Escape From Duckov Revises Coprophagia Mechanics After Surpassing 1 Million Sales
The singleplayer extraction shooter Escape From Duckov has received a notable nerf to its coprophagia mechanic, following its impressive sales performance.
Duck-themed singleplayer extraction shooter Escape From Duckov is currently one of the hottest games on Steam, especially in China, where it has sold over one million copies, earning overwhelmingly positive reviews. Although the game has attracted a smaller demographic among English speakers, its reception has been quite favorable. The game exhibits unexpected depth beneath its parodic exterior.
Developer Team Soda, part of China’s Bilibili media family, is not complacent: less than 24 hours after celebrating their sales milestone, they rolled out a new update packed with features, balance changes, and bug fixes.
In this update, several mundane changes have been made:
- Orange headphones can now be broken down for materials.
- A new UI indicator alerts players to injuries.
- Dogs have become a more significant threat in early gameplay, as their footsteps have been muted.
However, the most significant change is this:
- The energy and hydration values gained from poop have been reduced.
When playing Escape From Duckov, players manage hunger and hydration through scavenging while exploring and battling. Given how quickly these levels deplete, early game players often face immense pressure, struggling to collect essential sustenance or earning enough in-game currency to buy refreshments. Some resorted to consuming the game’s Poop item—gathered from porta potties around the map—to restore energy and hydration, although this would inflict a poison damage over time (DoT) effect.
Despite the detrimental effects, the temptation to eat poop was significant for some players, and with the cut in nutrition, it is likely to discourage this questionable dietary practice.
Overall, this decision seems for the best.
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