Introduction

I learned about Terraria from a former student who told me, “If you like Minecraft, you’ll love Terraria.” I can confidently say that, at least initially, that wasn’t true. I played Terraria. I understood Terreria. However, I never truly liked Terreria for a long time. I tried again a couple of times over the years and always came away with the same assessment. This is like Minecraft, but objectively worse in every way. I still kind of think that. Even so, I can also say that Terraria is a Gift.

Why Do I Keep Dying?

How is this fun? I start playing like I do in Minecraft. But, I have no idea how to properly build a base. And, the monsters that come out during the night are insanely powerful. Jesus, how long is this day/night cycle? I just keep dying. Over and over again.

So, I quit the game. Often, in frustration. And, I ignored it for several months at a time. I own many games and partake in other hobbies. I’m 50 years old. Why the hell would I bang my head against the wall repeatedly on a game that clearly doesn’t want me to enjoy it. Then, I relented an bough a Steam Deck.

A Redemption Arc

Was the Steam Deck worth it? Probably not. Is it insanely fun to play my Steam library without having to fire up my gaming computer? Hell to the yes. I played some Truck Simulator on the Steam Deck. Then came 1 Screen Platformer. I considered Fallout 3 or 4 and maybe even another replay of Portal.

Over and over, Terraria haunted me from the “Good on Steam Deck!” listing. Okay, fine, I’ll try again. And, yes, it ended the exact same way. However, two other students encouraged me to give it another shot and even gave me some pointers on how to survive the night. I played through my initial death, found a cave, dug a tunnel and kept digging. Eventually, I found another cave where I set up base.

I dug even further, died a few times, but I kept going. And, yes, I even found myself having fun and wanting to explore more. I should mention at this point that I’m happiest in Minecraft when I’m strip mining. Being able to finally replicate that in Terraria made the game that much more fun.

The Verdict

I still prefer Minecraft. It’s given me so many memories, both alone and with my kids. However, Terraria is a gift. Once I truly figure out the game and how the mechanics work together, I might even play it more. I doubt it will approach my Minecraft numbers of over 400 hours played this year. However, I’m much more likely to play it in the hotel during our trip to Pennsylvania this year.