Pathologic 2 is a very fascinating game. It's tense and satisfying, and the way you interact with NPCs feels very immersive.
Today though, I had quite a miserable experience with the game. I got through Day 8 and it took all morning. The lack of food plus getting infected the day prior caused me to die over and over. And dying in Pathologic 2 means that the game gets progressively harder, which means more deaths, which means that the game gets progressively harder, which means more deaths. I don't know why anyone thought this mechanic was a good idea.
The biggest problems were all those loading screens. I don't know how much of a difference it would have made if I had downloaded the game on the SSD, but getting through a long ass loading screen to then play two minutes and immediately die, to then get another long ass loading screen, over and over again, was fucking miserable. You're not actively encouraged to keep trying again, maybe using different strategies, since every death is so punishing because of the death mechanic and the loading screens.
I get that the game is trying to be punishing, but when the only punishment you get for dying is frustration, then I'd rather play at a lower difficulty.
I guess that getting through Day 8 felt like an accomplishment in the end, but it was not a good time. I have no intention of doing the remaining 4 days the same way. I have lowered the difficulty to basically the lowest settings, and I'm probably not going back to "intended difficulty". I might even have gotten myself into a situation where it's straight up impossible to complete the game at that difficulty, unless I reload a way older save and correct some of my past mistakes (like getting infected in the first place in some story event).
I don't feel bad for turning down the difficulty (there's still a challenge... just a more normal one). There's a lot that I admire about this game and I don't want the frustration to ruin it for me.
Today though, I had quite a miserable experience with the game. I got through Day 8 and it took all morning. The lack of food plus getting infected the day prior caused me to die over and over. And dying in Pathologic 2 means that the game gets progressively harder, which means more deaths, which means that the game gets progressively harder, which means more deaths. I don't know why anyone thought this mechanic was a good idea.
The biggest problems were all those loading screens. I don't know how much of a difference it would have made if I had downloaded the game on the SSD, but getting through a long ass loading screen to then play two minutes and immediately die, to then get another long ass loading screen, over and over again, was fucking miserable. You're not actively encouraged to keep trying again, maybe using different strategies, since every death is so punishing because of the death mechanic and the loading screens.
I get that the game is trying to be punishing, but when the only punishment you get for dying is frustration, then I'd rather play at a lower difficulty.
I guess that getting through Day 8 felt like an accomplishment in the end, but it was not a good time. I have no intention of doing the remaining 4 days the same way. I have lowered the difficulty to basically the lowest settings, and I'm probably not going back to "intended difficulty". I might even have gotten myself into a situation where it's straight up impossible to complete the game at that difficulty, unless I reload a way older save and correct some of my past mistakes (like getting infected in the first place in some story event).
I don't feel bad for turning down the difficulty (there's still a challenge... just a more normal one). There's a lot that I admire about this game and I don't want the frustration to ruin it for me.
