Perseverance Mills

“

I seem to recall...a town somewhere up north. Far. What was it called...That's it -- Perseverance Mills

”

“

Shit-nothing town, north part of the island? Yeah...I know it.

”

Perseverance Mills is a town mentioned in The Long Dark. It was shown in the ending of Episode 4 and is mentioned several times in Wintermute. It will be the centerpiece of Episode 5.

So far, only the seaside docks of the town have been shown. The Suzuki Radio Telescope is said to be located near the town.

Outline[]

According to the Grey Mother, it was an old milling and logging town, located far to the north of Milton and the Great Bear Island coast. Any other information about inhabitants, events, or the town itself is unknown. Jeremiah says it can be reached by taking the road north out of Pleasant Valley, but would take days to get there on foot.

A character named Atwood is said to live in the hills near the town, while a woman named Jane Yang lives in the town.

As of Episode 2 and Episode 3, it is hinted that the town is suffering from an outbreak of an unknown illness and is under quarantine, with Episode 4 confirming this. The cure for the illness is found within Astrid's Hardcase.

Wintermute[]

Episode 1[]

Astrid Greenwood charters a plane from her ex husband Will Mackenzie at the Jackrabbit Hangar to deliver her and her Hardcase to the Northern part of Great Bear Island. Their plane crashes after the First Flare and the two become separated. Astrid makes her way to the town of Milton and escapes the town after Convicts take it over, heading through the tunnel to Keeper's Pass South and eventually passing through before it collapses, but not before leaving a message in her own blood for Mackenzie in the Crashed Prison Transport Bus: "PERSEVERANCE".

A day later, Mackenzie escapes the ravine he was crashed in and finds both her message and Hardcase, with Grey Mother eventually providing him with a way to leave Milton and continue to the Mills.

Episode 2[]

Jeremiah confirms the location of Mystery Lake is not on the same road that Astrid took, but he is heading the right way regardless. Mackenzie eventually repairs Jeremiah's shortwave radio to send a message out to the Mills, but the radio is destroyed during the Aurora.

Jeremiah eventually requests Mackenzie with delivering a message to a person named Atwood, "WINTERMUTE". He also tells Mackenzie that he would need to pass through the Carter Hydro Dam, the Winding River, and send another message to the Mills via Signal Hill. Mackenzie is eventually captured by Mathis in the Dam however.

Episode 3[]

Astrid wakes up in Pleasant Valley and manages to use Signal Hill to contact the Mills, but cannot get a message out. She overhears the same transmission that Mackenzie made in Episode 2, and realizes he is alive. She eventually makes her way to Coastal Highway and takes the coastline to reach the Mills.

A flashback in Episode 3 reveals that an illness is spreading in Perseverance Mills, and that she stole the cure inside the Hardcase before chartering Mackenzie for a plane.

Episode 4[]

Mackenzie is imprisoned by a group of convicts and must comply with their demands after the Hardcase is confiscated. He eventually makes contact with Jace, a woman who has been spending time near the mills at the Suzuki Radio Telescope, along with Atwood. After retrieving the Hardcase, destroying Blackrock Prison, and escaping, Mackenzie and Jace both make their way to the Mills.

A post credits cutscene shows Astrid in a canoe arriving by the docks of the town. Jane Yang finds her and rescues her, but questions why Astrid does not have the case. A quarantine is currently afflicting the town.

Episode 5[]

To be announced

Notes[]

This location has currently taken the longest development time to implement into the game, longer than any other location on Great Bear Island. It has been mentioned as far back as 2017 (with the original release of Episode 1: Do Not Go Gentle. Possibly earlier as shown in the map below) and finally made a cameo in 2021 (with the release of Episode 4: Fury, then Silence).