"Your father understood that we dance for our children's children's children. My dear, one day you will feel the voices rise in your heart. Enter a cave and stand until stars appear. Climb the highest peak. Sing when the brutality hits. I'm here with you. The winter winds can only get so cold."
After watching the video i gotta say i like the conclusion but i feel like you could've tied it in more to the previous experiences. I agree with the point however i feel as the aspect of survival is supposed to be represented that way in those games. The long dark survival makes you feel like an animal searching, hiding and fighting against death. There's no goal by design in those representations and it is certainly a fresh experience. If a game wants you to feel like living in the world it needs to make the player center of the world as its really hard to represent humanity in an npc. Getting the same feeling as in the world we are used to due to our imense time investment in it would be impossible, you will always see the cracks as no one had the same experience of what it feels to live. If a farm born and city born were to give opinions of their views of what it means to be living it would be different. Therefore making the requirement for the player to witness change to the world over time or be the catalyst for one to get the experience of a living world where you can feel alive. This was the most i thought and wrote after finnishing my english classes, damn you Shakespeare.
@@man-cp5pz The comment is a quote from The Long Dark that I really liked, it's mostly unrelated but I loved it too much to leave out haha As for your point, I completely agree. I understand that that appeals to a lot of people, but it never appealed to me. But now I finally managed to find something that made me fall in love with survival games, and I wanted to share that in case it resonated with anyone else. Some people do feel alive in survival games when they are reduced to an animal clawing their way through an unforgiving world, and I can see the appeal of that too. I appreciate your thoughts!
"You must understand young gamer; it takes a long time to play anything Old School. And we never play anything unless it is worth taking a long time to play." --J.R.R. Game Dev
I loved how you put it, that survival games are about living. It reminded me of Red Dead Redemption 2, where the most memorable moments to me were the ones that had little mechanical or narrative significance, like hearing an NPC telling a story by a bonfire because you chose to stick around, or simply enjoying the vistas while hunting.
Honestly, your videos always bring me to tears, bravo! A lot of content on RUclips is good, but you are genuinely producing wonderful stories every time you upload I video, can't wait for your channel to blow up!
Your discovery is also why the OG Myst was more fun to play vs the full 3D-movement remakes and the modern clone puzzle adventures. Clicking once to move, and then being forced to scrutinize the scene looking for clues--vs. just running around looking at all different angles--causes one to take in the game world, as if you're there and you care what's happening. The new mantra seems to be "finish the _game_ and move on," as opposed to the old-school "wow, look at this _entire new world_ built for me to explore and discover."
Totally agree. Like you said about Fallout 4, most games just keep shoving quest after quest so you will never feel bored, like you need that rush of adrenaline and fast changing. Best moments of games come when you slow down. And you summed it up with perfection. Great video!
I've just found this channel and watched all the videos on it, and i just want to say that this is genuinely phenomenal content, it has quickly shot up to being up there with some of my favourites like Jacob Geller. Keep up the great work, this is some great stuff.
This is incredible, thank you so much for creating it. I love the editing of your visuals, the implied space and isolation (physically and in time). Absolute gold. Keep creating.
Spot on. What I hate the most is the ridiculously arcade-like timescales. Oddly enough, Animal Crossing is the only game I know of that got it right. Even 8 hours in TLD is too short. Most modern gamers are weird with such limited and weak attention spans. It wasn't like this in the 80s. Games were hard, and they took a long time to play. "You must understand young gamer; it takes a long time to play anything Old School. And we never play anything unless it is worth taking a long time to play."
dude i think you found the answer i’ve been looking for in survival games, my friends are also constantly pushing me to play these games and i even tried the long dark on game pass but i just couldn’t feel invested. now i think i will try again, great video!!!!!
The long dark is one of my favorite games of all time due to its bleak atmosphere and mysterious narrative And the Netflix-like intro slaps. I honestly enjoy stressful games, they push me to the edge and allow me to find the beauty in hell.
