I've got a practical question, this seems like an appropriate place to ask it (apologies if I'm mistaken). I'm currently working on something, will be a while before it's ready, is in early stages, and I'm having trouble making a decision.
In a single-player game that is at least partially (in the beginning, largely) about survival, which of these possibilities would you prefer?
1. No death. If you "die," you are sent back to your starting point, keep all your stuff, just suffer a temporary setback of some sort as a consequence for dying. (In some ways, this consequence can be a positive thing at times, opens up options that normally aren't available.)
2. When you die, you are dead. You lose all your stuff and have to start over. BUT, your new character will still retain the knowledge of the old character (knowledge is a tangible thing in this game, possibilities are unlocked with each new piece of knowledge you gain). So there is permanent progress no matter what, you just have to go through the more difficult survival part of the game each time you die, which keeps you on your toes, keeps you from just stockpiling stuff and never having to worry about survival again. Once enough knowledge is obtained, there may be ways to prevent death.
So in the first option, you don't lose your stuff, but I worry that eventually the survival aspect will disappear too quickly this way. On the other hand, with the second option, I can see some people getting upset that they lose their stuff.
So, which of these would you guys prefer?