Jun 14, 2018

The Long Dark Survival Mode Updated to v1.33 [37608] — VIGILANT FLAME

The Long Dark - hinterland_community

Hello community,

We’ve just updated The Long Dark to v1.33, adding an entirely new wilderness Region, brand-new gameplay features including an overhauled Cooking system, as well as numerous bug fixes in an update we’re calling VIGILANT FLAME.

For all the details, please check out this update video. Full Release Notes are available below:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gEJ2mkJSFGs&feature=youtu.be

New Hushed River Valley Region

Hushed River Valley is a multi-leveled Region that connects to Mountain Town, extending some of the same difficult terrain you see around the town of Milton. The new Region is full of waterfalls, rivers and streams, and lots of cliff areas, but includes no man-made shelters. It’s a highly challenging wilderness area, but keep an eye out for natural shelters, supply caches, and perhaps a mysterious Signal Fire to guide your way.

New Manual Cooking System

We’ve overhauled the cooking system so that it doesn’t occur in a simple menu interface anymore. You place cookable items in the new Recycled Can or Cooking Pot items, or on hot surfaces — namely, stones near burning campfires or on the surface of lit cook stoves — and wait for them to cook. Each food item requires a different amount of time to cook. If you remove the item too soon, it’ll be undercooked, and eating it could result in food poisoning. If you wait too long, you could overcook the item to the point where it becomes an inedible burned lump, thus wasting the valuable food and fuel resources you spent on it. You will also prepare water in a similar way. It means managing multiple timelines when cooking, but it should also free you up to take on other tasks simultaneously.

Buffer Memories

We’ve added new narrative collectibles to Survival Mode, in the form of “buffer memories”. These are the last documents stored in a computer’s memory before all the technology around Great Bear and beyond, was suddenly rendered inert by the mysterious aurora. Now, when the aurora appears at night, you might see some computer terminals display snippets of notes, emails, reports — information that provides more background on the world of The Long Dark. We’ve implemented a first series of Buffer Memories in VIGILANT FLAME, across a series of specific locations. Remember, each location may have more than one memory to offer. You can track discovered memories in the Collections section of your Survival Journal.

Radial Menu Quick Placement

As a result of our Manual Cooking work, you can now place items directly from the Radial. This means that you no longer necessarily have to go into your Pack to drop items for later placement. Radial Placement will be useful for quickly arranging various items, and is something we plan to use for more gameplay*oriented placement in the future. For now, the primary benefit is placing items from your Food radial directly on campfires or stoves, for cooking, or placing Pots and Recycled Cans on cooking surfaces so that you can cook food or melt snow for water.

General Fixes

In addition to these four main features, we’ve made dozens of bug fixes, made performance improvements across the game, and added several minutes of new ambient music to Survival Mode.

***

Changelist v1.33 [37608]

General Fixes

* [All] Fixed Crows spawning below ground.
* [All] Fixed Intro Movie not respecting Master Volume settings.
* [All] Updated localization.
* [All] Fixed duplicated resolutions appearing in Options.
* [All] Fixed FOV being limited to 100.
* [UI] Fixed inventory actions becoming broken when switching between Keyboard/Mouse and Controller.
* [UI] Improved responsiveness of Resolution Selector in Options.
* [UI] Fixed Main Menu flashing briefly before intro video when running the game on Mac or in DX9 mode.
* [UI] Fixed missing Title when viewing Map Screen in Mountain Town.
* [UI] Updated Region Description formatting to be more consistent.
* [UI] Updated UI art to include Climbing Socks.
* [UI] Fixed Feat progress bars to better represent progress.
* [UI] Updated Main Menu Custom Mode text to be easier to read.
* [UI] Fixed Fish appearing with missing or bright colours when taken from a fridge and inspected.
* [UI] Fixed Earmuffs appearing on Paper Doll when equipping other Accessories.
* [UI] Moved "Sort" icon in the Inventory screen.
* [UI] Updated Clothing UI tooltips for all platforms.
* [Linux] Fixed light shaft rendering incorrectly.
* [Linux] Fixed audio not playing for some players.
* [Wintermute] Fixed checkpoint screenshot showing image from previous save.

