Key Differences Between Don’t Starve and Don’t Starve Together

The 2013 game’s protagonist is Wilson. He has been transported to an alternate dimension by a scientist and must fight for survival against wild animals, starvation, and thirst. The game received positive reviews from both players and critics due to its survival strategies and beautiful graphics.

Three years after the launch of DS, Do Not Starve Together was released by the developers. It might be difficult to choose which game you should purchase, considering how similar they are. 

Don’t Starve is the main video game whereas Don’t Starve Together is the expansion. Don’t Starve Together contains more gameplay than Don’t Starve.

This article will help you understand the differences and similarities between Don’t Starve Together and Don’t Starve Together. You’ll be able then to choose which horrific ordeal to take part in.

Here is some basic information you need to know about the game first:

DeveloperKlei Entertainment
PlatformWindows, Mac OS X, and Linux.
GenreAction-adventure, survival horror, sandbox, roguelike
ModesMultiplayer (Survival and Endless modes, Wilderness mode)
DistributionDownload

To know more, keep reading.

What is the story in Don’t Starve Together?

The core Don’t Starve tracks the adventures of Wilson, a gentleman scientist who is tricked into building a portal by Maxwell. The device allows Wilson to be teleported to an alternate dimension, populated by monsters. Wilson, armed only with his intellect and a desire to find Maxwell, must explore the mysterious land in search of Maxwell.

Don’t Starve Together isn’t like the main game. It simply places the characters in an alternate dimension and forces them to work together to survive. To win in the story category one must have a story. Don’t Starve will take the spoils.

What makes Don’t Starve different from Don’t Starve Together?

A controller next to a laptop

Don’t Starve Together has more gameplay options than the core game. DST has interesting mechanics, despite not having a campaign mode. One point for expansion.

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Don’t Starve is a mix of survival-horror and adventure roguelikes. While the player explores alternate dimensions as Wilson, they must also craft shelter and take care of Wilson’s fragile mind and body. 

This is important because dying in Don’t Starve can be permanent and could occur in many ways. There are two modes to the game: the Adventure Mode and the Sandbox. The Adventure Mode is the game’s campaign mode and focuses on Maxwell.

Don’t Starve Together’s main feature is multiplayer. Players are placed on the same map and must cooperate to survive the dimensions’ monstrosities, as well as their deteriorating mental and physical states. 

DST offers three modes of gameplay:

  • Survival
  • Wilderness
  • Endless

Survival is a cooperative mode where the players work together to survive in the game’s world. Wilderness is more difficult, as each death takes the player back to their character selection and there are no resurrection items. Endless is a casual mode that allows for cooperation between players. 

DST’s unique feature is the ability to assume the ghost form of a player after their death. The ghosts allow players to interact with other players in limited ways and can possess inanimate objects. Ghost characters can either be revived using items, or none at all depending on their mode.

Is it a must to play “Don’t Starve” before playing “Don’t Starve Together”?

A PC setup

Both versions are different in difficulty and it’s up to you which one you want to play first. One dev says that you can play Don’t Starve Together solo to get the basics down, but you’ll discover more difficult content as you progress.

You can read the discussion on Steam Community.  

You are not meant for all the problems that Together presents. For example, the Ewecus can trap you for a few moments and while it is possible to overcome its spit with a friendly Pigman but having another player help makes the fight much easier.

Additionally, Don’t Starve Together contains the Reign of Giants and base game content at the time of writing, but not the Shipwrecked content.

Due to the inherent power of certain characters, many things were altered or rebalanced. Special encounters and events were also added to accommodate the multiplayer aspect.

Game Modes

There are three game modes available: Survival, Wilderness, and Endless.

  • Survival will be the default mode. It is a cooperative mode that makes it more difficult. deceased players are transformed into Ghost characters. The world resets after 120 seconds if all players have died.
  • Wilderness mode allows players to spawn in random places on the map. When players die, they are returned to their character select screen. They can respawn in a random location as a new character and have their map progress wiped. There are no touchstones, but their set pieces and pig heads will still exist. The world does not reset.
  • Endless is a relaxed mode that does not require players to cooperate. It’s similar to Survival mode except that the world never resets and Ghost players can resurrect themselves at the spawn portal after they die as many times they want.

You don’t have to stop playing a complete game.

Don’t Starve Together is the multiplayer expansion of the survival game Don’t Starve. Reign of Giants is now available; new characters, seasons, and creatures added to the game. Giant new challenges for Don’t Starve Together

Explore an unknown world full of dangers, strange creatures, and other surprises. You can find resources to make items and structures that fit your survival style.

You can either play with friends or strangers online, or you can work together in a private game. You have two options: you can work with others or go it alone to survive in harsh environments. Do what you can, but don’t give up.

For tips on how to play Don’t Starve Together, have a look at this video:

Conclusion

It is difficult to draw a conclusion about which Don’t Starve game is better as it all depends on the type of game you are looking for. 

You should choose Don’t Starve if you are looking for an engaging solo campaign within an interactive sandbox environment. The expansion Don’t Starve Together is for you if you are looking to share the collaborative experience of survival in hostile environments with other players. 

You’ll receive an excellent roguelike survival horror game. It is full of interesting gameplay mechanics, set in very scary locations.

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