Jan 2014
If you're looking for a heartwarming story about cute little animals frolicking through flower-filled meadows, then you might want to close this review. Don't Starve is about as cuddly as a porcupine in a balloon factory, yet it has all the charm of a Tim Burton cocktail party. Enter as Wilson, a scientist with all the common sense of a rubber chicken, and get ready to survive in a world where everything wants to eat you-literally.
Don't Starve is all about survival in a randomly generated world filled with monsters and more dangers than your average first-date conversation. Players control Wilson as he gathers resources, crafts items, builds shelters, and tries not to become dinner for one of the plethora of horrifying creatures lurking in the shadows. The gameplay operates on a simple day/night cycle. During the day, you will feel like a Medieval peasant with a survival plan-gathering food, wood, and materials to stave off the haunting threat of the night. But oh boy! Nightfall is when chaos reigns, as otherworldly creatures come out to play, and if you're not carrying a light source, light or dark will be a moot point as you meet your inevitably gruesome end. Survival is tracked by three stats: health, hunger, and sanity. Yes, that's right, your sanity! Forget about dying from a reckless dive into a poisonous swamp; you might just lose your mind while standing still in a flower garden from sheer boredom or insanity. Nothing like being chased by giant eyeballs while crying about your troubles, right? Characters have different quirks and skills, so players can unlock and choose various characters to aid in their survival. There's even a generous dose of permadeath, which means once you're dead, your survival attempt is, legally speaking, entirely over. If this sounds daunting, it certainly is, but each death is only a stepping stone on the road to mastery-and delightful chaos. Pro Tip: If you see a frog, run. Just run. Then run some more.
Whoever said video games are all about realism clearly never played Don't Starve. The art style is unique, resembling a paper cutout animation, heavy on the Tim Burton-esque goth aesthetics. Close your eyes, then imagine a Victorian nightmare and you're halfway there. Character animations are quirky, giving a slapstick feel as you assert your dominance over your own mortality. The environments are beautifully crafted with their own eerie charm-certainly not somewhere you'd want to take a casual stroll at midnight unless you enjoy existential dread on a budget.
Don't Starve is a whimsical, horrifying romp into the world of survival gaming where you'll learn to embrace death as just another part of life. This game isn't just about surviving the night; it's about enjoying the hilarious misery of attempting to survive against overwhelming odds. The moment you discover an all-consuming darkness creeping into your campsite, or that time a spider gave you the side-eye before you promptly passed out of fear, well those are the moments you'll cherish-and possibly dread at the same time. So for an experience that makes you reconsider visiting your local forest and trip over high grass, I'd say don't hesitate to pick this one up. Just remember: don't starve, and definitely don't feed the frogs. 8.5 out of 10-the frogs are still a better deal than most Tinder dates, anyway.
Another SquareThought Site