@PunishedD survival is the original mode and it's much better than story mode. I found story mode immensely frustrating because it's shoving the normal mechanics into an extremely carelessly crafted script with tons of overlooked events. The point I had to give up is where I stored a bunch of stuff on that dude's cabin after killing the bear and with no warning it boots me out. So here I am 500% overencumbered about to freeze to death and at that point I just say fuck it and stop playing.
D had to convince me to give survival mode a shot.