Disclaimer: I'm fully aware that this game may not be considered an indie game, but it's a standalone of a game that isn't really considered an indie game. The reason I'm talking about it is because it did have an early access when I heard about it, so I feel it can be included. Plus, I just want to talk about why it pisses me off.
Anyway, Don't Starve Together as I mentioned is a standalone multiplayer version of Don't Starve. If you're unaware of what Don't Starve is, where have you been? Have you been living under a rock? Basically you play as a character who is fighting to survive under any means necessary. That means you have to hunt for your food, build a base, etc etc. Now, enjoying Don't Starve as much as I did when it came out, I figured a multiplayer version of the game would be a great idea, but I was wrong, very wrong.
The whole point of a survival game to me is being able to find your stuff and survive as long as possible by yourself. I enjoy the feeling of loneliness and the fear of death in these kinds of games because it really adds to the feel that the game is trying to bring out, however when you bring more people into the equation, it sort of makes it feel more like a competitive survival game more than just a survival game. I know what you're thinking? You don't have to play the multiplayer mode, Ki. I know that, but sometimes you are playing games with friends, and there's always one person that wants to play Don't Starve, which is fine. Sometimes i'm in the mood for it. However, that mood quickly changes to being pissed off when the other players you are playing with decide that the game needs to be played differently than you play it. Once that mutual goal is split into different goals, the game becomes frustrating and you find yourself doing things that you're used to doing and the friends you play with start to realize that you may be wasting your time, and at that point you start to wonder what you're supposed to really be doing. To me, games like this don't need an end goal or a set of plans, you're meant to survive in whatever way possible.
Let me paint a picture for you. I play Don't Starve Together with a good friend of mine. Any games we play, I never get salty when things don't go the right way because it's all in good fun. However, in Don't Starve Together, all those chains break loose and I find myself getting frustrated and annoyed with the players that i'm playing with because I keep wanting to do things to help out the rest of the team like building a base of operations and making sure there's an unlimited access to food. However, whenever I take the time to do that, my teammates decide that they want to continue to venture further and further away from the base leaving me to go out alone to find the supplies that I need. I understand the aspect of having to go out and fetch supplies and hunt food, but at least have it be a team effort, instead of one person doing it, then having that person get pissed off because I decided that a home base was a good idea. In their opinion, they decide it's not a good idea, and the game becomes less of a team game, and more of a competitive "let's see who can survive longer" game, and that's not fun to me. In his defense, he does give himself the proper build and supplies to last longer, but how much does that really help with the enjoyment of the game? I'm not just going to go out and kill mobs and let that be it, if I wanted to do that, i'd just play an action adventure game. I like to feel submerged into the game, which always leads me to build the base that I want to build. Once the frustration and disagreements hit, the game becomes less fun and eventually I just turn it off and end the call. I feel as though with this kind of game, both teammates or all teammates need to realize that both killing mobs for supplies and building a good base of operations are two great ideas. Once that mutual understanding is met, the game can be as exciting as it's meant to be.
This is no way means the game is bad. Honestly, the multiplayer version of an already great game is fantastic. There's even mods you can install to make the game even better, like minimaps and different characters that weren't originally included in the game. Unfortunately, I'd much rather play the solo game rather than this one. At least until I find someone that wants to play the game that it's meant to be played.