The Survivalists, developed by Team17, is a sandbox game about to be released on October 9, 2020, for Nintendo Switch. It is a co-op, survival adventure game supposedly filled with mystery and fun. The game is interesting, with a unique visual style and lots to do. Team17 has brought a game to those who want to build, survive, and get crafty, while also having the ability to have your friends join in. With a variety of biomes, each outcome and adventure is unique to every player. There is a world of possibilities and exploration that can await on this mysterious island.
To start off, at the beginning of the game, you are shipwrecked on this island with only yourself and minimal supplies. If you’re playing multiplayer, you can also have up to three castaways alongside yourself to join in on this adventure. Not only that, you can have monkey friends as well! You’re able to train and strategize with your banana loving friends in order to maximize the functions needed to overcome challenges that arise and how to run your camp. From here, you must learn how to survive and figure out the mysteries contained in this island. Containing joint adventures, loot gaining, trade, and more, you’re able to explore as much as you’d like.
As you develop into more of your island life, sometimes you may be the one that’s hunted by enemies or an array of mythical creatures. Alongside discovering your own backstory, there is also a Mysterious Stranger who gives you quests to complete in hopes to find out more about this isolated paradise you’ve landed upon. Upon completing more quests, you get to discover a little bit more about yourself and the island’s history. The peril and dangers arise within the island’s many labyrinths, which are scattered all over, containing loot and rare treasures. Raiding these mazes, though, will not be easy as there will be enemies who will be blocking your way.
For this game, there is not really a concrete objective considering that there is no conclusive ending other than finishing all of your quests and building your city from the ground up on this deserted island. Mostly, it involves completing the quests that are given by the Mysterious Person, discovering the mysteries of the island, and looting all the labyrinths scattered across the land.
In terms of single player and multiplayer, the pacing of The Survivalists when played alone is much, much slower than playing with multiple people. Since there are so many things offered in this game, it makes sense that The Survivalists could be catered towards a more multiplayer point of view. Playing with multiple people speeds up your discoveries, development, and gives you more manpower when looting labyrinths. This is a very grindy game, but what is a sandbox game without the grind? If you were to play alone, however, be prepared to put in lots of time to progress as the pacing is slow without other people. Even without multiplayer though, this game is still playable despite it being so much slower than the other option. For those who are patient enough and are willing to put in the hours to develop their island, then it is worth a consideration. The multiplayer option adds a lot more adventure, flexibility, and leeway to the development of the island. It definitely speeds up the pace having more than just a one-man army.
The tutorials and controls were easy to understand. There are many things to remember when doing different things. While it might take awhile to get used to the controls and remember what everything does, it is not a hindrance to the actual gameplay. The gameplay of The Survivalists is quite simple as well. You can craft stuff with tools, a blueprint tool, mine, cut, and many more things offered in a survivalist-type game. Collecting more items and learning new recipes will allow you to have a higher chance of surviving on the island overall and unlock cool things.
The visuals and sound effects flowed together very well. The art style for the graphics is almost reminiscent of a pixelated style with a transitionally smooth animation. The music and sound effects for the game fit the concept of the game itself as well. The sound effects didn’t sound inaccurate and the background music fit the environments shown.
From my experience, I am usually not inclined to play survivalist sandbox-type games. It’s either a hit or miss for me. With this game, however, I wouldn’t say it’s entirely a miss from me. I just wish I had more friends to play with because for me, as it gets pretty boring doing the same thing over and over again slowly. When playing as a single player, it can get overwhelming with the tasks and discovering you have to do by yourself. It also slows down the pacing of the game itself as a whole. Even though it was hard for me to continue playing for a long amount of time alone, I can see how it could be extremely fun with others. I really think the way to get the most out of this game is to have the ability to play with others. It allows for unique adventures and experiences that are different for everyone, while also speeding up the pacing and progression of the game itself.
Alongside this, the monkey friends made it slightly more enjoyable considering that I played alone. It was pretty entertaining to hire monkeys to your party (especially because I was a one-man army). The monkey training in this game is very unique, and I haven’t seen anything like it in other games I’ve played.
While there were certain aspects of the game that excited me, such as the visuals and monkeys, the game to me overall was mediocre. The points for me was that I didn’t enjoy the pacing, especially since I played it as a single player rather than multiplayer. Sometimes these types of games don’t sit in well with my type of gaming style, but it could be thrilling for others. The Survivalists ended up becoming more and more repetitive as I continued, causing me to lose interest. It was difficult to keep playing, but if I had my friends to play with, maybe it would not feel as repetitive. Thus, the feeling of mediocrity to me.
Even though game experiences are different for everyone, I would give it a try if you’re looking for an adventure survival sandbox game. It personally did not click with me as much, but maybe you might enjoy it. The controls and gameplay are quite simple, yet there are tons of things to experience while in this world. The graphics have an art style that is unlike most games I’ve seen, the music adds to the environments. It will be awhile until you run out of things to do here and the quests just keep on coming. It could be a game that’s fun for you to play with others, and while putting in a lot of hours if you’re willing.
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I really love playing video games! Growing up, my dad introduced me to video games, the first being Street Fighter. I have always been surrounded by them growing up and even now. They really impacted my life allowing me to share this commonality with my friends and new ones. I play a wide array of games, mostly PC, but sometimes PS4 and Nintendo Switch. Some of my favorite games are Final Fantasy VII, League of Legends, Persona 5, and Stardew Valley. As of recent, I've been playing Fall Guys and Among Us as well!
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