My Terraria love pushed me to try this co-op survival game, and its fabulous Steam Next Fest demo is also an RPG in disguise

gamesradar.com:

Steam Next Fest has been an absolute delight this year, bringing plenty of demos along to explore - and Tinkerlands' own might just be the best slice of a survival game that I've tried yet.

At first glance, Tinkerlands reminded me of a couple of different games. Firstly, I thought of Terraria - a sandbox survival gem I hold close to my heart. Its vast world, varying biomes, and unforgiving bosses are much like Re-Logic's own. Core Keeper, a more recent indie title giving Minecraft meets Stardew Valley vibes, also came to mind given its similar base-building mechanics and overall aesthetic.

Once I hopped into the demo myself, I quickly discovered that Tinkerlands does resemble both of these games in some ways, but it's also so much more. It's a fun package of procedurally generated goodness, potential co-op chaos, and exploration galore. After playing for a short while, I can also safely say that I'm particularly obsessed with the base-building part of Endless Coffee's debut title.

You don't just build your own home. In Tinkerlands, you're tasked with building an entire little thriving town and establishing a diverse community open to new residents who can join and eventually assist you as you adventure. It's sort of like how the NPCs in Terraria work, but a bit more fleshed out - they're not just simple shopkeepers. The pixel art style makes decor feel all the more cozy, too - I just wish I could've rotated furniture.

Outside the base-building, there's a massive world to wander, with unique drops to find and enemies to take on. This is where the more RPG-y side of the game comes into play, and it fits seamlessly in between the crafting and survival-aligned features. There are plenty of formidable bosses to challenge while journeying, too, in proper Terraria fashion. I'm talking giant frogs, creepy-crawly spiders, and royal slimes.

How you handle them is up to you, but I'm personally partial to magic in games like these so I tend to stick with longer-range weapons