![]() ![]() Why do I need a high-jump when I can just climb the walls with my incredible spider-boots? That’s the main problem with SteamWorld Dig’s design: everything it does is one small tweak or notch away from being fantastic, but much of it comes across as undercooked. Imagine if Dark Souls didn’t respawn enemies upon returning to a bonfire – suddenly the whole act of “cashing-in” XP would become a thoughtless, tension-free irritation. All this means is that going back through old tunnels is a necessary, frequent, and dull inconvenience. No enemy re-spawn, no cave collapses, no fear. The game has a rogue-like approach to death, with accrued swag staying at the point of death until reclaimed, yet takes no attempts to make re-treading old ground interesting or exciting. Returning to the surface should be more unwanted and questionable, it should be laced with a fear of some unwelcome result to your desire for upgrades and light. It should encourage clever and brave play. SteamWorld Dig should reward someone that is prepared with ladders. Heck, the main reason I used the teleporters was because it made the repetitive – and frequent – return trips to the surface slightly less obnoxious. When playing the game I wanted to use the ladders, I wanted to use more TNT, but the situations just weren’t there. Ladders, teleporters, TNT… SteamWorld Dig is certainly not unsatisfying for a lack of trying. Head back to the surface and shops sell useful items alongside upgrades to your tools. This is a shame because the game clearly wants to be better than this. It is what it is, a series of blocks in a big shaft with little rhyme or rhythm to their construction. The problem with the main shaft is that in offering you the freedom to dig wide, the area never feels like a well thought-out environment. Combat issues are elevated somewhat in the latter stages thanks to some ranged offence, but this portion of the game never feels properly fleshed out. The combat is largely unsatisfying (run up to enemy, bash with pick/drill until dead) and better avoided, leading to much laborious circumventive digging. The thoughtful side of digging does attempt to become more apparent in the later areas, through larger obstacles that can and will shift of their own accord but cannot be mined directly however, in the main shaft it’s easy to ignore these altogether. Enemies are another questionable presence in such a free-form adventure. Then you realise that Rusty’s wall jump is a sticky, gravity-defying miracle that renders most traversal concerns mute, making careful digging far less gratifying. You can dig wherever you want here – within reason – and you’ll quickly adopt the mindset that you should dig carefully as you’ll need to navigate back up your tunnels (you’ll be returning to the surface every few minutes to cash in your spoils and refill your light source) so you’ll dig in sensible patterns. ![]() But SteamWorld Dig never truly finds its feet during its short adventure. Upgrades include traversal skills – such as the ability to run faster and jump higher – alongside extra mining tools, including a drill, that become necessary to cut through the more sturdy blocks deeper down. It’s a fun and quaint concept, and one that could surely produce a bona fide classic. After a brief natter with the towns-folk it’s into the mine with Rusty, where you must use your pickaxe to hack away at the dirt to carve a path deep underground in the name of retrieving precious minerals to sell to the aforementioned townsfolk.Īs you dig deeper and deeper you’ll come across more and more mysterious features, locating upgrades along the way. Rusty has just arrived in Tumbleton as he has inherited the town’s mineshaft from his uncle. The controls are responsive, and lurching around the mines has a wonderful gait as you wall-jump and fling yourself around the tunnels of your own design. It’s an unfortunate realisation, then, that despite all this good, Steamworld Dig is not that brilliant a video game.Ī brief preface: in SteamWorld Dig you play the role of Rusty. Sound effects do the job, too, with the metallic clunk and thunk of your character giving an impressive feeling of heft and adding personality to the atmosphere. The music only stays strong throughout, complimenting the various areas and environments found beneath Tumbleton. The Western jaunt and whistle of the over-world plays a tempting theme, tainted with minor twang and suspicious guitar plucking. The sprite work echoes some of the best in the business, feeling similar to Way Forward or SNK Metal Slug in quality, with a healthy dollop of impressive lighting making proceedings look even better. Gorgeous sprites, fluid animation, and a 3D effect that adds a delicious sense of depth to a 2D world. ![]()
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