The Long Dark update doubles playable area with Coastal Highway

The Long Dark has doubled in size thanks to an update to the Early Access build.

The Long Dark is a pretty hardcore survival game set in post-apocalyptic Canada. It will launch with a full story mode, but the current build is sandbox only.

Developer Hinterland has released a major update to the Early Access build, bringing it to v.152. There's a lot going on in the latest patch, but the main feature is the addition of "a whole new playable area", the Coastal Highway.

It "more than doubles the Sandbox's playable area", according to Hinterland. Happily, your saves are compatible, so you can just wander into the new region. Follow the railway in Mystery lake on the Dam side to reach it.

Other major changes include increased fatigue due to starvation; no more calorie deficit; rate of change indicators on sub-conditions; decreased carrying capacity when fatigued; rabbits; snares; more dynamic wildlife spawns; smarter wolves; more damage to wolves if you have better tools; fewer first aid items; and fewer supplies.

There's a hell of a lot more, though. The full patch notes are available on the game's Steam Community page.

The Long Dark is available on Steam for $20.