Nether - Does Bigger Mean Better?

Nether has been in production for a while now but recently it got a large patch that doubled the world size, added new loot systems and a much needed tutorial and I’m happy to say, it’s exactly what the game needed.

Before, my time with the game was frustrating. I found myself unable to live long enough to enjoy the game and getting around was almost impossible with the amount of enemies and, frankly, idiotic player behaviour. Nether has changed for the better that’s for sure, but why? Well, the larger world size seems to have tempted the higher level players away to the new area which creates a lot less griefing, camping and trolling. Previously, I had been killed by high level players just sitting at entrances to ‘Safe Zones’ (the game’s havens from the ever respawning Nether from which the game takes its name) looking to kill new players who have less gear, just for the fun of it. Since the update I haven’t been killed by a player only by; my own stupidity.

Whether my new found length of life is due to the update or just an increase in understanding on my part, I’m not certain, but I do feel like the newer players are quite friendly. The toxicity of the community is much lower than that of say DayZ or Rust which really lends to a different type of game. While it may seem like a DayZ clone to most, once you get a few hours in you start to see huge differences. For one, the idea of a safe area is an alien one in the world of DayZ Standalone, whereas here it’s integral to the way the game plays because quests play a big part.

This is my favourite aspect of Nether: no more running around aimlessly. Transporting packages from one ‘Safezone’ dealer to another is a legitimate way to play the game, giving the player a goal to reach, not expecting you to just run around for hours looting everything you come across. Looting has actually undergone a change in the latest patch introducing a lot more lootable objects located in areas that make sense. See an abandoned camp? Most likely there will be a container or something lootable there. This is giving the world a much more organic feel and the sense things have been lived in. Something DayZ fails to capture, in my opinion.

The addition of a tutorial is a welcome one. If you’ve wanted to jump into any of the other ‘open-world-sandbox-post-apocalyptic-faux-MMOs’ but have been scared of the learning curve and the cruelty of other players, Nether has you covered. It now explains straight off the bat how its systems work and where and how you can get weapons, money, health and all those good things. This is for me the biggest deal. I would play DayZ more if it wasn’t so hardcore, and I get it, it’s meant to be hardcore but the exclusion of even a vague tutorial is something I find unforgivable.

Now, once you’ve got your head around the world-navigating, money-making and weapon-crafting fun that this game offers, you’ll be starting to wonder what else there is to do. The answer is Tribes and Territory Wars. Nether recently added the ability to choose a Tribe of your choice to fight for and then to go out into the world and capture zones that give differing effects to the other members of your Tribe within your server. Right now though, there is no reward for you past the buff the area gives to you and your chosen tribesmen. I assume this is to try and encourage team play, which is all well and good, but with no incentive to sit in one area for a while and just let a bar slowly fill up, it seems a little cack handed. I’m sure it will be fixed and balanced soon enough.

The biggest addition with the patch was the unlocking of the western wastelands. The new area is as big as the original area doubling the playspace and allowing people to explore a new swamp type area. Now, as large an addition as this is, I’m a little annoyed that it appears to have been released in a half-baked state. Multiple times I’ve fallen through the map in the new areas and swimming is plain broken, as your whole screen seems to just go a dark blue colour which makes it impossible to see. While these are minor complaints it is very irritating considering how much the other features improve upon the core experience.

So, if you haven’t tried Nether yet, now is a good time to jump in. It’s something that will certainly need some updates but the unique experience available here is a nice change from the other games its been lumped with.