A Veteran's Takes

[biggestt03]

Good evening everyone!

MASSIVE SPOILERS!!!!!!

I have been following Obsidian and Grounded since the early release of the first game. I saw promise and enjoyment after playing even the bare bones of it, and I loved watching it evolve to the point it is at now. I see that same potential in Grounded 2. I am constantly impressed by and grateful for the Grounded developers for the amazing game series they've made. Normally, I observe but don't add my own opinion to the discussion, but I see some issues with Grounded 2 that did not exist in Grounded, and I hope they can be addressed. Before I continue, I'd like to point out that these are my own game experiences and my own thought process that may be different from yours when playing the game.

1. Game Progression (Berries)

My first time playing through the early access story for Grounded 2, I was playing on Mild with a controller. I had to get a new game system in order to play this version so I didn't want to be blown away by the insects being too challenging while I'm learning the system. That being said, I began the new game and everything was going smoothly until after I had received my buggy and the optical disk for base defenses. From that point forward, the game tells you to choose between two O.R.C Signal points to dismantle (Spoiler: I never did either of them so I don't yet know how they work). I ended up finding that to get to them, you needed to upgrade your equipment to be better suited for the hostile environments: either the gas mask for the haze or the chill armor for the picnic bench. The major problem is that you need berry leather to craft most of this gear. I was left to explore the rest of the map to discover the berry leather I needed. I found the lingonberry leather, but never found the blueberry leather. I ended up discovering the main hideout of the stranger before blueberry leather. If these berries are vital to the progression of the story, I believe they should be more easily available. The story should take us to the berries like it did in Grounded, or the blueberries should have small bushels that pop up around the map. I shouldn't have to find every other interesting landmark in the game because the berries are located only in one spot out of the way. It hurts the surprise factor for other aspects of the game later down the line. I understand that I can always look up online where to find certain things, but it takes the fun and surprise away from the game, and additionally, it is the job of the developers to guide players through their game. If any of this sounded harsh, I honestly do not mean to be; it's just how passionate I am about the game.

2. Game Progression (Stranger Hideout)

I mentioned before that I ended up finding the stranger's hideout before finding blueberries, and that created issues of its own. To start, entering the hideout requires you to kill some O.R.C guards, break through dead branches, and navigate some tree branches. Now I went through this whole process without even realizing what I was doing. I had no idea I was entering the final boss lab until I entered the main room and the stranger started talking about how I wasn't ready for this yet. I took that as a challenge. I cleared the rest of the lab with the crimson saber, the ladyguard, the northern shredders, and whatever heals I picked up along the way. I fully defeated the stranger and her pet wolf spider with tier 1 armor and a tier 1 weapon (with another tier 2 weapon and a tier 2 shield). I was disappointed that it was so easy, but I also understand I was playing on Mild. My problem with my progression is that due to a fluke find while looking for blueberries, I skipped the majority of the current story. I don't believe this should be possible. Looking at Grounded, there are progression blockers everywhere that help to keep the game pacing such as the Assistant Manager keycard and Dr. Tully to open the Moldorc lab doors. This is critical for game pacing and allowing for a satisfying conclusion. The fact that there was nothing stopping me from simply entering the stranger's lab and confronting her was disappointing and lackluster because I knew I had just skipped the entire story so far. I believe some sort of progression lock should be added to make sure no one meets the stranger too early. 

3. Radials

Unrelated to the other issues, I have found that the radials could use some work. The construction radial is just as good as Grounded, so I'm happy there. I do find the blueprints hard to see when in direct sunlight so if we may be able to make them a darker shade of blue, it would help. Additionally, it becomes to difficult to build roofs now that you need to hold the button to cancel blueprints on controller instead of just pressing it like in Grounded. My major issue, though, with Grounded 2 radials is that there isn't a radial for mutation loadouts anymore (at least not for controllers). I've gone into the controller button mapping to see if I just didn't have it mapped, but I couldn't find one. This makes it difficult in combat for when I want to perform my best against different creatures at once. For instance, fighting the stranger and then Bandit after I used two different weapon combos and different mutations, but not having a radial for the fight meant getting hit once or twice just to allot time to switch my mutation loadout. Finally, and this might be a problem I have a solution to, it is difficult to setup my hot bar in the inventory menu because I don't have a hot bar there. I loved the presets in Grounded because I could always have smoothies available even if I ran out of a certain type. In Grounded 2, I can't setup presets because I can only access the hot bar radial by pinning an item to it. 