Gameplay

* [All] Fixed momentary freeze when opening Inventory for the first time.
* [All] Fixed Light Source menu being unavailable when Flashlight is the only light source.
* [All] Scaled size of Fish to work with new cooking system.
* [All] Consolidated UI actions around a single verb - "Use".
* [All] Updated controller actions to support new Quick Placement feature.
* [All] Fixed Aurora not always appearing correctly when player is Passing Time/Resting at specific intervals.
* [All] Updated cooking surfaces around the world for new Cooking System.
* [All] Updated Campfire placement
* [All] Fixed UI not always updating after performing an action such as Purifying water.
* [All] Fixed Clothing Screen stats not always updating after changing clothing.
* [All] Fixed Living Off the Land achievement progress being reset when drinking tea crafted from Reishi Mushrooms or Rosehips.
* [All] Fixed items falling through certain rugs.
* [All] Fixed missing audio when crafting Tinder from Sticks.
* [All] Updated instant kill regions on cliff faces to be more forgiving in some locations.
* [All] Fixed incorrect text appearing when interacting with an active Fire during windy conditions.
* [All] Updated Disclaimer screen not respecting game language when set to Dutch.
* [All] Player can no longer eat ruined food from the Inspection screen.
* [All] Fixed Weak Ice warning persisting if player loads game while standing on Weak Ice.
* [All] Fixed Bear becoming stuck in animation when not in player’s view.
* [All] Fixed player being able to become stuck when attacked while Crafting.
* [All] Fixed Campfire rewarding extra Charcoal.
* [All] Fixed extra arrow being generated after Harvesting a corpse then saving and reloading.
* [All] Realigned Wolf positioning when it feeds off a Moose carcass.
* [All] Adjusted the speed of Rifle shot sound effect when firing indoors.
* [All] Fixed unintentional movement when player is using the Radial Menu with a Controller.
* [All] Fixed misaligned blood decal after harvesting corpse.
* [All] Disabled Radial Menu while holding a stunned Rabbit.
* [All] Lantern now shows Gallons when Imperial Units are selected. Was showing Ounces previously.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed Locations Discovered in the Stats screen to account for Regions with variable number of interiors due to ruined structures.
* [Survival Mode] General fixes for a wide variety of minor locations to make them easier to Survey.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed rare scenario where WINTERMUTE map could appear in your Survival Mode map list.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed Moose getting stuck in running animation when it dies while running.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed not being able to Survey Wolf Carcasses that spawn into the game.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed arrow trails remaining after firing an Arrow in certain scenarios.
* [Survival Mode] Removed Stone Church from Faithful Cartographer requirements, as it was causing an issue with legacy game saves.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed Moose entering hold position when player is holding a light source.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed wildlife resetting location after player transitions to a new Region/interior.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed player becoming stuck when saving and loading while on stairs.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed non-interactable brush near Lonely Lighthouse.
* [Survival Mode] Improved Moose pathfinding when under trees.
* [Wintermute] Fixed player being unable to save if they delete all their Story saves, while playing Wintermute.
* [Wintermute] Fixed several locations where Bear could become stuck during Jeremiah's Folly mission.
* [Wintermute] Fixed missing textures on Cache boxes.
* [Wintermute] Fixed controller input registering during Episode One ending, resulting in UI popup.
* [Wintermute] Autosave option now only appears when playing Wintermute.
* [Wintermute] Fixed issue where Player could not enter Hank's Hatch during the Episode Two side mission if they unlocked the hatch, but were missing the letter.
* [Wintermute] Fixed deer carcass disappearing at the opening of Episode One if Player interacts with, saves, then reloads game.
* [ Wintermute] Fixed Cabin Fever icon appearing in Story Mode, even though the player can not get Cabin Fever in Story Mode.
* [Custom Mode] Adjusted how Wildlife Flee chance is applied.
* [Custom Mode] Adjusted loot tables.

