Source
r/DarkTide•
TouchDisastrous

DarkTide is a Militarum Simulator

Lore / Theory

Everyone complains about how there’s a lack of a story in DarkTide but in a way the story as it is tracks with being in the military:

Regularly find out mission assignments at the last moment or in the field:

Check

Some higher up always yelling at you, treating you like an idiot, or telling you to hurry up:

Check

Getting the best gear from supply is either a gamble or you know someone in supply who can hook you up with the good stuff:

Check

Getting treated like garbage after you join a new unit and treated that way until you prove you aren’t an idiot:

Check

Paired up with a bunch of psychos, freaks, idiots, assholes and just bizarre people and expected to work as a team:

Check

Getting paid peanuts to put your life on the line and do jobs that would be a fortune outside of the military:

Check

Constantly grumbling and talking smack about your teammates and higherups:

Check

It’s not a bad story, this is just what it’s like in the militarum in general!

Edit: Some of y’all really gotta relax more. Yeah the story is sparse. Doesn’t mean you can’t find ways to deal with it. Besides saying it matches up with life in the military is no compliment. There’s a reason why retention is so bad.

Posted Jan 7, 2023, 7:18 PM UTC · edited

19243
LeMasqueEtLesGants•

The dialogues really help .

51
-Agonarch⚙ Adeptus Mechanicus•

"If a soldier stops grumbling and complaining that's the time you need to pay attention, because that means they've decided to do something about it" -old Militarum officer wisdom

29
[deleted]•

[deleted]

42
Darrkeng:Veteran: Wall of guns•

That's that Damnation is for

33
SydricVym•

I only have PTSD in Damnation when I get put in random groups with a psyker using a gun, a preacher sniping from the back with a lasgun, and a sharpshooter hiding behind the preacher and missing every shot.

17
[deleted]•

[deleted]

12
InvertedReflexes•

Game needs to patch in:

Nicotine addiction

Tinnitus (and minor hearing loss)

Back pain ("not service related")

Night terrors

9 hours of every day you are on needs to be sitting around waiting.

4
[deleted]•

[deleted]

2
error3000•

cant wait to talk with my friend, hear a dog barking and look towards the sky in fear because i dread the flying dogs

3
Bored-Ship-Guy•

Are you saying that you didn't ENJOY doing the Emperor's bidding, trooper?

racks bolt pistol You might want to rephrase that.

2
RivetheadRambo:Veteran: Sly Marbo Double•

I especially like the team part. Very accurate.

9
Mr_Finley7•

Yeah I’m totally content with the story as it lies, I don’t need drama and plot twists and bs like that. You’re there to die for the Emperor.

9
Echowing442•

I think the issue is less the story itself (like you said, it's 40k - a story is unnecessary). It's more that such a big deal was made over the story, and there's so many cutscenes that amount to absolutely nothing. If the story is irrelevant, then don't bother with it and just let the missions and dialogue speak for themselves. Making a dozen cutscenes where we get yelled at over how nobody trusts us (until they suddenly do) is a waste of time.

20
Eamil•

Yeah but it's the difference between a story about being on a shitty hive world where you fight and die for the Emperor and a sticky note that reads "so there's these guys that are on a shitty hive world fighting and dying for the Emperor."

What we have is much closer to the "sticky note" side than the actual fleshed-out story that they talked up significantly prior to launch.

4
ThewizardBlundermoreBrainbursting? Oh you mean pointless 12% damage buff...•

The game sets up a premise that you will be receiving a story.

All the developer commentary states prior to release they put a lot of emphasis in the story aspect and character creation.

Marketing literally advertises a famous big time author of 40k novels Dan Abnett is on the project writing for them...

Sure real life is like this but this isn't real life. If it was then our characters would go to lunch together. We would have active long winded conversations during transportation. We would play small games with one another on the side in the mess hall or off duty. We would train together and run drills and suffer inspections and do all that stuff that's also apparent in real life military.

But BECAUSE we don't have any of that to help flesh out the feeling we are actually in a real breathing world we need story aspects to keep things interesting.

Because its a GAME. Not real life.

We come here for entertainment and story is apart of that package.

And it is currently lacking despite being advertised and promised prelaunch.

Stop enabling this sort of "settling for less" nonsense. You paid for this product and its failing uphold its end of the bargain.

You deserve what you paid for. Not this middling "oh I can live without what I paid for not being delivered" crap.

Developers keep taking us all for a ride because we keep letting it happen.

8
deftoast•

Its like no one seen war movies like Full Metal Jacket or Saving Private Ryan but whatever, fans just keep sniffing that copium.

