I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far. However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(
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On Fri, 25 Aug 2023 20:53:00 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:

>I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far.
>However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(

I played the original and - very briefly - parts of the sequel. I
quite enjoyed the first for how well it created a "you are there"
feeling of being in the middle of a zombie apocalypse; it was more
than the usual 'run-n-kill' zombie game. Being able to search for
supplies, build up a base, recruit other survivors and struggle with
other groups made for an interesting conceit. But after ten or fifteen
hours the limitations of the game became ever more apparent: poor
variety in monsters and loot, a the lack of things to do, and little
compelling reason to keep doing it. Unfortunately, the sequel seemed
'more of the same'; a cool idea failed by its shallow implementation.
Fun for the first few hours but increasingly dependent on grind and
repetitive activities as the game progressed.

Then again, I only played the briefest part of the sequel, so perhaps
it avoided that trap. If you keep at it, hopefully you'll report back
to us and let us know. ;-)

Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:
> On Fri, 25 Aug 2023 20:53:00 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:

> >I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far.
> >However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(

> I played the original and - very briefly - parts of the sequel. I
> quite enjoyed the first for how well it created a "you are there"
> feeling of being in the middle of a zombie apocalypse; it was more
> than the usual 'run-n-kill' zombie game. Being able to search for
> supplies, build up a base, recruit other survivors and struggle with
> other groups made for an interesting conceit. But after ten or fifteen
> hours the limitations of the game became ever more apparent: poor
> variety in monsters and loot, a the lack of things to do, and little
> compelling reason to keep doing it. Unfortunately, the sequel seemed
> 'more of the same'; a cool idea failed by its shallow implementation.
> Fun for the first few hours but increasingly dependent on grind and
> repetitive activities as the game progressed.

> Then again, I only played the briefest part of the sequel, so perhaps
> it avoided that trap. If you keep at it, hopefully you'll report back
> to us and let us know. ;-)

I played more. Its management stuff annoy me. I just want to play its
action parts! :(

--
"Like the coolness of snow at harvest time is a trustworthy messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the spirit of his masters." --Proverbs 25:13. RIP, Bob Barker who didn't hit 100. Dang old tired bodies with issues. :(
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On Fri, 25 Aug 2023 20:53:00 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:

>I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far. However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(

*--

I bought it Ant! Super fun so far and filling the void from the L4D
games (still installed and I could play them again :-))

Only played it a few minutes though (off-line, don't plan on MP).

-pw

On Sun, 27 Aug 2023 01:58:38 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:

>Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:
>> On Fri, 25 Aug 2023 20:53:00 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:
>
>> >I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far.
>> >However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(
>
>> I played the original and - very briefly - parts of the sequel. I
>> quite enjoyed the first for how well it created a "you are there"
>> feeling of being in the middle of a zombie apocalypse; it was more
>> than the usual 'run-n-kill' zombie game. Being able to search for
>> supplies, build up a base, recruit other survivors and struggle with
>> other groups made for an interesting conceit. But after ten or fifteen
>> hours the limitations of the game became ever more apparent: poor
>> variety in monsters and loot, a the lack of things to do, and little
>> compelling reason to keep doing it. Unfortunately, the sequel seemed
>> 'more of the same'; a cool idea failed by its shallow implementation.
>> Fun for the first few hours but increasingly dependent on grind and
>> repetitive activities as the game progressed.
>
>> Then again, I only played the briefest part of the sequel, so perhaps
>> it avoided that trap. If you keep at it, hopefully you'll report back
>> to us and let us know. ;-)
>
>I played more. Its management stuff annoy me. I just want to play its
>action parts! :(

*---

Oh rats Ant! I don't like the sound of that!

-pw

PW <iamnotusingonewithAgent@notinuse.com> wrote:
> On Sun, 27 Aug 2023 01:58:38 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:

> >Spalls Hurgenson <spallshurgenson@gmail.com> wrote:
> >> On Fri, 25 Aug 2023 20:53:00 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:
> >
> >> >I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far.
> >> >However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(
> >
> >> I played the original and - very briefly - parts of the sequel. I
> >> quite enjoyed the first for how well it created a "you are there"
> >> feeling of being in the middle of a zombie apocalypse; it was more
> >> than the usual 'run-n-kill' zombie game. Being able to search for
> >> supplies, build up a base, recruit other survivors and struggle with
> >> other groups made for an interesting conceit. But after ten or fifteen
> >> hours the limitations of the game became ever more apparent: poor
> >> variety in monsters and loot, a the lack of things to do, and little
> >> compelling reason to keep doing it. Unfortunately, the sequel seemed
> >> 'more of the same'; a cool idea failed by its shallow implementation.
> >> Fun for the first few hours but increasingly dependent on grind and
> >> repetitive activities as the game progressed.
> >
> >> Then again, I only played the briefest part of the sequel, so perhaps
> >> it avoided that trap. If you keep at it, hopefully you'll report back
> >> to us and let us know. ;-)
> >
> >I played more. Its management stuff annoy me. I just want to play its
> >action parts! :(

> *---

> Oh rats Ant! I don't like the sound of that!

There's a reason why I hang out in this action newsgroup. ;)
--
"Like the coolness of snow at harvest time is a trustworthy messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the spirit of his masters." --Proverbs 25:13. RIP, Bob Barker who didn't hit 100. Dang old tired bodies with issues. :(
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PW <iamnotusingonewithAgent@notinuse.com> wrote:
> On Fri, 25 Aug 2023 20:53:00 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:

> >I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far. However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(

> *--

> I bought it Ant! Super fun so far and filling the void from the L4D
> games (still installed and I could play them again :-))

> Only played it a few minutes though (off-line, don't plan on MP).