 

Final Notes.

I am still going through everything the game has to offer so there may be other items I might want to comment on, but I know fixing at least these issues would make a major improvement to the game. If anyone from the fanbase has solutions to these issues too, especially the radial one, that I don't know about, I'd love to hear it. As I go through the game on Medium difficulty, I'll relay any continuous issues about insect difficulty, game progression, and game mechanics.

Thanks for listening to my concerns, it is greatly appreciated to know I am being heard and valued as a longstanding supporter of this game series.

[biggestt03]

Good evening!

I have started a new playthrough of the game on medium difficulty and I am definitely more satisfied by the insect combat difficulty. The game has provided a kind challenge so I can imagine Whoa! Difficulty is perfect for those looking for a really tough challenge. I have things to update and some new issues I've found since playing this new version:

Clay Mining

Mining clay has proven to be especially challenging compared to Grounded, because there is a 50/50 chance that either the clay will splay out in front of you like it has in Grounded, or it'll get caught on your shovel and will get launched behind you. The latter chance makes it difficult to track the clay down again. Seeing how resources tend to be more scattered compared to Grounded, this makes clay collection far more tedious than it should be in my opinion, especially early in the game before getting the resource tracker. I would love to see that fixed.

Blueberries (Update)

I stand by what I said before with blueberries; however I forgot about the resource finder. That technology definitely helps to find the blueberry patch in the game, where basically all blueberries can be found; however, it is still incredibly difficult to track down blueberry chunks without knowing the patch's location. Without analyzing these chunks, you can't use the resource finder to track down the rest. Basically, this means unless you happen to stumble upon the patch or either ranger station where there's a couple lying around, you're stranded from any of the tier 2 equipment and tools.

Blueberry-Story Connection Idea

Additionally, the game has it setup so that the stranger knows when you enter the patch and tries to threaten you from taking them. This isn't the only time this happens either. It would be awesome to see the developers add in a side quest to steal the stranger's main resource hubs to weaken her. This would include other resource hubs as well and would function as a king of the hill-type challenge consisting of claiming the area ( defeating her guards there), and defending the area ( a series of base defense or mixr events to set up permanent orc disruptors within these areas). This would allow beginning players to find isolated resources like blueberries without going on a wild goose chase, and make the game's map feel more connected.

Biomes

Something I loved about Grounded was having different biomes and environments. It really made it feel like an entire world. Now I know Grounded 2 has biomes too, but there's a difference: Grounded 2's map has expanded, but so have they're biomes. They're so big that each one takes up a large chunk of the map and can take entire in-game days to traverse, even on buggy. Comparing to Grounded, you could sprint through numerous different biomes with relative ease ex. Hedge-flowerbeds-pond-oak tree base-lower lawn-haze/dead lawn. My suggestion is to include more mini biomes within these massive ones. Perfect examples are the blueberry patch, mushroom grotto, and oak tree base in Grounded 2. It gets boring traveling through rolling hills of grass or a sea of broken bricks without seeing a change in the environment. This is separate from adding points of interest like pop cap gun etc.

Points of Interest

Similarly, there aren't enough points of interest in the parts of the game we currently have. It's always fun to explore unique items in the park. These don't all have to be man-made either. Just look at the four leaf clover from Grounded. 

Buggy Issues

I know everyone's been talking about this, but the more people mention it, the faster it'll get fixed. Buggies act like pets did in Grounded. They are coded to have random movements that make them feel more lively while you're staying at one location for awhile. I think it's a great idea, but there's a flaw. The buggies, like the pets were, are coded to stay near you as well. This leads to buggies constantly getting in the way while you're trying to build, collect resources, or use your omni tool. It gets incredibly frustrating. I understand you can simply tell the buggy to stay put, but sometimes you're getting off quickly to grab something before leaving again, and your buggy just makes it a hassle. 

Buggy issues continue with becoming aggro. Multiple times the buggy remains aggro after a battle and attacks the next closest thing. This has led to multiple combat instances I have not wanted, and some that have caused the death of my buggy and/or myself.

