Crafting the shield and learning the block-jab-jab-jab combo is absolute key. They don't go explaining this and I think it turns people away from the game.
Grounded is a pretty solid moderately-difficult survival game. The hunger/thirst is a little aggressive, but you don't have to micro manage everything.
I hope they fix the early game balance. You have to chop down a whole tree to get a log, to make one shitty wooden spear. You can throw the spear to kill a rabbit, but hit or not it loses 25% durability instantly. And one rabbit only keeps you going for a couple minutes. Just needlessly painful to get started.