Uh, couldn't you just play its free weekend?
--
"Like the coolness of snow at harvest time is a trustworthy messenger to those who send him; he refreshes the spirit of his masters." --Proverbs 25:13. RIP, Bob Barker who didn't hit 100. Dang old tired bodies with issues. :(
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On Friday, August 25, 2023 at 2:53:13 PM UTC-6, Ant wrote:
> I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far. However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(
> --
> "Simon Peter answered him, 'Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life.'" --John 6:68. 2 much Zs 4 this quieter wk. 4 this 13 yrs.. old tired, itchy, old Redditor ant. :(
> Note: A fixed width font (Courier, Monospace, etc.) is required to see this signature correctly.
> /\___/\ Ant(Dude) @ http://aqfl.net & http://antfarm.home.dhs.org.
> / /\ /\ \ Please nuke ANT if replying by e-mail.
> | |o o| |
> \ _ /
> ( )

I played the first one on Xbox 360 eons ago and had some of the same highs and lows others in this thread have expressed. A lot of cool integration of action game play with a bit of micro management. But the management part of the game sort of became a chore compared to the action, and was forced onto the player in a very abrasive way. I remember sort of being forced out due to resources/loot and being absolutely underarmed to even make it to the next loot hole.

A lot of cool game mechanics and dopamine are found but it runs curdled fast

On Sat, 26 Aug 2023 22:13:27 -0600, PW
<iamnotusingonewithAgent@notinuse.com> wrote:
>On Sun, 27 Aug 2023 01:58:38 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:
>>I played more. Its management stuff annoy me. I just want to play its
>>action parts! :(

>Oh rats Ant! I don't like the sound of that!

I wonder if the second game is better or worse than the original in
that regard.

The 'management' in the former was, I felt, fairly limited but not too
obtrusive, and it felt true to the setting. It's all done in first
person; for those worried, it's nothing like a management sim or
anything. But to survive, you need to collect resources (varying from
food to medicine, to lumber, and more) that will let you build up your
base and keep your people alive.

The driving mechanic of the game is how long it takes to heal from
injuries. Although there are 'instant heal' med-packs, they rarely fix
you up to 100%, and to completely heal you need to rest up in your
base. But while that character is resting, you still need to go out
and find more resources. Fortunately, you can switch between
characters, so while one character is healing, you can take another
out into the wastelands. Having a large stable of characters thus
becomes a necessity, since you will always have some in the infirmary.
But having a lot of survivors means you need to build up the base,
which requires more resources. It's a never-ending cycle.

Which is, ultimately, leads to some of the game's problems. Firstly,
because you can switch to any character, there's no main protagonist,
which means there's no driving narrative. This makes all the
characters - and much of the action - feel very generic; you have no
emotional attachment.

Furthermore, that cycle starts becoming very repetitive very quickly.
Personally, I think that the 'management' of the game actually works
really well... except for how pointless it all becomes. Struggling to
find enough ammo or medpacks... that's all very on-point for the
zombie genre, and overall I think the mechanics of it are done pretty
well. But there's a real lack of reward for all your effort, except
the knowledge that tomorrow you'll have to do the same thing again.

Of course, that's on-point for the zombie-genre too. Ultimately, you
never really WIN in zombie apocalypses. The whole genre is about
achieving a teetering survival that can be swept aside with one bad
day. This precariousness is what makes the genre so fascinating, but
if it goes on too long it becomes tedious. Most games resolve this
issue by limiting the length of the adventure. But the narrative in
"State of Decay" is too slow and the gameplay too lacking in variety
to maintain the intensity; after a while, all you see is the endless
grind.

TL;DR: at least with the first game, it's not the management that was
the problem, it was the too languorous pacing.

On Sun, 27 Aug 2023 05:00:26 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:

>PW <iamnotusingonewithAgent@notinuse.com> wrote:
>> On Fri, 25 Aug 2023 20:53:00 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:
>
>> >I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far. However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(
>
>> *--
>
>> I bought it Ant! Super fun so far and filling the void from the L4D
>> games (still installed and I could play them again :-))
>
>> Only played it a few minutes though (off-line, don't plan on MP).
>
>Uh, couldn't you just play its free weekend?

*--

Yes :-)

PW <iamnotusingonewithAgent@notinuse.com> wrote:
> On Sun, 27 Aug 2023 05:00:26 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:

> >PW <iamnotusingonewithAgent@notinuse.com> wrote:
> >> On Fri, 25 Aug 2023 20:53:00 +0000, ant@zimage.comANT (Ant) wrote:
> >
> >> >I started playing its free weekend on Steam. I kind of like it so far. However, lack of no manual saves and loads are annoying. :(
> >
> >> *--
> >
> >> I bought it Ant! Super fun so far and filling the void from the L4D
> >> games (still installed and I could play them again :-))
> >
> >> Only played it a few minutes though (off-line, don't plan on MP).
> >
> >Uh, couldn't you just play its free weekend?

> *--

> Yes :-)

:-P I didn't get to play more. :-( That's OK. I got my free sampler to see what this game was about. :-)
--
"I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want." --Philippians 4:12. Hot week so far with colony's fevas 2 thxs 2 non-COVID19 vaccination shots & US Open.
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