I’m sure many of you have seen this screen more than once. However, the thing I want to point out most is the reviews. “Mostly Positive” and “Very Positive.” Now, that’s all well and good, considering many of Unturned’s counterparts have less stellar ratings, as can be seen below.
Rust
Miscreated
7 Days to Die
However, something is missing in all these games that exists in Unturned: Singleplayer.
Take a look at some singleplayer games on Steam and you’ll see that they most likely have the most coveted achievement of almost any developer: a rating of “Overwhelmingly Positive.”
S.T.A.L.K.E.R.: Call of Pripyat
Fallout: New Vegas
Metro 2033 Redux
Now, you may have noticed something by now. Why is it that these three singleplayer games, all of which have dated graphics and one of which is laden with bugs, technical issues, and dates back to nearly nine years ago, have better ratings than the majority of multiplayer survival games on the market?
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. captured its audience with its atmosphere, the harsh, unforgiving environment that assured you, almost everywhere you went, you were never, ever truly safe. Even the highest tier of armor couldn’t protect you from a massive emission of psionic energy that could happen at any moment, and even the most powerful weapon in the game could be yanked from your hands by a telekinetic mutant that could also project force fields. It was because of this, the adrenaline that pulses through your veins when you crawl your way through a nest of sleeping mutants and that even standing up could mean instant death, or during the endgame, having to escort your friends through a gauntlet of howling mutants and fanatical brainwashed cultists to an extraction point, all minutes before an emission is due to hit.
New Vegas was different, with realistic and fun NPC interactions, a gripping story along with a wide variety of unique weapons, and the sheer hilariousness of having Space Marines, paranoid people with artillery, a Roman ISIS, and the entire cast of Toy Story 2…which would be funny if they weren’t trying to kill you.
Metro, on the other hand, was made by ex-Stalker developers, meaning it had much of the same atmosphere, but with an absolutely stunning story of what happens after everyone wants to go eye for eye.
Now, onto Unturned II. It might be challenging, it might not be appealing at first, but if Nelson does the singleplayer right…he could easily get an “Overwhelmingly Positive.”
But how to do this, he might ask, and I would answer with the following:
Lighting
See that? Wayyy too bright. One of the many things that put people off at first was the clear influence of Roblox on Unturned. The greens are to bright, the yellows and reds stand out too much…at first glance Unturned appears as Roblox was: a kid’s game.
Much better. One thing that Nelson has already done, good job nelson. However…are all fire stations red? Pharmacies completely blue? The atmosphere would be much improved if shops and such appeared as actual buildings that have different character, for example, a fire station with an exterior of brick.
Realistic Questlines and Playing of Emotions
Imagine you were sent by a merchant to investigate a strange glow by a dredge. You go there and low and behold; an unique, glowing artifact awaits for you after you’ve spent the better part of ten minutes trying to get to the wheelhouse. You grab the artifact, isolate it in a lead container, and prepare to haul ass back to the merchant so you can sell it to him. On your way out, however, a stalker stops you, saying that the artifact has healing properties and pleads with you to let him have it for a friend who is on the verge of death. You consult your emotional compass, and hand over the artifact to him, wishing his friend luck. However, when you make your way back to the merchant, you will see said stalker handing over the artifact to the merchant, who pays him accordingly. He notices you and your shocked expression, and simply smirks and leers: “What? I need money too!”
That scenario I just described is an actual in-game scripted event in Call of Pripyat. And that is precisely the type of quest that should be in Unturned II Singleplayer.
I mean…well…there’s not much else you can do to make the singleplayer experience better, other than the atmosphere…but…well. There you have it. How Unturned II’s singleplayer should be done.