First of all, I would like to thank Fireshine Games for sending us Core Keeper and enabling us to create this content.

A Paradise for Explorers and Builders

Suddenly, you find yourself in the midst of a mysterious cave with some stone structures that look like totems or statues, while you only carry the items related to your craft - the items you start the game with depend on the context/class you choose for your character -. Well, you were just exploring ancient ruins when one of them activated the artifact you were carrying. Now, you are alone in an enigmatic cave and so begins your adventure in Core Keeper.
 

Like in other sandbox games, when you find yourself immersed in a universe with so many paths to explore, it gives you a great sense of freedom, while at the same time you feel a bit lost because you don't know the possibilities that await you and what the game allows you to do. In Core Keeper it is no different, and the desire to explore and understand how much content that game has to offer is enormous.

If I had to summarize the experience I had in this game in a few words, it would be: satisfaction and fun. The gameplay is very enjoyable, everything you do in the game is enjoyable, from mining, to adventuring and exploring the paths that the cave already had, fighting monsters, fishing, planting, building... It is a game that while it has mechanics of simple understanding, it has a lot of content. When you think you have advanced to a new technology and now you are reaching the limit, the game shows you that it has more materials.

As for the feeling of satisfaction, everything in the game contributes to that: the soundtracks are very pleasant and change according to the biome you are in; the sound effects fit the gameplay and the game universe like a glove; although pixelated, the graphics are super cozy and beautiful and have some effects (lighting and shading) that give a refinement and detailing that are very interesting for the art.
 

Overall, my experience playing solo was very enjoyable, but it was even more amazing when I experienced Core Keeper cooperatively. My spouse and I really enjoy playing survival and/or sandbox games together. In this one, we had an experience that pleased us a lot and will certainly become a game very present in our repertoire. There are many "activities" to do in Core Keeper and having one or more partners to share and help in the world certainly makes the gameplay even more satisfying.

The Perfect Formula?

In my conception, I think the most important thing in a game is how much it entertains you, regardless of any technical or artistic issues. For this to happen, there are numerous factors that the game needs to have balanced so as not to bother the player in any aspect. There are games with ultra-realistic graphics, but with a weak story and/or gameplay that is not fun; there are games with beautiful stories, but that are not fun to play; there are games where you need to disable the soundtrack because it sucks. And then there are games like Core Keeper, which get the balance of everything right and make you want to play incessantly.
 

Exploring is delightful, at every moment you are rewarded with new resources or monsters. In each biome you have certain types of resources that make you always have to visit it - or get some items that allow you to rebuild the biome - to keep yourself well prepared.

Fishing, gardening, and cooking are also very satisfying, despite their mechanics being very simple. Each type of fruit, fish, or meat provides a positive status, so when cooked, certain dishes provide different attributes that will help you in combat and exploration.

Combat allows you to use magic staves, summoning tomes, long-range weapons, and short-range weapons. So far, all of them seemed strong and worth using, especially the long-range ones, which allow you to be a bit safer from enemy attacks (most of them are melee). The battles are not difficult, it's just about mastering the timing of the monster's attacks to move and keep hitting. Casual and/or inexperienced players with games may have some difficulty, but nothing that will hinder the gameplay. On the other hand, for experienced players, it may make sense to increase the combat difficulty in the world creation options if you are looking for something more challenging. Anyway, I believe the difficulty of the battles is just right, where it is neither boring nor frustrating.
 

Core Keeper has systems that facilitate base management, things that increase the "well-being" of resource management, not to mention the possibility of automating machinery with electrical network constructions. In general, it is a game that, unlike other base-building games, you won't spend much time moving items around and playing the role of an "office boy", carrying resources from one place to another.

Finally, the map and mini-map end the game's "well-being" on a high note. Many survival games prefer to make the player's location a bit more difficult by placing different systems regarding the map. In the case of Core Keeper, the developers hit the mark by keeping the map and mini-map updated in real time, after all, you are stuck in a huge 2D cave. If there was no way to locate yourself in real time, I can tell you that the game would go from casual to hardcore.
 

It is from several small points that Core Keeper remains balanced as a super enjoyable and fun survival game that manages to be fun for the vast majority of audiences, as they achieve balance in various elements of the game, regarding technical, artistic, or gameplay aspects. That said, it is a game that I strongly recommend to all audiences looking for a survival and exploration game, whether to play solo or cooperatively.

Remember that, for the production of this review, Core Keeper was played on the Windows platform (PC), via Steam.