The Long Dark on Steam - User reviews, Price & Information
THE LONG DARK is a thoughtful, exploration-survival experience that challenges solo players to think for themselves as they explore an expansive frozen wilderness in the aftermath of a geomagnetic disaster. There are no zombies -- only you, the cold, and all the threats Mother Nature can muster.
The Long Dark is a survival, open world survival craft and open world game
developed and published by Hinterland Studio Inc..
Released on August 01st 2017 is available on Windows, MacOS and Linux
in 19 languages: English, German, Russian, French, Spanish - Spain, Finnish, Japanese, Korean, Norwegian, Portuguese - Portugal, Simplified Chinese, Swedish, Traditional Chinese, Turkish, Portuguese - Brazil, Dutch, Italian, Polish and Ukrainian.
It has received 110,028 reviews of which 99,810 were positive and 10,218 were negative resulting in a rating of 9.0 out of 10. đ
The game is currently priced at 16.99⏠on Steam, but you can find it for 10.87⏠on Instant Gaming.
The Steam community has classified The Long Dark into these genres:
System requirements
These are the minimum specifications needed to play the game. For the best experience, we recommend that you verify them.
Windows
- Requires a 64-bit processor and operating system
- OS *: Windows 8
- Processor: Dual-Core Intel i5 CPU @ 2GHz+
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Graphics: Intel 4xxx Series w/ 512MB VRAM or better
- Storage: 7 GB available space
- Sound Card: Any on-board chip will work.
MacOS
- OS: OSX 10.9.3
- Processor: Core i5 @ 2.2GHz
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Graphics: Intel HD Graphics 5000
- Storage: 7 GB available space
- Sound Card: On-board.
Linux
- OS: SteamOS or Ubuntu 16.04 or 17.04
- Processor: Dual-Core Intel i5 CPU @ 2GHz+
- Memory: 4 GB RAM
- Graphics: Intel 4xxx Series w/ 512MB VRAM or better
- Storage: 7 GB available space
- Sound Card: Any on-board chip will work.
User reviews & Ratings
Explore reviews from Steam users sharing their experiences and what they love about the game.
Survive. Adapt. Perish. Repeat. This game is... something else entirely. It's not your average survival game where you craft an empire out of sticks and stones or become some overpowered wilderness god. Nope, The Long Dark takes a simpler, much harsher route: youâre in the frozen wilderness, youâre alone, and youâre going to die. The only question is how long youâll last. First off, letâs talk about the vibe. This game doesnât scare you with cheap tricks like random jump scares or monsters. Itâs something much more primal â solitude. The silence. The wind. The creak of an empty cabin. Itâs like the whole world is whispering, âYouâre not supposed to be here.â And yeah, that gets under your skin. Youâll find yourself checking shadows for wolves or lighting a match just to ease the weight of the dark. Itâs intense, but in the best way possible. Then thereâs the survival itself. Youâre juggling everythingâcalories, thirst, warmth, fatigue â all while keeping track of time, weather, and the fact that wolves and bears donât care about your to-do list. Every decision feels heavy. Do you risk crossing the ice to reach that cabin? Do you use your last match now or save it for later? Itâs not just about staying alive; itâs about outsmarting a world thatâs actively trying to kill you. But hereâs the thing: dying isnât a failure in this game. Itâs like a lesson. Every mistake you make teaches you something â donât wander off without extra clothes, donât ignore that storm brewing in the distance, donât think a wolf will back down because youâre holding a flare. And when you finally nail a long run, when youâve got a stash of food, a warm shelter, and maybe even a rifle â you feel like a legend. Now, what about the gameplay modes? The Wintermute story mode? Itâs fine, serves as a good intro, but the real magic is in Sandbox. Thatâs where you can truly lose yourself. Whether youâre in a chill mode where wildlife leaves you alone or cranking the difficulty to Interloper where every second is a fight for survival, itâs entirely up to you. And hey, the custom mode? Absolute lifesaver. Tweak it to fit your style and just dive in. And letâs not forget the devs. These people love their game. Theyâre constantly adding new regions, mechanics, and even special events (like a Halloween monster mode â wild, right?). Itâs rare to see a game thatâs already so polished still getting this much love years after launch. In the end, The Long Dark isnât just a game. Itâs an experience. Itâs for people who donât mind a challenge, who appreciate a game that respects their intelligence and throws them into a world where the only goal is to keep going. Itâs brutal, haunting, and absolutely unforgettable. 10/10. Get it. Survive it. Or at least, try.
