You are punished by terrible teammates who take all the ammo, heals, and weapons, even when those items do not fit their builds. Shared loot can be cancerous; that is why games like Sons of the Forest do not use it. I run a melee build, which I will get to later.
Teammates who leave during Nightmare and Hard modes literally put everyone at a disadvantage. Meanwhile, if you happen to complete the objective or survive, there are no bonus rewards. The game also punishes disconnects by counting them as character deaths. They give you the option to rejoin, but your character will usually be dead since you can never get back into the match in time. Let us entertain the idea that this is to punish exploiters or quitters who intentionally disconnect; those match abusers will just extract early next time. If you look at how many early extraction points are posted on the map, it is insane.
Teammates take everything. I am currently running a melee build, and my Responder is level 75. On survival, by being inside the main building, I am putting my team at a disadvantage if I am not equipped with a Sledgehammer or Fire Axe, since those are the only competitive melee weapons compared to firearms. The time it takes to kill enemies with a regular melee weapon is insane. Teammates always take the three star melee weapons even when you have clearly been running a purely dedicated melee perk loadout the whole match. I have tried using guns and doing all the objectives, but they just take all the ammo AND the great melee weapons.
Melee weapon time to kill is terrible for most weapons, but that is not even the main issue; stamina is. Having two armored runners on you in Hard or Nightmare mode is practically a death sentence while fending off a horde. Gunner teammates have a habit of trapping the melee player in the horde. So, guess what? You have no stamina and you are trapped, because the player shooting will always have more stamina than you. A melee user without grenades is literally a detriment to the team. If someone gets knocked toward the endgame objective or survival phase, a melee player has zero save potential. It is the most selfish build on Hard and higher difficulties, which hurts the whole squad when teammates die.
I have all the stamina increasing perks, all the two handed perks, and staggers equipped. The only thing missing is Butcher, with some perks at the expert level, by the way. Passives costing loadout slots, like the beacon that brings you back but makes you lose your entire loadout, including items not with you on the expedition, is wild. Ranger boots should not cost a loadout slot. The way stealth works is based on sight and distance radius. Stealth boots just reduce the distance radius, not the sight radius, so you are only slightly less likely to be caught behind a wall. Breaking line of sight or hiding in a dark area will not prevent you from being spotted. Once they see you, there is a very low chance of losing a runner because of this mechanic.
Depravity only boosting health points is a missed opportunity. Sacrificing a bag slot and not getting a stamina increase is highway robbery. Think about it: Depravity takes up inventory space when you could use that two kilograms for meds or items that would prevent a hit in the first place. The wiki says Depravity boosts stamina, but in the game, it says it just boosts health.
I lost my character due to not being able to mount the train for extraction. I only performed the jumping animation. I reached out to customer support and sent a clip of the bug to show I did not die from a fatal error. I showed that their game is broken, but I have never gotten a response, so my character is gone at level 75 with no compensation. I have waited to be sure; I submitted my report on 8/16/2026, and I have heard nothing. I will say this much: look up how long it takes to reach level 75, and let me ask you, do you really want to risk a character when living in a society with limited time? Playing games is a hobby, and that said hobby cheated you, leaving you behind at extraction, watching the timer run down while it is in your face, all because the climbing interaction is broken. (I have the clip.)
