Don't Starve Together (or DST for short) is a multiplayer version of Klei Entertainment's popular indie release Don't Starve, and has gone on to receive ongoing support far past its inception. Waterlogged is the most recent free title update to DST, and adds a plethora of water-based content to the game that players have been requesting for some time.
From the new biome to the accompanied new mobs and changes to the way boats work, much has been added in terms of existing content to keep the game fresh. Luckily, most of the changes to existing content also come in the form of fixes made to some more frustrating mechanics, which is a delight to long-time fans of the game.
The New Waterlogged Ocean Biome
The new biome (aptly named for the update but also for the mangrove-style nature of it) is the most obvious and featured addition in the waterlogged update, and contains a good variety of new enemies, foodstuffs, and sources of wood and other resources.
Most important to the new biome is the fact that the new type of tree (Knobbly Trees) serves as a source of food for players who prefer to be ocean-bound. This allows players the possibility of staying at sea for extended periods of time without fear of starvation (a fridge on a boat is a viable option as well, but boats do tend to sink and lose their contents permanently).
Grass Gators AKA Water Koelefants
Another addition found in the biome is the new creature type: The Grass Gator. Grass Gators are funny little creatures that function somewhat similarly to Beefalo, albeit with the ability to respawn and the inability to be befriended.
Grass Gators provide the player with a source of renewable twigs and grass at sea, but, more importantly, can serve as a fine source of Leafy Meat. Any Wigfrid main will immediately recognize the value that the Gator's addition has, as it allows her to have a renewable source of meat at sea. This is crucial to Wigfrid's survivability, as she can only eat meat (making her somewhat of a more challenging character to play in Don't Starve).
Sea Strider Nests And Webber's New Friends
Sea Striders are another creature addition that is unique to the waterlogged biome and serves as a source of immediate danger in the area. Picking a fig from a dangling vine, ramming into the Great Tree Trunk, or simply being around (and not Webber) at dusk is enough to draw the ire of these seaworthy arachnids.
Sea Striders are capable of floating on the surface of the oceanic biome, and can freely hop from the water to any nearby player's boat to attack the said player. These spiders tend to spawn in swarms and can be a great danger to players caught unawares or unprepared. On the other hand, these creatures also serve as a fantastic buff to Webber's character, as he can now amass an army of water-mobile spiders to swamp any threats at sea.
Changes Made To Boating
A lot has been changed to how the boats work in DST, but most important of all, boats now come to a complete stop when the player ceases paddling forward in them. This is a fantastic addition, as it prevents players from accidentally bumping their boats into landmasses due to being unable to stop and subsequently capsizing the vessels.
Other changes include increases to the max speed of boats, the rates at which various paddles accelerate a boat, the turning speed of boats, and the performance of worlds that have many boats on them. Most of these changes are quality-of-life improvements for seafaring survivors and are much-appreciated additions by the community.
The Potential To Base At Sea
Using the right combination of playing as Webber and having a strong vessel at hand, it is now fully feasible for a player to base out at sea for an added challenge. This prospect will be exciting to long-time players, as it will allow for the potential of a new kind of challenge playthrough on dedicated oceanic servers.
This is primarily due to the pacifism that Sea Striders treat Webber with and the new renewable sources of food in the new biome. It is also because the player can plant a Great Tree anywhere they like so long as they acquire a Knobbly Tree Nut and cultivate it accordingly. With twigs and grass now renewable due to said trees and Grass Gators, and wood being available from driftwood, such a challenge is much more feasible than it has been in prior releases.
A Much Easier Crab King Fight (For Webber)
Another indirect buff made to Webber players in the waterlogged update is that the Crab King fight can be completed much more easily due to the addition of Sea Striders. Prior to waterlogged, Webber did not overly have the ability to capitalize on his ability to befriend spiders, as space on a boat is fairly limited and should be reserved for resources necessary to survive.
This difficulty has been eliminated with the addition of the Sea Striders, as Webber can have as many of them as he needs and maintain perfect space on the boat for supplies (since the spiders float on the water's surface). Due to this perk, Webber can now bring an army of spiders with him to fight the Crab King, one of the title's more unwieldy bosses in past updates due to the aquatic nature of the fight. It's honestly a wonder why Webber isn't the game's mascot by this point.
A Variety Of Fig-Based Recipes
While figs themselves provide the potential for a renewable food source at sea, DST veterans will be left wondering about the utility of the fig as it relates to new crock pot dishes. Crock pots serve as a means for players to enhance food beyond simply cooking the ingredients raw, and even allow players to craft special dishes with unique effects.
The impact of all the new fig recipes (including the Fig-Stuffed Trunk, Figgy Frogwich, Figatoni and Figkabab) is much increased in the case of Warly, as he is a character that will only consume crock-pot dishes. Furthermore, Warly receives diminishing returns upon eating the same crock pot dishes multiple times, which means that adding five new recipes will allow Warly players to cycle through more dishes before having to repeat.
The Promise of a New Character: Wanda
Upon the release of the waterlogged update, Klei also released a list of official patch notes detailing all the changes that would be made to the game in detail. At the end of this list (just past the section where new skins were discussed) was a brief explanation of future planned content, "including something big" in October and a new character named Wanda in the first half of September.
This character has since been revealed to be slated for release on September 9th, and that her subtitle is "The Timekeeper," but that is all that has been officially revealed about her to date. A poster has also been released portraying Wanda's design, and many players speculate that Wanda may have ties to shadow magic and machinery in the same way that Wagstaff was (first added to the game during the Don't Starve: Hamlet early access branch).