to add a few other points: marlins are currently immune to all projectiles. Arrows and spears simply pass through them and one must melee attack them from in the water to deal any type of damage.

Boars take an ungodly amount of damage for how skittish they are and the miniscule meat portions they deal. Multiple spears to kill a cocker spaniel sized pig. Meanwhile, A ~10 foot long tiger shark takes only 3..?

If something could be implemented to give structures some functionality, that would be great (illnesses from exposure?). I would also like to see more craftables like chairs or some type of furniture to put into my structures.

Great whites seem to be extremely passive. I mean passive to the point that I jumped into the water and swam with three of them for 4 or 5 minutes. After I melee attacked one with a spear they promptly destroyed me, but other than that they just seemed to want to hang out.

It felt like in previous versions tiger and great white sharks were much more eager to knock players off of rafts and in about 70 hours of gameplay, gameplay that is mostly focused on hunting sharks, I have been tossed from my raft once. This may have even been a result of a wave, as at this particular time that I was hunting, the weather left much to be desired.

If you approach a floating raft from underneath and collide with it while swimming, it is flung about 30 or so feet in whatever direction you accidentally or purposely aimed it in. As entertaining as this is, if my raft lands upside down, there is no easy way to flip it back upright and as far as I can tell it is impossible to jump on top of a floating overturned raft from the water. If you have an upside down raft on land, no problem, it can be jumped on. The problem arises while the player is swimming with no raised area to stand on next to said raft. I have resorted to either dragging it to shore (problematic if I am not near an island) or repeatedly utilizing said catapulting raft glitch until I am lucky enough to land my raft sail-side up. I would seriously not mind being in open ocean and my raft randomly catapulting while I attempt to board it if I could simply climb on top of the overturned vessel in the event of a shark attack.

These issues aside, I thoroughly enjoy the game for what it is and hope that the developers continue support. There's alot ot potential here.

If islands were massive or large game would be way more fun instead of hundreds of small islands.

mixed feelings about this game,
i will however recommend the game due to the entertainment considering its still in early acces.
but it tends to get boring after a few hours and all you do is gathering materials and expanding your house.. needs more content, i am looking forward to the multiplayer, but still, i feel like there isnt any endgame in this. but still somewhat entertaining, i have had fun with the map creator,

I just spent an hour hunting boars.... When I finally caught one I died from hunger cause im was too busy hunting for food.. aka, the boar.

Best hunting ironic simulator 2017
14/10