Deep Despair 2 is a survival crafting game that feels like a cross between Don’t Starve and Stardew within a procedurally generated world. The days and varying biomes are bright and lush with movement happening across the screen makes the world feel alive but the nights are infinitely dark à la Don’t Starve. Build a base and fill your stomach to the brim and slaughter the monsters of the night, or get used to respawning, the night is unrelenting.
The game starts with no tutorial which I think could be hindering to those who don’t find the guide in the pause menu. The game is very grindy as you can partially expect from a game in the survival craft genre. It is a necessity that you are always eating, it contributes to your energy level and even a factor in healing. If your energy bar reaches zero you will incur damage to your health. At first this was difficult to balance because I wanted to get straight into crafting and building, but you have to eat A LOT. Your energy can wear pretty quickly and is mildly punishing. Even with farming it’s hard to get on top of and I recommend seeking out apple trees to get the ball rolling.
In the darkness, danger roams… It’s pretty brutal trying to fight most things in the darkness whether it be in the caves or above ground. Make sure to light your areas well to keep them at bay. If you get demolished while getting ballsy in the night, you will respawn with your toolbelt items and your food in survival mode. If your base is not close to your spawn and it’s dark out, it may be a struggle to get yourself slaughtered (zombies are super fast) but if you have enough food to survive the night you should be okay, and evening waiting out the night is an option.
The game is graphically gorgeous with bright pixel art. The maps are procedurally generated and heavily saturated. The movement creates the feeling that the world is alive and the sun rays are a nice touch with the changing of day. The graphics are one of the most attractive parts of this game. The game is a sandbox so there isn’t a lot of driving force other than exploration and crafting. If that bothers you, this might not be for you.
I am thoroughly enjoying Deep Despair 2. I feel like the space has a lot of competition but this iteration in the survival crafting genre certainly mixes up the formula and adds a little brutality to overcoming some of the game’s difficulty barriers. It’s a very pretty game with plenty to do to keep you engaged, but expect to come into trouble in the darkness of Deep Despair 2.
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