Abandoned game... :(

I have to give this game the full thumbs up. According to my Steam records, I acquired it in September 2017, most likely from a Humble Bundle offer, then forgot about it. This purchase predates my Ark, Conan, Valheim, Enshrouded, and actually most game play. I have since become a major fan of Ark and Conan and like the others fairly well too.

I can see the similarities and understand some core game pieces are the same and the game is quite old and lacks today's gorgeous graphics, but the game progression is super easy to understand. This also has the benefit of not being too taxing on an older computer which may lag, hang up, or poorly play some of the top-of-the-line games of today.

I love how the game merges what I love about Ark, building and taming, with magic. The quests literally teach you the game. Even when you end up having the item before the quest is offered, the repeat crafting is not difficult and adds to your XP so you can gain knowledge.

It took me a minute to realize levels are seperate from knowledge. To level your character, you simply apply them to health, attack, mana, constitution or stamina, food, focus, weight, and water as the points become available by hitting the + symbol next to the stat. There is nothing complex about the progression and no complicated learning tree to have to decide on. The game automatically progresses you based on what you work on in the game.

I also find the game to be more balanced than Ark in many ways in which it is similar. For instance, If you eat berries in Ark you get no appreciable food. In D&L, it also isn't much, but better. You can sleep to regain focus an the sleep is just a short nap. I have no trouble keeping up with food and water.

I love that there are attachments for your magic staff. One in particular allows you to turn your enemies into sheep for a short while which is delightful. Another magic stone allows you to turn yourself into a mythical creature, Pan, which give you special buffs to fight certain monsters which would easily kill you as yourself and there are other stones to turn you into other characters as the game progresses which I very much look forward to.

Another nice feature is the ability to put down base protection. As long as it is toggled on and has the appropriate magic item in its inventory, nothing can be damaged within its sphere (consumes 1 essence per hour). And magic spells to literally charm your base to hide it by blending it in its biome. There are so many other cool and unique features in this game I have not seen before in any other game, so in spite of what people say, it has a nice blend of familiar and originality.

I wish players could accept the game for what it is and enjoy it. Perhaps if more people returned to the game, Snail Games would resume development on this little gem.