This video is extremely relatable, you share a lot of thoughts that were in my mind when I was playing Fallout 4 Survival, I’ve never thought about it too deeply but leaving a mark on the world is super meaningful and entertaining to me, especially in F4, and I simply love existing in that particular world.
I like the idea of survival games, but i never really try them because they all sound so stressful. I love this video though, and i love those little moments in all games regardless of genre where you really feel like you're IN the world.
I guess the best sandbox survival games are the ones where the gameworld and your own curiousity writes a story together. Where you need to keep an eye out on supplies but also have time to do what you want. I personally found this in STALKER Anomaly / GAMMA. Sure, you cannot build bases or leave a mark too much but its an open, dynamic world of survival where I actually felt like my character is living. I am not just following quest markers or hunting for supplies but I also adventure and explore and every trip I take brings its own hurdles and calamities with it. I want to explore the Outskirts of Pripyat. But I can't cause I need more supplies of a specific sort. Getting those supplies becomes and adventure itself. Then I Finally set out to the trip. Only to be forced to retreat by a powerful mutant. Then a psy-storm ends my second attempt. A huge firefight has me limping back to my safe spot on the third try. I stock up but its almost night and I hate to adventure in the dark so I hunker down... and there we go. All I wanted is to check on a spot in the map. I got myself several in-game days worth of adventure. The fact alone that the game made me schedule my days because I want to avoid beeing out in the Zone in the pitch black of the night have me amused. The mounting tension when I feel like there wasn't an Emission for far too long and so I become skittish and try to stick close to cover. The panic when I do the exact opposite and go adventuring then I realize that I have to RUN. We need more games with a world that lives and makes you live in and with it.
Definitely! I found a lot of this in that Stalker mod that combines all of the games together and adds dynamic factions. Leaving a mark on the world ended up meaning that I carved out space on the map for my faction, safe spots I knew I could let my guard down, and the stories that emerged as the border lines changed.
I was actually planning to include Project Zomboid in the video but I had to cut it so the video didn't get overly long! Totally agree, it feels like it enables you to create a story each time
Have you played don't starve? it is my favorite survival game and it really focus on the base building which you seem to enjoy a lot, althought it is definitely less imersive then the long dark
@@EphemeraEssays Its defintely more gameplay focused than both of the games you mentioned, but in a sense i think it best simulates how the human experince worked in old times, as your main tool of survival is not raw skill or luck but knowledge, the fun coming from every run you come back knowing more and more, understanding this world ecosystem and how to abuse it better and better
So this video doesn’t say what the problem is with survival games or at least doesn’t talk about it in details your just talking about 2 games that you like more than others.
Excellent nod to TLOU with that "True Faith" cover 🫡 it's one of my favorite songs, but I never realized how well it captures the spirit of The Long Dark!!!
11:05 "One day I'll be back at your side" written in French, for those who were wondering
was also in disco elysium!
"Your father understood that we dance for our children's children's children. My dear, one day you will feel the voices rise in your heart. Enter a cave and stand until stars appear. Climb the highest peak. Sing when the brutality hits. I'm here with you.
The winter winds can only get so cold."
I looked into comments before watching, this with no context is a bit odd.
After watching the video i gotta say i like the conclusion but i feel like you could've tied it in more to the previous experiences.
I agree with the point however i feel as the aspect of survival is supposed to be represented that way in those games. The long dark survival makes you feel like an animal searching, hiding and fighting against death. There's no goal by design in those representations and it is certainly a fresh experience.
If a game wants you to feel like living in the world it needs to make the player center of the world as its really hard to represent humanity in an npc. Getting the same feeling as in the world we are used to due to our imense time investment in it would be impossible, you will always see the cracks as no one had the same experience of what it feels to live. If a farm born and city born were to give opinions of their views of what it means to be living it would be different. Therefore making the requirement for the player to witness change to the world over time or be the catalyst for one to get the experience of a living world where you can feel alive.
This was the most i thought and wrote after finnishing my english classes, damn you Shakespeare.
