Every difficulty in the long dark, explained

summary

• Pilgrim is an easy difficulty suited for loss-stress exploration.

• Voyageur offers a tense existence balanced with exploration.

• Stalker is a brutal, survival-focused challenge for experienced players

Developed by Hinterland Studio and released in 2017, long dark Pit the players against Mother Nature's freezing cold. Face off against blind glaciers, vicious wildlife, and starvation on a bleak island of eternal winter, where one wrong move can end in death. This game is a must play for any survival fan, especially those looking for a more realistic take on the genre.

long dark Lets players choose from five difficulty modes and customize their gameplay experience around: Pilgrim, Voyager, Stalker, Interloper, and Misery. Each difficulty offers unique features and challenges, ranging from the (mostly) inactive Wilderness of the Pilgrim to the relentless and resource-draining Interloper difficulty.

This article does not include content from Tales From The Far Territory, Part Six.

Once a difficulty is selected, it cannot be changed in game. Choose wisely.

1

Pilgrim

An exploration-focused experience

• Easy equals difficulty.

• Wild animals do not attack unless provoked.

• Plenty of loot.

• Requirements are easily managed.

On the easiest difficulty long darkPilgrim frees players from many dangers: looting buildings provides ample resources, and wildlife encounters are rare. Wildlife aggression often turns off situations, with wolves, bears and moose usually running away when close to the player. Approaching agitated wild animals, usually triggered by players attacking them, however, will result in significant damage to the animal's attack and condition. The loss from these struggles is much less than other hardships.

Pilgrim is ideal for players looking for an unforgiving yet visually realistic survival experience with a focus on questing and storytelling. Adventure through the breathtaking regions of Bear Island, including frozen marshes, waterfall-filled valleys, and barren coastlines, piecing together the story of this land. This difficulty also gives players a comfortable way to learn the core mechanics of the game. Avoiding aggressive wildlife, however, is an important skill that players who graduate to higher difficulties still have to learn if they hope to survive.

2

to travel

standard experience

• Equal to normal difficulty.

• Wild animals will attack, even if unprovoked.

• Plenty of loot

• Exploration is balanced with survival.

From Voyageur Pilgrim is a significant step in difficulty, wolves and bears will now actively stalk and hunt players. Wolves have little chance of running away from a nearby player, it cannot be relied upon in any way. A wolf that gets too close will be attack Players are thrust into the middle of the food chain, forcing them to learn how to navigate wildlife encounters along with exploration, looting, and managing necessities. Every journey from home carries the risk of death. After all, a bear could be lurking around any corner.

Voyageur is the perfect difficulty for new players who want a realistic survival experience to learn the game's mechanics. Mistakes will happen, but Voyageur is more forgiving than difficult difficulties. This difficulty is also ideal for players looking for an experience that is equal parts survival and exploration. Resources are plentiful, helping players explore a full roster of items and areas long dark should be offered. Wildlife is also sparse, allowing players to explore large areas before facing the challenge of navigating past aggressive wildlife.

3

hunter

A brutal survival experience

• Hard equals difficulty.

• Aggressive and abundant wildlife.

• Rare loot.

• Existence-centered experience.

Seasoned players looking for a more punishing survival experience will love Stalker Mode. Be it weather, wildlife or necessity, death can happen at any time. Exploration is no longer an option but a necessity, with a lack of resources forcing players to be constantly on the move. Customization is everything in this difficulty, as players navigate an array of locations, all with unique building distributions, wildlife patrol routes, and item spawns. Failure to adapt will spell a grizzly end.

The real challenge of Stalker comes down to the player's ability to take calculated risks. As the threat of starvation looms over them, players must learn when to gamble, venture out into bad weather, travel at night, or run from a pack of wolves. Be careful though, that gambling can turn into fatal mistakes in an instant. With wilderness teeming with aggressive wildlife, every journey from home is a heart-pounding battle of risk versus reward.

4

interlocutor

The ultimate test of survival

• Equals expert difficulty.

• Aggressive and abundant wildlife.

• A little loot.

• A lot of tools and no guns spawn.

For players who thought Stalker wasn't challenging enough, Hinterland Studios created Interloper: an extraordinarily punishing battle for survival. This difficulty is not reasonable. Throwing players between a resource-poor and aggressive wildlife-rich world, players must use all the skill and luck at their disposal. Forget about establishing a base, hunting wolves, or conquering the wilderness: keeping your life is the best that even the most experienced player can hope for.

More horrors await players who survive the first few weeks. With no tools on this difficulty, players have longer harvest times, can't harvest certain items, and have only the poorest weapons to use in wolf fights. Players can craft equipment, but it is a difficult and dangerous process. The lack of guns further increases the game's difficulty, as players can neither hunt prey nor thin out predators unless they build a bow, forcing them to survive on small animals and looted resources for weeks at a time.

5

sadness

Death is guaranteed

• Madness equals difficulty.

• Aggressive and abundant wildlife.

• Persistent strange pains.

• Cheating death is disabled.

Only the bravest will dare to take on the challenge of saving the painful life that is suffering. In this apocalyptic wasteland, the only certainty is death. New addition of long dark Difficulties, players must struggle against the brutality of Interloper Mode with new permanent afflictions that develop periodically. These pains cannot be prevented or treated. Well, that is other than through death. Every misfortune brings the players closer to the edge, where any mistake is fatal.

Players start with the most minimal resources in the most hostile world. It is the end time; Mother Nature is determined to see the player destroyed. Grief is also the only difficulty where the cheat death feature is disabled. There really are no do-overs or second chances in Misery, just chilling hugs long dark.