The majority of your time will be spent collecting materials and food. You begin with the ability to construct a limited number of tools, such as an axe, fire, and traps. These tools allow you to gather additional types of material and food, which should help you survive additional days.
Tracking Time and Health
The top right corner of the screen displays the current day and time of day (yellow for daytime, brown for dusk, black for night). The meters for hunger (stomach), health (heart), and sanity (brain) appear below the day.
Time of Day
Keeping track of the time of day is vitally important. Initially, daytime is for exploring and foraging. Dusk is for gathering what you need to survive the night and starting a campfire. Night is for working near that campfire and keeping it burning. As you start to survive for multiple days and learn more about the world, your day-night routine will start to change.
Hunger
Hunger, represented by the stomach, is a constant worry. Despite ways to slow it, the need for food never ends. At first, you forage for seeds and carrots and can set traps for small animals. With the right materials, you can start a farm.
Health
Health, represented by the heart, is what determines whether your game continues or ends. When your health goes negative, you’re forced to start over from day 1.
Unlike hunger and sanity, health isn’t drained by time. There are situations where health goes down over time, but that’s typically due to hunger or being on fire or freezing. Eating most kinds of food and consuming certain items, such as healing salve, will restore health.
Sanity
Sanity, represented by the brain, tracks mental health. As sanity is lost, your vision changes, strange creatures appear, and you hear voices.
Every action impacts sanity: Being in the dark, wearing certain clothes, eating certain foods, using wormholes, or being close to friendly or aggressive creatures will cause your sanity to improve or decline. Watch the brain icon for an arrow pointing up or down to see how your current activity affects sanity.