The Indie Game Magazine December 2015 | Issue 56 | Page 13

Developer/Publisher: Signal Studios and DigitalDNA
Studios

Steam: http://store.steampowered.com/app/307880

Website: www.savagelandsgame.com

Genre: Fantasy, Survival

Facebook: www.facebook.com/SavageLandsGame/?fref=ts

the Frostfall mod installed). There’s a huge, wintery alpine environment, small villages with a mythical, Nordic feel, and of
course, dragons. There are seriously epic fights to be had, and
some over-whelmingly powerful enemies to be found, but for the
most part Savage Lands sees its players walking a constant line

between starvation and freezing, with
scarce resources posing much
more of a threat than wolves
or skeletons.
In games like this, isolation becomes an increasingly noticeable
element. Savage Lands and The
Long Dark equally share the
peculiar emotional effect
prompted by wandering
for hours through abandoned settlements,
half-expecting other
humans to appear
but knowing they
won’t. Epic
music plays
while the
menu

Platform: Windows, Mac, Steam OS, Linux
Price: $14.99 (USD)

screens are navigated, but most of the experience is scored
only by the sounds of the natural world, the rustlings of

stalking enemies, the player character’s

own ragged breathing, and distant
roars from the dragon towers.
During the day, it’s possible
to spend long periods of
time without being attacked, just trying to keep
your body temperature up
without getting lost in the
wilderness. At night, things
change. Members of the active
Savage Lands Steam community
discuss the genuine sense of fear

inspired when darkness falls and increasingly
frightening creatures come out. There’s something primally
unsettling about even the simulated experience of crouching by a
fire that you’ll freeze to death without, knowing it is a beacon for
whatever is hidden in the shadows; or of huddling in a make-shift
shelter, hoping the things you hear just outside can’t get in.
Multiplayer offers a very different experience from single-player
mode. Online play provides “Hostile” and “Friendly” servers, so
there are Darwinian options as well as more pleasant communities
where players cannot attack one another. With private servers,
groups of friends can band to-gether to build and defend settlements. As resource gathering is one of the most vital elements
of the game, an organized team can split tasks amongst themselves, stockpiling and avoiding the spirit-crushing experience of
freezing after realizing you’re one piece of flint short of a fire.
The game is consistently being updated with new content and
patches, and dev streams are shared every Thursday at 1PM PT.
The game is currently in Early Access as an Alpha, having released
on Steam in March. Updates include adjusted damage rates
from dragon attacks to make those epic battles a little less punishing, and regular patches showcasing the team’s dedication to
the continued improvement of their title. The Steam community
is very involved, posting user cre-ated content including maps
and survival games, as well as keeping conversations going

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