3
farts_in_the_breezeNegative Steam Reviews•

Agree with everything but the story aspect. Dark Tide does put the player in the the middle of a story. No clue why, lore and events should suffice. There is a small story outside cleansing heretics and being a reject and that story is awful.

7
TouchDisastrousOP•

True, again though it kind of tracks with military life. You have next to no idea what’s going on outside your own unit. Again, not saying the story is good, just that it’s funny how much of it tracks with being in a real life military.

2†
farts_in_the_breezeNegative Steam Reviews•

You have next to no idea what’s going on outside your own unit.

That's false. Soldiers are briefed before each new station of duty, every deployment, every mission and probably 3 times a day by leadership morning, afternoon and evening, plus the late combat zone check in if applicable. Where, what, when, why and how of the mission and rules of engagement. Weapons and equipment inspected. The briefing will also include enemy tactics, size, equipment and known area of operation. Players get a little of this in the game, 40K style, at loading screen before the mission.

My source for this knowledge is from my time in the US Army. 100 missions and 70K miles through Iraq and play time in Dark Tide for game references.

Most of the other stuff fits though.

5
retief1•

Sure, but the imperial guard is not the US army. The approach you are describing doesn't include nearly enough grimdark for 40k.

2
DeckedSilver:Psyker: Psyker•

I kinda wish that the characters talked more throughout the mission.

7
tehjburz•

Okay but to be more a realistic simulation, there should be a random chance at mission start that instead of ammunition/your equipment, you get an entire case of Ogryn belt buckles instead.

6
Atomic_Gandhi•

Would be a great flail equivalent for ogryn ngl.

"Ogryn Belt"

-block-breaker

-armor piercing

-wide sweeps

-high knockback

-low damage

2
ICLazeru•

Naw, we'd be killed just for witnessing chaos. Maybe not in the Abnettverse, but if Abnett is involved in this story the only question to ask is...where? Pretty sure they just asked if they could name drop him.

6
Simply_Gabriele•

Yeah, killed after the work is actually complete. Atoma Prime is not saved, so purging entire platoons for seeing nurgle eye-tentacles like we do almost every mission or nurgle beasts... Would not make any strategic sense.

6
Slyspy006•

Abnett was a consultant in lore and world-building (and, indeed, for name-dropping). I wasn't expecting much of a story though, since there wasn't much of one in VT2 either. Just a bit of backstory along the lines of "this evil little sod is doing this thing for nefarious reasons so go destroy his bell or run round an elven ruin for the hundreth time".

Without named characters it may be difficult for DT to use the banter etc to flesh things out as they did in VT2 but perhaps they intend to have seasons or similar.

5
Sax_The_Angry_RDM:Veteran: Veteran•

You can fight chaos forces without being executed because otherwise you are wasting the imperium's most valuable resource, human lives. Also it's just too much work and infeasible to kill everyone exposed to chaos with the galaxy having a giant rift ripped in it. Those exposed are thoroughly tested for corruption regardless.

1
Bored-Ship-Guy•

I mean, they waste lives constantly. It may be the Imperium's most important resource, but it's also incredibly plentiful. Even so, though, I think it's on a case-by-case basis, and heavily influenced by an Inquisitor's personal convictions. I mean, purging a unit that just fought some stinky cultists? That'd be silly. But if some Guardsmen manage to see a Great Unclean One with its host and miraculously survive? Well, they're either joining a retinue or joining the dirt, because they can't be allowed to spread knowledge of something that dangerous.

2
e033x•

What does the tech priest say again? "Manpower is the cheapest of fuels" or something to that effect.

1
tnyczr:Ogryn: Ogryn•

I agree in some extent about what you are saying, but as people said, they sold the story as a huge thing, and to be honest the Prologue it's the best 40k gaming experience after SpaceMarine (talking about narrative), it was super immersive, and how they presented the characters felt like a huge story was about to happen in the next 'episodes', but then it fell really fast with the repetitive ''git gud and we will respect you'' cutscenes..

every Check you said would be interesting to see if it was done like the prologue

3
DeltaSquash•

True. There is no story because some random soldiers of the Imperium are never the protagonists (compared to Rowboat Girlyman) in the 40K universe. How dare you ask for customized weapons to show personalities? You are just Emperor’s currency being well spent.

2
ToyKar•

but please pay us for outlandish cosmetics that are completely out of place otherwise lol

1
AvenonX•

If Vermintide is a sign of how things will go, then we can probably expect that Fatshark will build the story through the dialogue. The only issue with darktide is that there isn't very much dialogue that can be had in the Morningstar beyond anything you hear on comms like there was in Taal's Horn Keep when many of the various heroes and characters were present. It would be interesting if they implemented dialogue between characters in a pre-made squad but then again, lore-wise, I'm not sure people would get away with saying much of anything in the Morningstar like they can while on missions.