@@man-cp5pz The comment is a quote from The Long Dark that I really liked, it's mostly unrelated but I loved it too much to leave out haha
As for your point, I completely agree. I understand that that appeals to a lot of people, but it never appealed to me. But now I finally managed to find something that made me fall in love with survival games, and I wanted to share that in case it resonated with anyone else. Some people do feel alive in survival games when they are reduced to an animal clawing their way through an unforgiving world, and I can see the appeal of that too. I appreciate your thoughts!
Babe wake up new ephemera essay video
Fresh out the oven!
"You must understand young gamer; it takes a long time to play anything Old School. And we never play anything unless it is worth taking a long time to play." --J.R.R. Game Dev
I loved how you put it, that survival games are about living. It reminded me of Red Dead Redemption 2, where the most memorable moments to me were the ones that had little mechanical or narrative significance, like hearing an NPC telling a story by a bonfire because you chose to stick around, or simply enjoying the vistas while hunting.
Red Dead 2 is such a great example, and it's surprising that a huge company like Rockstar would be down to make something like that
@@EphemeraEssaysYet the masses bash on it because they wanted another generic rpg shooter.
I'm glad rockstar didn't abandon their vision.
Honestly, your videos always bring me to tears, bravo!
A lot of content on RUclips is good, but you are genuinely producing wonderful stories every time you upload I video, can't wait for your channel to blow up!
That means a lot, thank you!
Your discovery is also why the OG Myst was more fun to play vs the full 3D-movement remakes and the modern clone puzzle adventures. Clicking once to move, and then being forced to scrutinize the scene looking for clues--vs. just running around looking at all different angles--causes one to take in the game world, as if you're there and you care what's happening. The new mantra seems to be "finish the _game_ and move on," as opposed to the old-school "wow, look at this _entire new world_ built for me to explore and discover."
Totally agree. Like you said about Fallout 4, most games just keep shoving quest after quest so you will never feel bored, like you need that rush of adrenaline and fast changing.
Best moments of games come when you slow down. And you summed it up with perfection.
Great video!
The Long Dark Music is sooooooooooooo good. Really fits the silent desolation feel. This is the end, but it's peaceful.
I've just found this channel and watched all the videos on it, and i just want to say that this is genuinely phenomenal content, it has quickly shot up to being up there with some of my favourites like Jacob Geller. Keep up the great work, this is some great stuff.
Thank you, that's so nice to hear! I've got some more on the way, and hopefully it should only get better 😅
This is incredible, thank you so much for creating it. I love the editing of your visuals, the implied space and isolation (physically and in time).
Absolute gold. Keep creating.
Thank you so much, I'm so happy that the feeling came through!
Spot on. What I hate the most is the ridiculously arcade-like timescales. Oddly enough, Animal Crossing is the only game I know of that got it right. Even 8 hours in TLD is too short. Most modern gamers are weird with such limited and weak attention spans. It wasn't like this in the 80s. Games were hard, and they took a long time to play. "You must understand young gamer; it takes a long time to play anything Old School. And we never play anything unless it is worth taking a long time to play."
dude i think you found the answer i’ve been looking for in survival games, my friends are also constantly pushing me to play these games and i even tried the long dark on game pass but i just couldn’t feel invested. now i think i will try again, great video!!!!!
Glad to hear it, it really is a gem!
Jesus, that True Faith cover. Exquisite.
I wish there was some kind of Fallout 4 survival mode that removed all quests and most friendly NPC's so I can focus more on the desolation of it.
I think someone did make a Fallout-76-esque mod. I haven't personally tried it, so can't say if it's good or not though
The long dark is one of my favorite games of all time due to its bleak atmosphere and mysterious narrative
And the Netflix-like intro slaps.
I honestly enjoy stressful games, they push me to the edge and allow me to find the beauty in hell.
This video is extremely relatable, you share a lot of thoughts that were in my mind when I was playing Fallout 4 Survival, I’ve never thought about it too deeply but leaving a mark on the world is super meaningful and entertaining to me, especially in F4, and I simply love existing in that particular world.