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I love this game with all my heart. Its fun and well thought out. Its exactly what I was looking for in a survival game. I cant wait for the sequel Blackfrost!!!
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Listen, Hinterland. I've been with you (this game) for ten years now. The YEAR OF OUR LORD, TWENTY FOURTEEN. Before the player had hand models, I was there. Before wolf stuggles had animations, I was there. When I had a group of friends gathered around me with snacks, watching this Early Access Cold Canada Wolf Game, until the run ended to a failed rifle shot, well of course I was there lol. When there was a surge of discovery to take off all your clothes before you jump in the ice water after goodies on the frozen shoreline, I was there. You have, with every update, given me everything I've ever wanted in this type of survival game. We may not always agree on some decisions made, and even when you added a story, the survival mode was treated with equal importance. I saw the changes happen to Mystery Lake, the subtle detail updates, suddenly areas had... MORE. I loved it all. The immersion I feel in this game world is second to none other as far as survival goes. I would like to personally shake the hand of the audio designers. Even back in 2014 early access, you guys had it NAILED. I may never play Wintermute. It's not the type of game I want. But, unlike many, almost every, other game out there that creates two or more (or like nineteen, WARFRAME) modes, SURVIVAL just always felt fantastic. I even noticed when you would tweak snowfall along the roadsides so I didn't break my friggin' ankles as much when running for my life from wolves or through a blizzard. So, here's how this is gonna work. I'm gonna buy this Tales from the Far Territory DLC. It's probably going to kill many of my characters. I'm going to keep enjoying this game, and you? You're going to take my money, a second time. I would have considered this a complete experience when you gave us Desolation Point, and the ability to finally craft our own tools. Now, at the end of 2024, as an early Christmas present, I can PUT PAINTINGS ON THE WALLS. We can watch, together, all of us, as the collective community begins to photograph bear attacks as close to the last possible moment, as possible, then fills a house with them. Or all the houses. You did this. You have given us the perfect experience. I wish I didn't have to sleep. Post review (and post mild popularity) edit: A commentor asked me, (corrected for grammar) "Isn't the game just about exploration and hunting? How did you get to 1700 hours?" My response, also in the comments: "Because survival is paramount. The game does not have infinite resources. You are managing an ever-dwindling supply, and the only time you get more is by moving locations, which, depending on the difficulty, your knowledge of the world, and how the weather is behaving, can be a daunting task. I tend to play with risk. My runs have never survived past 100 days. There's an achievement for 500 days, but my actual true goal in-game is to map everything, find everything, explore everything, craft everything, and attempt to make each safehouse a viable location. I'm simply not done yet." Also, I went and bought the soundtrack, too. Do me a favor and start making a Hinterland brand cast iron skillet for sale. I'll buy one of those too. Post edit-edit: Thank you all for the votes and posetivity. This game means a lot to me. My most recent, and current playthrough (as in, hasn't died as of the 6th of January, started near the end of november, picked up the DLC around the 1st or 2nd of december), has scoured and encamped most of Mystery Lake and Coastal Highway, found one DLC weapon (Vaughn's Rifle, very nice), only two wolf struggles, killed three bears, and is nearly at 80 days of survival, a personal landmark. The game is more fun and immersive than I've ever experienced before. There is a lot still waiting for me. I have much work to do. I'm afraid of what happens when I finally run out of matches. Post-post Edit-edit: Have made it to 101 days. Cleared out the entirety of Mystery Lake and Coastal Highway. A ton of food placed everywhere. Pleasant Valley and Bleak Inlet are next on the list. Losing this run will hurt when its time comes. No cougar encounters, but I haven't sought them out. Only moved through their areas. Buy this game. Buy the DLC. Buy the soundtrack. HINTERLAND! MAKE ME A CAST IRON SKILLET!
