Western Rye

Here is my current review of Early Access version 0.4.3.1 after about 7.5 hours of play: The game has potential, but it is currently in a very early and rough state. Right now, it suffers from a huge number of bugs, FPS drops, and graphical glitches. It will certainly take months, or even years, for the game to be ready for a 1.0 release. Let's start with the positives: - The game is playable, provided you keep in mind that it is in Early Access. - It features a varied main questline with missions like "ride here," "kill bandits there," "fetch this item from that location," and so on. (However, I’ve currently hit a progression blocker due to a bug.) - So far, the horse has infinite stamina, meaning it can sprint constantly. - Items at the workbench are crafted in a few seconds, while bars at the smelter are produced automatically over time. - There is a demolition hammer that allows you to place the built object again, even though you don't get the materials back. - Since it is a Western-themed game, housing elements are currently limited to wood. Iron and silver are currently used only for door handles, hinges, or boot spurs. There are no stone foundations or walls, and—naturally—no metal armor. Now for the negatives: - Like many base-building games in their early stages, this game lacks a feature that lets you stand at a workbench and automatically pull items from a storage chest. - You find an incredible amount of loot in chests and on enemies. I went into the mine, pulled out 300 units of ore in less than two minutes, and processed it into over 600 ingots back at my base. I probably won't ever need to go into the mine again. By now, I have over 500 rounds for all three weapon types. I have food and water for ages. - You can build barns for chickens, cows, and pigs, but they serve no actual function. I’m not yet sure if they are merely decorative, but the animals do not produce goods like eggs or milk. - The combat is ridiculously easy. So far, I’ve encountered four types of enemies: zombies (slow and fast), Native Americans (with melee weapons and revolvers), bandits (rifles and revolvers), and bison. However, you can easily clear out any area using just the rifle. Enemies aren't alerted when they hear gunshots or see their companions die. The rifle has already been nerfed—dropping from 115 to 70 damage—but it still kills every enemy in two shots. - There is a bug where it becomes extremely dark upon entering a house, even though the sun is shining outside. Lighting seems to be a general issue, though; for example, the fire at the cooking station burns constantly, even when nothing is being cooked. - The demolition hammer doesn't refund any materials—or even a portion of them; it simply tears down the building so you can place it again. However, if I actually want to destroy it, I have to discard it from my inventory. - You can only sell select items to the merchants, l,ike alcohol. For instance, you can't sell weapons at all, even though it feels like you find hundreds of them. - You cant unload bullets from a gun - Except for the clothing merchant, the other merchants only sell items that I can craft myself or find in the wild. - General beautification of the surroundings. For instance, there are paths for horses, but they are constantly obstructed by large stones or trees—as if someone had simply swept a paintbrush over them while designing the area. - Sound issues—for example, the sound of the sheriff and the pastor turning the pages of a book is extremely loud. The clown keeps repeating his two sentences in an endless loop. -Many items are bugged. If you loot a container and an item isn't moved to your inventory via "Take All"—but you move it manually instead—that item can neither be sold nor discarded from your inventory. For example, with a bugged revolver: if you try to drop it from your inventory, multiple copies of it appear on the ground. But the revolver still remains in the inventory. While you can place it into a container, you cannot drop it from that container onto the ground. - Some items at the workbench cannot be crafted because the resources are simply named "Item," and there is no way to know what they actually are. - The starter workbench, hut, windmill, and saw cannot be removed with the hammer. - The skill system is completely useless. You only gain XP through quests; when you level up, you can't actually invest in skills because some perks require multiple skill points. Yet, it takes ages to level up. After eight hours, I’d only gained two levels and could allocate just one point—which was totally useless anyway, as it only served to unlock other perks but had no effect of its own. I can't use the second skill point because the perks require multiple skill points. - There is currently no increase in difficulty in the game, as there is no character progression. There are no stats like strength, health points, crit, or stamina; stat values ​​are currently provided only by weapons and clothing. As mentioned above, the skill system is not fully developed and simply feels useless—for example, 10% less hunger? The list could go on forever. As I said, it’s an Early Access game in a very early stage. If you don’t want to be part of the game’s evolution, you might want to check back in a year or two.