When The Sequel Is So Close, You Don't Know If You Should Play The Original

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As yesterday was winding down, I stumbled across this stunning GIF from State of Decay 2, pulled from a recent IGN video walking through 25 minutes of the game:

That looks like my kind of game.

Lots of games have day-to-night cycles, but few commit to making the player feeling like they’re truly lost. State of Decay 2 looks like it’s going to make you uncomfortable with the decision to venture outside when the sun’s gone, and it looks f’ing terrifying.

State of Decay 2 doesn’t come until May 18! That’s all sorts of months from now!

For whatever reason, I never got around to the original. I’d heard all sorts of good things from people I trust, but it was always one of those games that seemed to get away from me, or something else came up. Eventually, there was enough distance that I couldn’t justify playing it for work, and when the sequel was announced, all bets were off.

The prospect of a sequel has kept the game at bay, especially since the original game was described as pretty janky, and State of Decay 2 seems committed to building on top of the parts that worked in the original, rather than starting from scratch.

And yet, I remain curious about State of Decay! Should I play it? Should I wait? Should I spend time with State of Decay 2, and if it’s interesting, go back? (The last one doesn’t seem especially likely, especially if there are quality of life improvements in the sequel.)

This is less a specific question about State of Decay than a broader question about how to handle an impending sequel, if you’ve never played the original game, but have every intention of diving into the next installment. This is especially relevant for games that aren't narrative heavy. State of Decay had a story, but it seems more like the kind of game where the real stories happen while you're actually playing, not in the cutscenes.

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