Mist Survival is a single-player, survival stealth sandbox game that is currently in Steam Early Access… and what a game it is already!
Players take on the role of a survivor who has avoided contracting a virus that has turned the rest of the world into infected monsters. Besides avoiding the random, dense mist that brings forth hordes of the infected, players must navigate the wilderness while battling the elements as well as other less than hospitable survivors.
TheGamer had the opportunity to test drive an early version of the game, which has since seen a major update that included bug fixes, the addition of new in-game items, and even an entirely new location (what’s creepier than an old, dark, and “abandoned” mine?). Even for Early Access, the game looks and plays great. What’s even more impressive is the fact that Mist Survival is entirely developed by just one person. Dimension 32 Entertainment developer, Rati Wattanakornprasit, was kind enough to answer some questions about Mist Survival regarding its current state, as well as the plans for its future.
Before the game hit Early Access, Rati had been working on it for almost two years. That’s when he decided to quit his job to develop Mist Survival full-time by himself.
“I had never really thought about creating a game by myself. Throughout the entire development process, I [was] met with a lot of failures. I guess it was a little bad luck to work with some folks who weren’t completely passionate about working on the game, which led to some challenges and delays. In the end, I decided that I would try my best to make the game on my own.”
Of course, developing a game on your own can have its own hurdles, but it can have benefits as well. Both of which Rati has experienced during the game’s development.
“I would say the biggest problem I’ve faced is lack of passion in getting the work done. Everyone usually says the biggest challenge is budget, but for me, that’s not a really big issue. I do some mobile application and VR application outsourcing work, which helps fund the game’s development. In the past, I’ve brought people onto the team to help work on the game, but their lack of passion or other commitments would result in their loss of focus or their loss of passion in getting the game completed. I try my best to keep that focus and passion, no matter what. For example, when Monster Hunter World released, all of my friends were playing it and bugging me to play it too. But, I had a development schedule for Mist Survival I had to stick to, so I never got a chance to play with them.
For the benefits, I guess it must be that the entire game and process belongs to me and I’m not reliant on anyone else. The disadvantage would be that since I’m only one person, there are parts of the quality where I need to improve. But, now that I have sufficient funds, I’ll be able to hire a capable specialist to join my team to get that sort of thing addressed in the near future.”
It is easy to draw some comparisons between Mist Survival and other games in the survival adventure genre, while also hinting at influences from horror movies. Both were very intentional and genres that Rati is passionate about.
“Actually, survival games are my favorite genre and I’ve played a lot of them. I’m very fond of The Long Dark because it’s more compelling and serious than most games I’ve played in the past. I’m also a big fan of zombie movies and games. So, I wanted to make a game that combined those elements into one experience that combined the challenges of survival and the threat of zombies.
As I wanted it to be scary, I first tried to find some gimmicks like sandstorms or eclipses. But in the end, I have chosen mist (which was inspired by the movie The Mist).”
With Mist Survival being an open-world sandbox, players can build up their shelters and collect resources to help them survive. They can even add other friendly NPC survivors to help out at their base, playing a surprisingly large role in the player being able to stay alive.
“Actually, survivors NPC’s are a major part of the gameplay and I hope that players feel attached to each character that they’ve rescued.
The survivor NPC system is relatively complex and I want to develop this part further because I think it offers up the most fun. There are four fundamental systems that must be developed, which include things like sending NPCs to find resources in various locations or sending them out to explore. I’m currently working on all four, which are:
Emotion system – Where you are able to interact with a character. You can either increase or decrease the satisfaction level of any character.
Conversation-Response system (currently under development and planned to release in the 0.4.0 version) – Where conversational choices depend on the situation, the mood of an NPC, or some quests that the player is assigned by the NPC.
Command system – Such as being stationed at a fortress or cutting down trees, etc.
Lastly, develop human-like behaviors for NPCs that can respond to the environment, objects, construction, as well as the player themselves.”
Recently, Mist Survival received a major update that brought lots of new content to the game, including a new location. Rati assures that there is plenty more to be added to the already expansive map.
“The map will be expanded more and I will add three more locations in the near future – one of which is a large city that has significance in the game’s main storyline. This city area will also contain new and interesting items that will be unique for that environment.”
Although Mist Survival is getting a story mode, Rati says that it won’t impact the open-world sandbox vibe that the game has now. Players will still be able to play the game the way they want to.
“Actually, it only has a slight impact. A player can choose to know or not know the main story. Storytelling in Sandbox Mode consists of finding clues, examining key items, unlocking new routes, and receiving quests from NPCs that they can choose to complete or choose not to. It’s really up to the player. I don’t want to force their hand in one direction or another. If they choose to, say, pursue certain quests, they’ll be faced with greater dangers, but also greater rewards. But, the choice is really theirs to make.”
Right now, Mist Survival is a single-player experience. As to whether or not a multiplayer mode could be in the works, Rati says it could be possible, but it’s not a priority at the moment.
“I’ve toyed around with the idea of multiplayer, and if it did happen, it would probably only be 2-4 player co-op. The main issue is that the game was built for a single player, so to add multiplayer, I’d have to completely redesign the game. The “Time Advancement” system would be the real offender in having to be reworked. That said, I’m spending some time seeing how a feature like that could be added to the game, but can’t make any promises until at least the core game is completed and finished.”
Mist Survival is currently slated to be fully released next year, but as Rati says, “anything can happen with game development!” If you’re at all interested in seeing what Mist Survival has to offer, the game is currently 10% off on Steam. But before jumping right into the fray, be sure to heed Rati’s advice for your first few days of survival:
“Utilize stealth and don’t rush!”
Thanks to Rati for taking the time to answer some of our questions. Be sure to stay tuned to TheGamer as we bring you more updates surrounding Mist Survival, along with a full review of the game upon its release.