PlayBack: SteamWorld Dig 1 & 2

thesixthaxis.com:

Fourteen years ago, Image & Form established the SteamWorld universe with the release of SteamWorld Tower Defense, but it wasn’t until the release of SteamWorld Dig a few years later that the series truly made its mark. I took a journey back to Tumbleton and El Machino to see if SteamWorld Dig and SteamWorld Dig 2 have stood the test of time.

Spoiler Warning: Looking back on these two games so many years after release, we delve into some major plot points and spoilers. 

From the day that Rusty first strode into town after receiving a deed from his uncle for the local mine, SteamWorld Dig stood out in large part thank to its simplicity and purity of concept. Armed with nothing but a red scarf and a pickaxe, Rusty starts digging in the mine to find out what happened to his uncle, and to rediscover secrets that were buried long ago. The core gameplay loop is to dig in the mine, find ore, return to town, sell the ore, and upgrade your equipment. What makes it so fondly looked upon is the game design, the characters, and the writing. At no point is there a feeling that no progress is being made, with every strike of the pickaxe taking you forward – well, downward.

Rusty may be on the quieter side, but Tumbleton’s inhabitants, from Dot the merchant to her inventor dad Hank ‘Cranky’ McCrank, and the bartender Lola, are never short on witty remarks. As Tumbleton’s economy flourishes, all thanks to Rusty’s relentless mining, new Steambots arrive with more upgrades in hand for you to use. The mine’s map is a marvellous design, pushing you to delve deeper, but also guiding you to upgrades through its environmental design, tucking the metroidvania format behind an individualistic veneer. Beyond the main mineshaft, there are forgotten rooms brimming with extra upgrades and challenges that aid Rusty on his journey to uncover the mine’s ultimate secret. These rooms, with their standalone puzzles, strike the right balance of challenge without causing frustration. As you play, you