Art/Environment

* [All] Fixed missing texture from the Burnt Flare when viewed in Inspection mode.
* [All] Fixed Smoke "glowing" at night or in fog.
* [Art] Updated Gun Rack scaling to better match Rifle size.
* [Enviro] Tweaked many item placements.
* [Enviro] Fixed numerous locations where objects clip into the environment.
* [Enviro] Polish pass on all Regions.
* [Enviro] Fixed floating snow banks.
* [Enviro] Fixed instances of bushes clipping into trees.
* [Enviro] Fixed Climbing Rope texture not appearing correctly.
* [Enviro] Fixed stretched texture on fallen tree trunk.
* [Enviro] Fixed numerous locations where players could become stuck.
* [Enviro] Updated various tree groups that were missing collision.
* [Enviro] Fixed some Ropes being difficult to interact with from the bottom.
* [Enviro] Fixed floating Rosehip bushes in Timberwolf Mountain.
* [Enviro] Fixed trees and bushes populating the same location in Desolation Point.
* [Enviro] Fixed Flag clipping into Lake Cabins.
* [Enviro] Removed extra exterior window on certain cabins.
* [Survival Mode] Fixed Moose scratch texture on trees appearing stretched.
* [Wintermute] Fixed Aurora during Episode One introduction sequence flickering at certain angles.

### END OF CHANGELIST ###

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Apr 27, 2018

Dev Diary — May 2018

The Long Dark - hinterland_community

Hello everyone,

Since the last time I updated you in February, the team’s been working hard on a variety of things.

Some have been more “housekeeping” related, like dealing with Unity updates, general performance improvements (as the game continues to get bigger and bigger and our scenes more complex, we have to continuously optimize to make sure performance remains above an acceptable threshold), integrating new tools and features into our development pipeline, and adding new people to our growing development team.

This is all part of our commitment to continue building on the foundation of The Long Dark’s Survival Mode, while also working on new features and content for our Episode One and Two “Redux” (which I first discussed here: http://www.thelongdark.com/news/dev-diary-february-2018/) which is solidifying the foundation for Episode Three and onward.

Let me cherry-pick a few things to share with you at this point. Keep in mind that each of these entries is at a different stage of development and while some of these things will end up in our next Survival Mode update, some will need further polish and tuning before they are ready.

New Region: “River Valley” (placeholder name)

New waterfall effects in action.

New approach to landscape layout and tree density helps keep visual interest while forcing players to keep close eye on the horizon.

River Valley features new rock formations with much steeper verticals.

Ice caves with bioluminescent moss.

Our goal with this new region is to create an environment that doesn’t have a single human-made shelter on it -- so, even more rugged and isolated than Timberwolf Mountain with its lonely Mountaineer’s Hut. This new region has also been a test-bed of sorts, for a new approach to how we create our environments, including new rocks and more varied tree density. We’ve also added a new type of cave system, redone our waterfalls, and have focused on having the entire region be more of an “environmental” puzzle for you to solve. We’re also experimenting with varying elevations and a range of climbing (or caving) options to find your way around.

New Gameplay: Manual Cooking

Cooking around the campfire.

Different cooking implements offer different benefits.

This is something we’ve been discussing for a long time and our most recent prototypes have proven fruitful to the extent that I feel comfortable sharing them with you. We’ve overhauled the cooking system so that it doesn’t occur in a simple menu interface anymore. Now you have to place food items -- either in cooking vessels like pots or cans, or on their own -- on hot cooking surfaces like stovetops or rocks around a campfire. Each type of cooking source -- whether it be a single-burner stove, a campfire, or a large “cooker” like the one you see in the Pleasant Valley farmhouse, has a number of available “cooking slots”. The cooking times have been tuned (still in progress!) to account for the fact they happen in real-time in the game now -- i.e. not during an accelerated progress bar. We’re still working through a variety of user interface issues with this system but we feel it’s pretty promising. This work has also opened up the possibility of placing items in the world directly from the radial menu, which feels natural and is a much quicker way to manipulate things in the world, vs. having to first drop them from your Pack and manipulate them in placement mode. We’re still working on this but the initial tests are promising!

