The Long Dark Reviews
The Long Dark is a game with very good concepts, which has good gameplay. But he has some shortcomings that make him faint. Mainly in its technical aspect. The performance on Xbox does not end up being as polished as it should be, in addition to having an artistic style that, except in the video scenes, does not stand out too much and is a little scarce. In addition, the BSO does not impress, getting as a whole that in the end, it tastes little.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
If it sounds as if I'm overly frustrated with The Long Dark, it's because I am. The sheer number of times that it hints at being a special game that entirely dominates every single survival-based title that has come before it is staggering. But for every one of those times, there's another time where it's broken, bugged, or just plain poorly thought-out. If the development team patches up those bugs and tweaks things here and there, it's no exaggeration to say that this could be a must buy that reaches the top end of the scoresheet. The fact that it gets the score that it gets stands as testament as to just how enjoyable the game can be and often is in the face of a veritable snowstorm of issues and imperfections.
Bugs and a rough story weaken what is, at its core, a great survival game.
I really, really, wanted to love The Long Dark, but a myriad of poor design choices and bugs teamed with a complete lack of instruction made it one of the most frustrating games I have ever played. You can pick some objects up, but not others, you can smash a crate to bits for firewood, but not a table, and none of this makes any sense. If you were freezing death, you'd burn the frigging table! Survival mode is by far the best way to experience the game offering some gorgeous views and real sense of achievement when you make things nice and cosy, it's just a shame that Story mode is so poorly thought out.
With better job on technical aspects The Long Dark would be a pretty good game. As for now, it's better to wait for a sale and patches.
Review in Polish | Read full review
The Long Dark is a mostly functional game, but it’s dated survival mechanics make it a mostly forgettable experience.
Keep that fire burning, stay warm… and beware the wolf.
In all honesty, the Wintermute should have never been released in the state which it is in right now. And if you take it out of the equation, the Survival and Challenge Modes which also share flaws with the Story mode, are simply not worth the baffling $34.99 which the developers are asking for.
You wake up to a faint voice, whisper and can barely make it out. After gaining consciousness you call out a name, Astrid! In front of you are multiple fires of what was once your plane. A cave lies ahead in the distance, you slowly make your way to it. Your breath forming in the cold winter night. If you look around you will see some of your belongings, get them. They are key to your survival. Once in the cave your very first mission for staying alive and bringing your body temp up is making a fire. So, you head back outside to collect sticks, branches and cedar. You will need tinder and other items to make this fire that is needed to survive. Directly after your achievement, you pass out.
With a better, more involving path, this could have been really something. As it is, it's the glorious The Long Dark with a reason for surviving, and that definitely proves enough.
The Long Dark is a triumph. At times it may feel a little grindy, but there's always a level of tension thanks to its finely tuned systems never letting you get complacent.