The Forever Winter

Store page says single player but there is content that cannot be done solo.

jesus h christ where to start this game could be amazing, at times it has some A class atmosphere and immersion, the artwork and game world are absolutely incredible, as is the premise of the game. it is "fun" to play, sort of, in a way. not really. it has a little of of that "je ne sais quoi", that indefinable quality that is kind of good but you sorta dont know why you like it. it has some sort of weird rizz but oh my god do not buy this game in its current state, this game should not be for sale. it is fcking ridiculous that fundog put this out, in this state, and is asking money for it. let me explain. this game is the most janky piece of sht ive played in a good long while and ive played some sht. literally nothing works well or makes sense or functions smoothly, nothing. the UI is so bad, like i still cant figure out how to do real simple sht like outfit my character or find certain things that i know are in my stash or equip grenades bcos the UI and UX are austiscally dogsht. im a real stickler for a good UI and whoever came up with the UI for this game, i have an issue with the way your mind works. and the UI is indicative of everything else, all the systems, the gameplay and the AI. oh god, the AI. this game has some of the worst, most janky, most immersion breaking, unreliable, brainless AI ive seen ever in a game that actually functions. from the moment you meet the AI you get nothing but total jank. strange animations, totally nonsensical path tracing, you cant really gauge behaviours or learn or play around the AI bcos it is total nonsense 100% of the time. sometimes theyll literally walk right up to you and stand over you with their gun resting on your head and not see you, other times you move and they all come screaming over, sometimes they break from their normal path tracing and stand right in the middle of the way you have to go for no discernable reason, sometimes theyll know youre there but not be able to find you and youll just end up trapped bcos theyre wandering around aimlessly. sometimes theyll kill on sight, sometimes they wont, there is no rhyme or reason to any of it and it makes this particular game, with its design philosophy and design intent, completely unplayable in a way that feels anything but utterly ridiculous. its just a fcking jankfest, beginning to end. forever winter feels like a bunch of super talented artistic kids got together to make an art project, it does not feel like a game, i honestly dont know if itll ever be a game. it has some of the most incredible art design ive ever seen, when it works and the textures arent floating in midair again it looks unbelievably beautiful. but thats all it really is, its an art piece. at least atm. everything else is a complete mess. fundog should not have released this, im shocked that its been out for so long and ive just played it and its so bad right now. what tf was it like when they released it? fundog shouldnt have released it in the state its in right now but its too late for all that. they should have just had a demo with a couple of the empty maps out for ppl to explore, so that we could see the world theyre building and their artwork. then they should have had regular beta testing weekends where players could jump in and test things out. i know they needed the money to pay their staff and fund the project and i appreciate that 100%, i support workers everywhere but this borders on bad behaviour from fundog leadership. it is bad behaviour. im conflicted. and theyre releasing skin packs and sht, for a game that barely functions and where it does it does so badly. not really cool guys. i think fundog is flying by the seat of their pants with this one, a real "fake it to you make it" kinda deal. which is how it kind of works, right? but you shouldnt be charging good money when you're faking it. this game needs some serious, serious work in areas that i dont think are getting attention. they need to leave the artwork and the modelling and the map design alone for about 12 months and just focus on getting the fcking thing to play. sort out the AI, hire some experience if you have to. figure out the fcking UI bcos it is fcking dogsht. get the systems figured out and streamline the experience. improve the player movement and collison, it is not good atm, it feels like sludge and for a stealth game the movement and collison and vaulting etc needs to be top class. the gun play is also not good, ive experienced worse but that isnt a compliment. this game could be a genuine masterpiece but i dont think its going that way, i dont know if fundog has the experience or the ability to pull this massive feat off tbh. i feel bad but im being honest. as i said, art kids doing an art project. thats what forever winter feels like. i really hope im wrong and i genuinely wish fundog all the best, i hope they make me look fcking stupid, i hope they knock it out of the park. and theyve got my money now so i hope it fcking helps. if youre on the fence about this game just wait, trust me. unless you really wanna support fundog. give it another 12 - 18 months and see whats up then. if they dont have most of the sht ive just whined about under control in 18 months time then this game is just an art project that broke containment.