Premature Buyers Remorse

Last year I made the regrettable decision of buying a game that many people love, but which I just cannot get excited about, Spelunky.  The Steam sale just has a way of making me buy games that are on the fringes of my personal preferences--but hey, they're usually under $3.  I've bought ridiculous things for much more than that and regretted it.

Yesterday I decided to check out one of the new games I had snatched up for $1.99.  You're probably thinking--"what can you expect from a game that cost $1.99?"  This is totally what I thought.  Well, we're both wrong.  My initial explorations into the world of Terraria were frustrating.  I couldn't figure out what I was supposed to do and was eaten by hostile zombies in an alarmingly quick fashion.  I snorted with derision at this stupid game and thought I would resign it to Spelunky status as a game that sits in my Steam library and makes me cringe at my purchase.  Rather than doing that, I decided to look up some beginners guides and figure out what I was supposed to be doing.  Now, I feel that I've gotten a great bargain on an oddly fun game.

Terraria is a sandbox game with RPG elements.  It's also another of those modern games with an old-school pixelated feel.  (I know many people who are really tired of this throwback theme in gaming.  I don't mind it if the games are fun).  You start off by creating your little pixelated character and can customize features like your hair, shirt, pants, and shoe color.  After you have done that you are given the choice of what size world you want to spawn.  I opted for small since it was my first time playing.  You're then spawned in this randomly generated world.  I wandered around aimlessly until I ran into an NPC named Kyle who recommended that I build a house before it got dark.  Psshhh....what do you know Kyle?  The sun sank and the world grew dark and sadly Kyle was right--zombies made quick work of my little pixelated character named Jill.

Jill's house.  It's partially made of candy canes.

I respawned and luckily there were no zombies near my location.  I relocated Kyle and he again informed me that I should build a house and that chopping down trees would be a good idea.  Wielding my copper axe I hacked down a few trees and cobbled together a very pathetic excuse for a house--a semi-square of wood blocks with no doors in which I was trapped.  I listened as the zombies pounded on the walls trying to munch on poor Jill's pixels.  Now what?  I fumbled with my iPad and read some more of the beginners guide while the zombies continued their relentless assault on my "house."  I needed to build a crafting table to be able to build more complex items.  Hey, I've got enough wood!  Jill quickly created a crafting table and a large list of craftable items popped up.  A few minutes later the sun came up and the zombies finally retreated.  Jill ventured outdoors to continue her quest to deforest the world.

It took me a little while to figure out the basics of Terraria.  There is really very little in the form of a tutorial--Kyle gives you some handy hints, but you're on your own to figure much of it out.  I would highly recommend finding a good guide and having it handy for reference.  This game is about exploration, crafting, and getting loot.  There is no defined goal or story to follow.  Usually these types of games are a huge turn-off for me, but after several hours of mining, building, and slaying slimes I am really enjoying Terraria.  My $1,99 was well spent after all!