Hello all,
I am Grey, Its been a while since I’ve last posted on forums. I just wanted to give some of my feedback on the game Darktide. It’s worth noting I only have 65 hours so far in Darktide, so this is just an early game feedback. Also, I am just posting my own opinions, feel free to agree or disagree.
I actually enjoy it so far, it seems worth the fun to play up to 30 levels. Although, there are some points I’d like to comment on.
Firstly, I really enjoy the gameplay in general so far. It’s a fun variation of Vermintide. I am really happy the game wasn’t essentially copy pasted from Vermintide in terms of disablers or specials for example since they function differently. I also find that it’s not just another mindless hack and slash, since with higher difficulties, the game also requires a bit more co-ordination. Rather, it requires more situational awareness of enemies and teammate locations.
Secondly, something that I am happy about is that crafting became a thing in Darktide. I intentionally avoided the game at first since I knew there would be tweaking and fixes, but I did start playing a bit after crafting was introduced. Generally, I find crafting too RNG heavy. This is due to the fact, that there’s a chance to obtain a desired weapon. Then there is a chance to obtain the right weapon with the right perks. Then there is a chance to obtain the right weapon, with right perks, with right blessings. To get a perfect weapon, or at least a very desirable weapon doesn’t seem like an appealing grind since the RNG just multiplies and doesn’t actually offer a feeling of progression unless you “get lucky”.
Furthermore, I think what would have made the grind more appealing, or more fun is an actual feeling of progression. For example, let’s say you can buy a weapon blueprint, and complete some specific objectives to obtain a desirable weapon. Sure, some RNG can be involved as a reason to grind the same weapon blueprint over and over, for example specific stats of the weapon. I’m not saying remove RNG completely, some RNG is a lot more fun, but there should be a feeling of progression especially with gear progression. Being able to roll for specific blessings and perks is a good feature to the game, I won’t comment on locking the other perk or blessing though.
Long story short, I think players would find the game more appealing if it wasn’t just gear progression in terms of RNG, but limited or some RNG with an actual progression line. It’s a more solid reason to grind the game.
Thirdly, which is kind of part of supporting the second point, I find that how penances and weeklies work is pretty good. It’s an example of actual feeling of progression in the game. I noticed in the Darktide discord server for example, at least currently, second to LFG damnation would be players looking to complete either weeklies or penances. I believe this is because as stated in my second point, it offers a feeling of progression. These are specific tasks to be completed to attain a specific reward. Also, there is some RNG for example, slaying a specific amount of monsters for weeklies which is what makes it a bit more grindable.
Fourthly, something I find very positive are the different weapon types. For example there is Mk 1-etc. and it allows players to use desirable weapons with varying combat styles. It allows players to play the weapons they like by choosing the attacks chains they like for example. I think this was a very positive variation for the game.
To come to and end before it gets too long, I am glad Darktide game out as a game. To summarize, It’s fun to play a 40k game that isn’t copy pasted from Vermintide but similar. The crafting could have some improvements, but my main point about crafting which I find more significant is giving players a feeling of progression. For example, acquiring weapons through blueprints with some RNG to keep it grindable to a more fun extent. Such as penances or weeklies for example. Lastly, the weapon variations I find are pretty sweet.
Thanks for reading until here. Again, it’s just some feedback and my own opinion about the game. Agreements or disagreements are both welcome.
Greyknight654