2
TouchDisastrousOP•

I mean one thing I’ve picked up on is a mission announcement over the PA. Something about a zenos sighting in one of habblocks and special agents being sent to investigate. Honestly I’m not sure how they can even really do much story telling unless they add in a lot more cutscenes. That or they get rid of the player lobby in the Morningstar and let you run around some areas of the ship to interact with NPCs.

1
[deleted]•

I play the game because I like pretending I’m a member of the guard. My brother and I are always talking about those filthy heretics and how we’re gonna bring the Emperors Justice to them.

2
OkMoment1357:Ogryn: Professional Boxer•

I mean what story did they expect? To be at nurgle in chess and save the galaxy?

1†
WhyBecauseReasons•

A lot of people complaining about the lack of story also forget that you don't officially join the warband until level 30. Before that, you were just a conscript.

Now that you've been acknowledged, I'd expect future story elements to help build out your importance, but like they say, even the greatest hero is but a ripple in space.

1
nobodynose•

A lot of people complaining about the lack of story also forget that you don't officially join the warband until level 30. Before that, you were just a conscript.

You're not serious are you? You don't think a writer can write a story about a conscript rising up the ranks and finally being accepted into the warband that's not

  • "Hi, you suck"
  • "Hi, you suck"
  • "Why are you here? Work harder."
  • "There's a traitor so work harder or we'll think it's you"
  • "You suck less, I still wish you died."
  • "AHA! This random character you know NOTHING about is a traitor! Welcome to the warband."

I mean here, I can write an outline using the same basic story.

  • Change the beginning to how you and 4 other convicts banded together and helped Zola so she accepts all 5 of you.
  • Have some banter between the 4 characters plus player.
  • After every 3 trust levels (so 10 cut scenes + the intro), you have a cut scene with the other 4 characters meeting up for drinks and just chatting about how things are going and the missions you're doing or how life is going. As the cut scenes go on, the relationship / banter between you guys gets more natural since you're more comfortable with each other. Some will have meetings with the higher ups to discuss your performance though or to introduce other characters like Hadron and Mazoni.
  • Eventually around trust level 18, have the higher ups tell you about a failed mission that should be a success and how they're not sure how it could've gone wrong, but there is suspicion there's a traitor and to keep your eyes open. You discuss with the other 4 who were told the same thing.
  • Trust 24, you're called in about another failed mission (not yours, but randomly picked out of the one of the 4 friends). Higher ups ask you if you know anything. Then you meet up with the other 4 and of course the friend that was on the mission denies doing anything and they all mention being questioned.
  • Trust 27, another failed mission, this time a different random friend. Same thing. More questioning, meet up and all 5 of you declare how confused you are.
  • Trust 30 all 5 of you are summoned and then one of you get shot.

When you play, bots aren't randomly named, they're randomly filled in with those characters. They have their own voice lines and personalities that match their personalities in the cut scenes. Ideally they'd all be different classes, but since they didn't make non Vet bots, make all of them vets.

Now you have a much more interesting story because you care who the traitor is since you KNOW the traitor.

8
Janfon1:Ogryn: Ogryn•

There was clearly a story rewrite going on during one of those delays, I wish the story was more like what you have in mind. Only issue is your concept with bots would work a lot more if this game could be played solo and the bots were worth a damn/could be geared up

2
Eamil•

Why are there all these replies that act like just because you're a nobody conscript who barely escaped a death sentence, they couldn't possibly have told an interesting story around that concept?

3
TwevOWNED•

They could have, you know, not designed the game like that.

Player characters could have had a decorated career before being canned on blatantly trumped up charges for the explicit purpose of covertly inducting trusted members of the imperium into the warband.

Start the story at the interesting part, wild concept.

2
ArgumentParking1940•

"ah relax more it's okay if the story is bad, sparse, and unengaging"

As much as I love the 40k setting and the Guard in particular, this is still a video game, bud, not an actual fucking military outfit. You can get a good Militarum story going very very easily. This is just no-effort.

1
DarthMockre:Zealot: Zealot in LSD•

They dont need relaxing, they need a psychiatrist... I see people in this sub that is online all the time....

0
[deleted]•

There are plenty of narratives that do good story telling with the militarum.

This is just some copium mental gymnastics, “no no really it’s good if you only consider looking at it from this very simplistic vector and ignore all the ways it could have/has been done better.”

-2†
Shalliar:Psyker: 0.0625 times the detail! •

I already dont have a story in real life, dont tell me I shoudlnt look for anything interesting in a game

-5
deftoast•

C o p i u m.

Check.

-7†