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Excellent game. Do not listen to the haters whining about no episode 5. The community said they wanted DLC for sandbox mode prioritized over story content, so the developers listened and provided. Episode 5 is coming out in late 2024 as they stated many times already.
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As a fellow game developer, this game gives me such conflicting emotions. I love it and hate it and wants more of it but also understands the current situation and the previous decisions. The difficulty in the beginning feels unforgiving, but it's where I find myself liking the most. Shivering in a snow storm not knowing where to go. You can feel the chill and despair in your bones, but just when you thought you are dead for sure, you find a small cabin. You go in, start a fire, boil some water, and your mind finally relaxes. You thought to yourself, maybe I can just make it through another day. That's one of the best feeling I've felt in a video game. But when you start to learn the map and mechanics, you find yourself acting purely with the goal of progression. Better gear, better clothes, the survival instinct is gone. Everything is predictable, you have the route and loot in mind, you go there, you get it, that's it. There is simply not enough variables or late game challenges that can put your knowledge to the test. Your hard earned lessons serve you only the dread of emptiness. You know not why to go on, where to go, everything just becomes a chore. It's such a shame. This game builds such a beautiful world and atmosphere, but it lacks some actual characters, story, mechanics and challenges. The wintermute story mode has a lackluster story and doesn't involve enough survival mechanics or player immersion. Tales from far territory is promising but requires you to go through much of the early stages that by the time you reach the new content, you are too burnt out to care. The slow pace of development and communication paints a picture of burnt out devs with low interest of improving this game. I'm a game dev myself and I totally get their frustration. This game had been through some rocky periods and significant goal shifts, probably due to financial and staff change problems. So I will not judge them too harshly, it's just unfortunate that it has come to this. So here are my suggestions to the development team. 1. If you have abundant resources but got lost in the tunnel vision: Have a serious discussion about a total revamp of the current map, AI and loot system. Add more variables to the map to make shelters unpredictable, but utilize clues like roads and power lines to guide players to potential shelters. Add move-sets and behaviors to make the AI more unpredictable, maybe even give them the ability to break shelters so you can't just cabin cheese a bear with no risk or realism. Nerf the bottle necks like rifles and prolong each battle, make the hunts more difficult but rewarding. Decrease and vary the punishment for a failed hunt. Give players more tools to approach a hunt like traps or melee options, not just QTEs. Make the crafting system more accessible and in-depth to increase the incentive to craft rather than looting for the better alternatives. There are many more ways to make this game more fun, especially for the late game. 2. If you have few resources to continue development: Finish what you've started. It's too late to revamp the structure of the core mechanics. So at least just give the players what they've paid for, then move on to the next project with the knowledge and lessons you've learned from this game. 3. if you don't have the resources to continue development at all: Try everything to gather resources. Communicate thoroughly and routinely with the players. Let us know where you are and what your obstacles are. Ask for help either in donation or just to spread the word for the game. Lay out new plans for monetization, new dlcs, new game modes, whatever to give us and investors hope. Give it a last ditch effort to turn it around.
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Last Updates| Steam data | 07 April 2025 12:11 |
|---|---|
| SteamSpy data | 09 April 2025 18:40 |
| Steam price | 13 April 2025 12:42 |
| Steam reviews | 11 April 2025 07:56 |
If you'd like to dive deeper into the details about The Long Dark, we invite you to check out a few dedicated websites that offer extensive information and insights. These platforms provide valuable data, analysis, and user-generated reports to enhance your understanding of the game and its performance.
- SteamDB - A comprehensive database of everything on Steam about The Long Dark
- SteamCharts - Analysis of The Long Dark concurrent players on Steam
- ProtonDB - Crowdsourced reports on Linux and Steam Deck The Long Dark compatibility
Online players
1,810
Developer
Hinterland Studio Inc.
Publisher
Hinterland Studio Inc.
Release
01 Aug 2017
Platforms
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