While you both survive the sudden crash that cuts your conversation short, you are separated from one another, and Will succumbs to injuries that make surviving the harsh winterscape a true challenge. It certainly doesn't help that many of the scenes throughout Wintermute's first two episodes are hampered by odd animation jitters and floating objects that pop in and out frame. Astrid Greenwood before their plane comes crashing down, the quick and cliched implication of an emotional backstory through suggestive and vague dialogue makes a weak first impression.

Though there are a few revealing moments shared between Will and Dr. It is, however, clearly off to a rocky start, leaving the more open-ended sandbox mode as the best reason to jump into The Long Dark today.ĭuring Wintermute, you play as Will Mackenzie, a loner pilot working in the northern reaches of Canada, who agrees to help transport his distressed ex-wife and her mysterious cargo somewhere into the far reaches of the woods.

The game's demanding survival mechanics have the potential to mesh well with the story of a plane crash survivor stuck in the Canadian wilderness of Great Bear, but it's too early to say whether or not Wintermute's narrative ultimately pays off. As The Long Dark emerges after years in early access, it introduces the first two chapters in a five-part story, called Wintermute.

The long dark sandbox