![the long dark building the long dark building](https://vignette2.wikia.nocookie.net/intothelongdark/images/f/f2/Greymotherhouse.jpg)
This visual presentation is further aided by map designs that deploy topographical features in a way that affords a highly pictorial experience, whether by using trees and hills to frame views of larger areas or including accessible, elevated vantage points from which one can survey their surroundings. A bright and vibrant colour palette is used throughout. The art style is relatively abstract, simplifying the details of objects and stylizing their shapes in order to create a cohesive world that is further enlivened by a host of dynamic weather and lighting effects. Played in first person, the game employs a minimal HUD (Heads Up Display) and unobtrusive interface system in order to maximize the user’s direct interaction with a virtual space that is designed for aesthetic appreciation. 2 Indeed, in response to a public survey question of “What is the 1 thing you enjoy most about The Long Dark?” one poster on the developer’s forums replied: “It’s like being in a group of seven painting, the artwork is fabulous…” 3 Although expressed here with a heightened degree of specificity, the general sentiment speaks to a key aspect of The Long Dark’s appeal.
![the long dark building the long dark building](https://thumbs.dreamstime.com/b/scary-hallway-walkway-abandoned-building-67298046.jpg)
1 Since its initial release in 2014 the game has gained a devoted following of players who prize its open-ended gameplay, permanent death system, and immersive atmosphere. The essential task is to navigate a desolate rural environment without succumbing to starvation, cold weather or aggressive wildlife. The player confronts the aftermath of a mysterious geomagnetic event that has rendered most modern technology inoperative and effected an extreme shift in climate. Set on a remote island on the northwest coast of Canada, The Long Dark is a survival-exploration video game that offers an ostensibly regional vision of an otherwise global apocalypse.