Well I decided to give this another shot. Created a world with a five-day delay before monsters spawn so I could at least start to get my bearings. It was a struggle for most of those five days; food was scarce, the few animals I managed to hunt (by chasing and stabbing with a knife) dropped virtually nothing, there wasn't a single sign of copper anywhere. Plenty of quartz, but I had no use for it. Still, I managed to dig out a little shelter in an area that was reasonably stable, and found some clay so I was able to make some bowls, cooking pots, and storage vessels. With the ability to cook actual meals using the food I scrounged up, things got a little better, and I decided to go on a trip to try and find some copper once and for all.
I was wandering some hills when suddenly I was confronted with two wolves and at least one pup. The wolves tore me to shreds almost instantly and I respawned far away because I hadn't had any chances to set my spawn point closer.
I tried to go back. The wolves were camping the area and tore me apart even more quickly because I had no gear, no weapons, and no food except for a few servings in my shelter. And there was still no copper.
So I lost everything because wolves are still hyperaggressive and incredibly deadly, same as years ago. That killed some of the cautious hype I was building back up.