That's why i like playing Project Zomboid on 24hrs per day setting. It's extremely immersive.
I keep meaning to try something like this with my friends in multiplayer! Any advice or good mods you'd recommend?
Great video!
I noticed the return of the obra dinn music around minute 3. Excellent choice :)
Lucas Pope doesn't miss!
What an inventive ending! A truly excellent video. Many thanks!
I know this will sound generic, but you deserve way more subscribers and views. Still. Remember me when you're famous.
Thank you!
Thanks for making videos
I love survival games. My fav ones are probably The long dark and Don't starve
I like the idea of survival games, but i never really try them because they all sound so stressful. I love this video though, and i love those little moments in all games regardless of genre where you really feel like you're IN the world.
Try don’t starve, many of your desires would be fulfilled there
Gamer
one of the most beautiful video essays ever.
I guess the best sandbox survival games are the ones where the gameworld and your own curiousity writes a story together. Where you need to keep an eye out on supplies but also have time to do what you want. I personally found this in STALKER Anomaly / GAMMA. Sure, you cannot build bases or leave a mark too much but its an open, dynamic world of survival where I actually felt like my character is living. I am not just following quest markers or hunting for supplies but I also adventure and explore and every trip I take brings its own hurdles and calamities with it. I want to explore the Outskirts of Pripyat. But I can't cause I need more supplies of a specific sort. Getting those supplies becomes and adventure itself. Then I Finally set out to the trip. Only to be forced to retreat by a powerful mutant. Then a psy-storm ends my second attempt. A huge firefight has me limping back to my safe spot on the third try. I stock up but its almost night and I hate to adventure in the dark so I hunker down... and there we go. All I wanted is to check on a spot in the map. I got myself several in-game days worth of adventure.
The fact alone that the game made me schedule my days because I want to avoid beeing out in the Zone in the pitch black of the night have me amused. The mounting tension when I feel like there wasn't an Emission for far too long and so I become skittish and try to stick close to cover. The panic when I do the exact opposite and go adventuring then I realize that I have to RUN.
We need more games with a world that lives and makes you live in and with it.
Definitely! I found a lot of this in that Stalker mod that combines all of the games together and adds dynamic factions. Leaving a mark on the world ended up meaning that I carved out space on the map for my faction, safe spots I knew I could let my guard down, and the stories that emerged as the border lines changed.
I tried the same thing with Fallout New Vegas a while ago, it blew me away with how immersive it felt
Also, you should check out Project Zomboid, one of the best and hardest zombie survival games out there.
I was actually planning to include Project Zomboid in the video but I had to cut it so the video didn't get overly long! Totally agree, it feels like it enables you to create a story each time
Brilliant.
i love this video
Did you have any mods in your fallout playthrough?
Apart from changing the timescale (with the cheats mod) I mostly added settlement mods like place anywhere, conquest, etc. Also True Storms!
Alright thanks so much I was just wondering. Great video btw I really enjoyed it.
You should play STALKER: GAMMA
Cheeki breeki!
Have you played don't starve? it is my favorite survival game and it really focus on the base building which you seem to enjoy a lot, althought it is definitely less imersive then the long dark
I have a very very long time! It seems to have changed a lot since then, I should definitely give it another spin
@@EphemeraEssays Its defintely more gameplay focused than both of the games you mentioned, but in a sense i think it best simulates how the human experince worked in old times, as your main tool of survival is not raw skill or luck but knowledge, the fun coming from every run you come back knowing more and more, understanding this world ecosystem and how to abuse it better and better
BABE WAKE UP
So this video doesn’t say what the problem is with survival games or at least doesn’t talk about it in details your just talking about 2 games that you like more than others.
Whats the end song called?
@@Strigaard It's Fingers and the Outlaw - So It Goes, from the Cyberpunk 2077 soundtrack ❤️
Excellent nod to TLOU with that "True Faith" cover 🫡 it's one of my favorite songs, but I never realized how well it captures the spirit of The Long Dark!!!
I have been *itching* to use that song somewhere haha