How to cook, how to increase your weight carrying, how to hunt and more
A lot of time has passed since the last publication on The Long Dark on our portal. There have been many changes in the game itself. Just a week ago, the developers released an update that touched not only the survival mechanics themselves, but also changed the approach to the narrative of story modes. Some quests have been redesigned, and some have been completely replaced. Today we will talk about some of the changes in the game, as well as provide general tips for survival in The Long Dark Redux.
Changes in game mechanics
Cooking food
The main changes were made to the mechanics of cooking. If earlier the user could cook or heat any amount of food or water on the fire, now this will happen in real time!
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The number of cooking cells is only two. The user will have to make sure that the food does not literally burn out, and the water that you put to boil does not evaporate. Moreover, in order to melt the snow, you will need an empty can or pot . In such vessels, you can also heat semi-finished products (peaches, pork with beans, etc.). The only difference is in volume: in a jar you can melt half a liter of water, and in a pot – two.
Radial Menu
Of course, this feature was introduced into the game a long time ago, but only now it is possible to place items directly from the radial menu on any surface. In other words, to place a cereal bar or peanut butter on the table, you don’t need to open your inventory and drop the item on the floor (as you did before). Now, you simply select the desired item from the menu and press the RMB to accommodate.
Survival tips
The difficulty of The Long Dark’s story sequences can be compared to the average difficulty of the Drifter in Survival Mode. If you have lived at least a few weeks on the “Intruder” difficulty, then you will easily complete the story, and you probably know what is described below.
Medication
Collecting and storing medicines in this game is not the most necessary activity, since you can find a worthy replacement for almost all available medicines.
So, after a wolf bite, you can treat the wound with an antiseptic , then bandage it with a bandage. The fact is that an antiseptic takes up a lot of space in a backpack (0.5 kg), and if you are constantly moving around the world, it will be expensive to carry several cans with you. It’s much easier to collect old hanging moss and make a bandage out of it, which is four times lighter. Moss is not uncommon and catches the eye quite often. In addition, after collecting, it will appear in the same place after about seven in-game days.
The pain reliever can be replaced with cooked rose hips, and the antibiotic with reishi mushrooms .
Carry weight
By default, the protagonist can lift no more than 30 kilograms. This weight also includes all equipped clothing, and even shoes. It is very strange that both female and male characters have the same meaning, but this is not about that now.
The game has the opportunity to increase the value of the carried weight by 5 kilograms for a while. Depending on which mode you are playing, it will be difficult to do in different ways. It is enough to avoid hunger for 72 hours, after which a new effect “Satiety” will appear in the character status window . In addition, the maximum value of the “Health” indicator increases. The effect will be active until the hero becomes a victim of hunger.
You can also make a moose hide tote bag , which will add 5 kilograms to your maximum carry weight. By using the bag with the “Satiety” bonus, your carried weight increases to 40 kilograms!
Weather
In The Long Dark, the low air temperature is not as bad as the weather conditions. In the status window, you can observe that the air temperature is added to the effect of the wind (if it is present), and only then is it subtracted from the bonuses of heat and protection from the wind, which is given by the equipment being worn.
The worst weather conditions for travel are blizzards and fog, especially if you are exploring unfamiliar terrain. Even in the studied map during a blizzard, you risk getting lost and not getting to the shelter in time.
In addition, clothes tend to get wet and then freeze. If you notice that any of the worn items are completely wet and freeze a little, you should take them off and dry by the fire. Otherwise, there is a chance of getting frostbite and losing a limb. In the game, this will affect the overall health, which will be reduced until the end of the game.
clothing
Clothing in The Long Dark is divided into several types. Clothes have durability and their own bonuses to heat, protection from wind and wetness. In addition, each equipped item reduces the maximum distance that the character can travel during the dash.
Ordinary things, among which there are both warm and not so warm, can be found almost everywhere. The warmest things in the game must be done by hand.
Here is a list of things you can craft with the right components:
- rabbit fur mittens,
- rabbit fur hat (new!),
- deerskin pants,
- deerskin shoes,
- wolf coat,
- bear coat,
- cloak made of elk skin.
Of course, with constant use, such items need to be repaired (especially after an attack by wolves). If you do not put the clothes in order in a timely manner, they will become unusable. But how do you get the right hide or fur? We will answer this question in the next section.
Hunting
Rabbits
Catching a few rabbits at the moment is not difficult. Many fans of The Long Dark remember the times when furry animals could only be caught with a trap or a shot from a gun. They were so shy that it was almost impossible to shoot the rabbit with a bow.