Again, I'm still playing and I love the game so far. I think the devs are incredible and all I want is to help them spot issues they might not know about. I'll return soon with more notes!

 

[biggestt03]

Good evening!

I have continued to play once more and have now completed the Garbage Can O.R.C Transmitter Quest...and now I need to offer a sincere apology to the Grounded devs.

Berry Sorry

Turns out, if I completed that quest, it would take me right to the berry grove. It turns out my suggestions about the berry grove were not needed because they already thought of it. Well played! I apologize for offering redundant suggestions without fully playing that section of the game. There is, however, still a problem to be said with that section of the story...two actually.

Gas Mask and Picnic Table

The first is that there isn't a good way to complete the Garbage Can quest without a gas mask. You could load yourself up with heals, but after facing a stink bug without a gas mask, I think the prolonged exposure to the gas would be too overpowering, and the damage tick would be too quick to heal from for extended periods. Gas masks are arguably one of the earliest tier two crafts you can get seeing as it doesn't require berry leather, but it does still require stink bug parts. This recreates the dilemma with berry leather because stink bugs aren't common to find. Unlike the resources needed leading up to this quest, stinkbugs don't spawn near the starting area in at least small quantities (like acorns do), nor is there a section of the map where you would think a stinkbug should reside and it actually does ( I thought there may be a stinkbug near the garbage can itself, but there wasn't any I could see). The stinkbugs weren't isolated to one area thankfully, but they were so few and far between that it still felt like a wild goose chase to find one. I believe if stink bug parts are needed to progress the story, then we should happen to stumble upon a stinkbug far earlier than as the O.R.C guard on top of the can. At that point, you're already in the gas. Another option might be to include enough stinkbug parts in a previously found ranger station from the story to make the gas mask ( although I like the first option more because it shows how dangerous the stink bugs can be without a gas mask. It's completely fine to get to the garbage can and realize you need a gas mask if you know where to get the resources to make one, but wild goose chases should be avoided to keep the continuity of the story intact. 

Speaking of wild goose chases brings me to the other dilemma that caused me to originally believe I needed to go in search of blueberries before continuing the storyline: the Picnic Table. When I first got to this questline, I picked randomly between the Garbage Can and the Picnic Table. I thought the Picnic Table would be more interesting so I went there first. Finding out I had to go through the cooler to proceed and knowing I didn't have the equipment for it originally led me to make the mistake of thinking I had to upgrade my equipment first which led me on my adventure that ended with me beating the boss early. Now, admittedly, I didn't give as much attention to the Garbage Can side as I should've before going off to find blueberries, but that was because I expected blueberries to be easy to find (I assumed they were in the hedge like in Grounded...which is how I found lingonberries first). Long story short, choosing to go to the Picnic Table first gave me a false perspective on what my next objective should be, which is why I believe the quests should be separated so that there isn't a choice between the two. Realistically, you should go to the Garbage Can first because it'll show you the blueberry patch. Getting warm clothing requires lingonberries which you can't get without the tier two axe. Now, when I went to the lingonberry hedge, I found a path upward to another O.R.C transmitter. The game wasn't ready for me to complete that transmitter quest so nothing happened when I disabled it, but it honestly makes sense to put that transmitter quest next, after the Garbage Can. That way, you are taken to the place that can upgrade your axe, then to the place that can upgrade your hammer. From there, you have all of the resource locations for crafting the other tier two equipment, including the warm clothing. Quick Synopsis: Garbage Can --> Lingonberry Hedge --> Picnic Bench.

Obviously this may change once I find the time to complete the Picnic Bench quest. Who know what it will reveal.

O.R.C Bombardier Beetle Dmg Output Issue?

