While We Happy Few was always intended to feature an overarching story tied to the breakdown of society in Wellington Wells, it’s morphed into a more linear title compared with the survival roguelike early access players will be familiar with. Epstein told me putting it out there was a good opportunity to test mechanics, but that Compulsion wanted to save the expansive narrative for launch. “We went from a more systemic game to… ‘This is an adventure.’ We fleshed out the story,” he said.
Still, it’s a mixture of stealth, crafting and combat, and the world remains procedurally generated in part. There are places you have to visit to advance the story, but these handcrafted locations will be placed within automatically populated open worlds. Various side quests that expand on the lore of Wellington Wells will appear in different playthroughs, too, so there’s a hope replayability will continue to be a draw of the game.
Death isn’t permanent, and the survival mechanics are a little more forgiving than they once were. Hunger and thirst, for example, will only debuff your character, not spell an untimely end if you can’t find food. Each protagonist requires you to approach the game in different ways. Arthur, for example, is basically invisible. As long as you’re dressed appropriately and don’t act out, you can quite easily walk the streets without drawing unwanted attention from the Joy-guzzling crowd.
Sally can also conform, though given her status she doesn’t blend into the background. Being a petite Wellette, combat is not her forte, but she’s a master chemist who often only needs a syringe to solve her…