New Content: Buffer Memories

The aurora may reveal old mysteries through the words of long-forgotten (or long-frozen?) residents of Great Bear.

I discussed these in my last update, and we have the first series of Buffer Memories in the game. These are basically “lore drops” that will live in Survival Mode, but are only available on certain screens and then only when the Aurora is active. Our first pass on these will be focused on adding some background history to the world, presented as the words of Great Bear residents from days, weeks, or years before the events of The Long Dark. Future Buffer Memory “drops” may also link up to gameplay events or supply caches. Active terminals can be interacted with to read the content, which will then be added to your Survival Journal. We plan to expand this with different display types and even devices.

Redux: Mission Overhaul

We’ve completed our overhaul of the mission structures in our current Episodes One and Two, as part of the “Redux” work. The result is that the mission structure that was almost entirely linear at launch, is now almost entirely open. There are still “critical path” narrative missions that need to be completed before you can move on to the next episode, but many missions can now be completed in any order, and several are completely optional. We’re also adding a new opening to the game, and adding some new “side missions”.

New System: Dynamic Conversation Interface

Now that the mission structure has been opened up, we can’t use linear cinematics to present our story anymore. We’ve moved everything into first-person dialogues between Mackenzie and the NPCs, like Grey Mother, and Jeremiah. We’ve also integrated all the Trust unlocks into the main dialogue flow.

To support this, we’ve come up with a new dialogue system. Rather than using the standard cardinal points menu for selecting topics, we’re putting all the topics directly into the world. How topics are presented will tell you something about their relative importance to you, and to the NPC survivors. You’ll quickly be able to pick out the topics that link up to mission content, vs. the ones that are more about providing backstory. Topics that depend on you having sufficient Trust with an NPC will hide in the “background”, and as Trust is gained, they will resolve to become clearer to you, so that eventually they will be selectable.

This is our way of tying the dialogue in the game more closely to the survivor’s state of mind, and making it feel more like a living, breathing aspect of the story and the characters you meet as you explore. Because of this new system, all dialogue in the game will now be fully voiced.

We’re still working on this but we feel it’s a promising direction, and most importantly it supports a lot of flexibility in terms of when and how we unlock access to content, which means the game will be more dynamic for the player.

New Gameplay: Bear Spear

This is pretty self-explanatory. The feature is at an early stage so consider this a “tease”.

Episode Three

Not to sound like a broken record, but I’ll share more specific news about Episode Three when I think the time is right. The time is not yet right.

Xbox One X & PS4 Pro Enhancements

Lots of people have been asking us about this. We have a first pass on higher quality visual settings for Xbox One X and PS4 Pro. We’re also working on HDR-support for both. 4k support works on Xbox One X but we’re not sure we’ll be able to get it working on PS4 Pro, due to performance. We’re still working on optimizations and we’ll see where we end up!

In order to support these enhancements we’ve had to implement an entirely new post-effects pipeline in the game, the side benefit being that we’ll be able to get an improved anti-aliasing and HDR-lighting solution in the game for all our PC players as well!

When Will We Get All This Goodness?

We’re working on a new update to Survival Mode, with a tentative release planned for late May or early June, depending on how testing and finaling goes. Of the above list, you should expect to see the New Region, Manual Cooking, and Buffer Memories. Anything beyond that will come down to testing, optimization, bug-fixing, and finaling progress. As always, our aim is to launch all major updates simultaneously for Steam, Xbox One, and PS4, with GoG and WeGame following shortly thereafter.

So hopefully the next time you hear something official from me regarding progress, it’ll be to tell you that the new Survival Mode update is ready!

Stay warm out there.

- Raphael

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