Now the developers have introduced a new system of “stunning” fluffy ones using ordinary stones. Collect some stones and sneak up on the rabbit. One well-aimed throw – and the eared one is in your pocket. It should be warned that the stunned rabbit will not wait for you to recover. Pick it up as quickly as possible!
Deer
A deer can only be killed with a bow or rifle shot. If you hit an animal, but it escaped, follow its bloody trail to eventually find a dead carcass. In order not to waste time searching, we recommend aiming at the head when firing.
There are two ways to cut the carcass – regular and quartering. Only fresh carcasses can be quartered. This is especially useful if the air temperature is very low or you don’t have warm clothes.
Wolves
In most cases, wolves will find you on their own. In the game, these animals are very aggressive. You can try to frighten off the animal with a torch, a red fire, a flashlight’s high beam (important for completing the plot and some tests), as well as a shot from a gun. The last point is always effective, even if you miss. A hit from a bow, on the contrary, will make the beast attack you.
On the other hand, it is easy to hide from wolves. The most important thing is not to try to escape if the wolf is very close. Move away gradually, and always look at the beast. When the distance between the hero and the wolf is large enough – run!
If you go to the wolf with a bow, then try to kill him with a few shots until he gets close to the hero. Otherwise, you will have to fight using edged weapons. A hand-to-hand fight with wolves almost always ends with torn clothes and lacerated wounds, which, if not processed in time, will develop into infection. We advise you to avoid such collisions.
Remember to use bait. This will allow you to properly aim and hit the predator with one shot.
In turn, you will make a good fur coat from the skin of wolves, which will not only protect well from frost, but also help scare away predators. Our observations have shown that this works while the fur coat is new, but not always – about two out of five wolves will turn to flight at the sight of the hero.
The Bears
One gun is not enough to finish off a clubfoot. Here you need to come up with some trick. The fact is that the bear will not attack if you walk past at a sufficiently large distance. Having noticed the hero, he will begin to follow him. This factor can be used for your own purposes.
Lure the bear closer to the shelter, then fire a gun or bow. The bear will get angry and rush at you. At this moment, you need to go to the shelter and wait for a while. Clubfoot is already wounded and will die anyway. Wait a while, then go outside and look for the carcass.
Elk
These are rather aggressive creatures, with an unexpected meeting with which you will have very little chance of survival. They do not live in all locations, most often they can be found in the Valley of the Quiet River. You are unlikely to meet this animal during the passage of the first two chapters of Wintermute , but if such a meeting occurs, it is better not to provoke it and calmly leave.
Moose hunting begins with finding its habitat. Usually these are clearings in the forest or near water bodies. The elk constantly grinds their antlers on the trees, thus marking the territory. If you find such “marks”, you will soon find an animal.
You can kill him with a few shots of the gun. By analogy with a bear, after an attack, the elk will begin to accelerate towards the hero. If you allow the maximum rapprochement, you can only contemplate a not very pleasant cut-scene, after which the character will have very little health, and his ribs are likely to be broken.
It will not be possible to lure the moose to the shelter, select the maximum distance and shoot in the neck area. Three or four well-aimed shots will kill the animal on the spot, if you, of course, have time to make them.
Other Tips
- Do not try to relax by the fire in an open area. Even if at this moment the weather is beautiful and there is not a hint of wind, everything can change in an instant! If it is far to the nearest shelter, and the hero is falling off his feet, find a calm place. Caves and ruined structures are ideal.
- Explore abandoned houses looking for food and water. Water can be drawn from toilet cisterns, thereby saving firewood and matches.
- If you want to try your hand at the “Survival” mode at the maximum difficulty level, choose the map with a forge to appear. Thus, you can almost immediately craft a homemade knife and ax, as well as arrowheads. Optimal maps are Desolation Zone and Lonely Swamp.
- Always inspect the premises carefully, as a useful item may lie in a secluded place.
- Collect charcoal to sketch a map of the area in the future. This is very useful for exploring new locations.
- We strongly advise against sprinting around the island. In addition to the fact that The Long Dark has beautiful landscapes, you will save the character’s strength for more necessary things. Running increases the hero’s fatigue almost threefold, so when you return to the shelter, you will not have the strength for anything.
- A freshly killed animal is best quartered. Take a few hours, then move the carcass piece by piece to the shelter and slowly butcher in the warmth.
- Arrowheads can be forged in a forge or collected from broken arrows. You will surely find such arrows in places where hunters stay.