Now I'm not sure if this is actually an issue or not; it just took me by surprise when it happened twice. Ascending the lingonberry hedge, I had to fight two O.R.C bombardier beetles. I didn't think anything of it until I was hit with one of their long range acid blob attacks and it one-shot me. I was surprised but didn't look into it until I went to go get my stuff and found that both bombardier beetles (which neither my buggy nor I had killed before my death) were gone, glitched away I guess and so was my backpack (another issue for later down). On my way back, I was attacked by an O.R.C raid which included yet another O.R.C bombardier beetle. I didn't have my buggy with me this time so I was more aware of my health, and when it fired that same long range acid blob attack and one shotted me at three quarters of my health, I knew something might be up. To give some perspective, I had a full set of ladybug armor on and I was blocking with a ladyguard. I had fought normal bombardier beetles with lower tier armor before and been fine. The only explanation I can think of is that them being O.R.C bugs makes them hit harder, but I haven't seen that be the case with any other O.R.C insect or any of their other attacks. I'd be surprised if it wasn't a bug (coding) with the game. 

Backpack Bug

Like I had talked about before, I had died on the hedge and dropped my backpack. My buggy had also died up there, so it was a long trek to get back up again just to find my backpack wasn't there. I then noticed a marker for my backpack on the map...at the onboarding facility halfway across the map. I ran to go get it because I had a lot of new resources to analyze, and was jumped by an O.R.C raid on the journey. I was promptly killed again by that same bombardier issue mentioned. I thought I had lost my original stuff, but I had picked up new resources on the journey so I went to find my new backpack which, lo and behold, was again at the onboarding facility. I respawned at my base so I was a lot closer, but when I got there I found the marker pointing underground with no backpack in sight. I tried to respawn my backpack with Game Repair, but it failed. I ended up losing out on so many new resources because of this bug so I really hope it gets fixed. 

 

That's all I have for now. I love the game so far, but hope I can help get these issues noticed and potentially fixed. Thank you so much for hearing me out devs and for this amazing game! Like always, if anyone has anything to add or anything they've found out before me that contradicts my points, please point them out to me! I don't mind spoilers and I'd rather not waste anyone's time. Thanks!

[biggestt03]

Good afternoon!

I've progressed a lot more into the story, completing every O.R.C Transmitter quest. With that, I learned a major lesson: don't speak on the story and game progression until you've played the whole story. I was completely wrong about the cooler needing tier 2 equipment to get through. To be honest, I didn't really understand how the new chill mechanic worked and assumed it would freeze you forever...it doesn't. Additionally, I forgot about the Mite Muffs. I was able to get through the cooler with the mite muffs and a torch. I guess I assumed it would be like a mini version of the ice cream cart where there'd be enemies inside to fight and the environment would take longer to get through, but that's not the case. I no longer agree that the lingonberry hedge O.R.C transmitter should come first, because the Picnic bench transmitter takes you in that direction anyway. Grounded devs were way ahead of me on this one. While I still believe that I've made some good points about story progression in the past posts, I was uneducated about the majority of my points. Until I finish the story and side quests, I won't be making any more notes about game progression besides that I am so excited to see what is in store for the game because it's already so fun and has a lot of potential. I will however keep making notes about bugs, updates, and things I'd like to see. 

O.R.C Bugs

I touched on this in my last post with the O.R.C bombardier beetles, but I've found another issue. The bombardier beetles still one shot me for some reason, even with fully upgraded ladybug armor, and even when the normal ones don't. Additionally, after finding the Hot Cha Cha's stash, I had to fight O.R.C weaver jr.'s and they would deal a third of my health with each hit. To me, this is enough proof that a mistake was made to give higher dmg output to some of the O.R.C. bugs in the game. To put it into perspective, I was able to kill multiple tier 3 wolf spiders  without dying. Tier 3 creatures should be harder to face than tier 2 and 1...

Backpack Bug

I don't know what happened, but I was finally able to retrieve both of those backpacks I had lost previously. They spawned in at the onboarding facility and not under the ground like before. THANK YOU DEVS!!! I'd also like to note how appreciative I am that you don't lose backpack contents if you die before picking it up again! A lot of stress eased from that one.

 

Halves Construction

I love that we can construct half walls and stairs and whatnot, but I've noticed some issues with construction. First off, and I'm assuming the devs already have plans to fix this, we don't have half and quarter walls for weed stems. Some of my building looks a little wonky with grass planks to replace where weed stems should be. Additionally, I would love to see half and quarter versions of the railings and fences for both acorn and sprig construction. I love using them to line my top floors and staircases, but they don't work well if I use half stairs or any half or quarter flooring in my layout. 

I am going to officially resign this thread for a bit and start a new one for ideas I have for the game. Thanks for listening!