The gameplay is stated by the developers to be a 'survival simulation that accounts for body temperature, caloric intake, hunger/thirst, fatigue, wind-chill, wildlife, and a host of other environmental factors.' There are three game modes available to the player, 'Story mode', 'Survival mode', and 'Challenge mode'. The environment is divided up into a number of regions: 'Mystery Lake', 'Coastal Highway', 'Pleasant Valley', 'Forlorn Muskeg', 'Desolation Point', 'Timberwolf Mountain', 'Mountain Town', 'Broken Railroad', 'Hushed River Valley', 'Bleak Inlet' and 'Ash Canyon', all of which are interconnected.

The game takes place in the frigid Canadian wilderness where the player assumes the role of a crash-landed pilot struggling to survive after a geomagnetic storm. The Long Dark is set in an open world environment and played from a first-person perspective. In-game screenshot showing minimalist HUD elements which inform the player of important information about their current state of health On September 17, 2020, it was announced that the game would be coming to Nintendo Switch later that same day. In 2017, it was announced that a film adaptation of The Long Dark was in the works. It was officially released on all aforementioned platforms on August 1, 2017, as well as for PlayStation 4.

Early reviews of the alpha release were generally positive, and the game went on to sell around 750,000 copies by April 2016. The alpha version was later launched on the Xbox One as one of the first two launch titles associated with Microsoft's Game Preview Program in June 2015. Īn alpha version was released through Steam Early Access in September 2014. The game received seed financing from the Canada Media Fund, and further funding was secured through a successful Kickstarter campaign in October 2013. The player assumes the role of a crash-landed bush pilot Will Mackenzie who must survive the frigid Canadian wilderness after a geomagnetic storm. The Long Dark is a first-person survival video game developed and published by Hinterland Studio.

The long dark save file