But wait: it isn’t like the base game, insists the developer, despite featuring so many of the same weapons, tools and even some similar enemy types. That said, any fan of the original will tell you it’s about more than the sheer array of available content or the twerking Dwarves. Tweak a handful of factors, and you change the vibe into something else entirely (and potentially less agreeable).

The premise involves Hoxxes, a planet laden with precious Expenite that’s suddenly gone dark. After several failed attempts to take back its core, DRG decides to send in the Reclaimers, a crack squad of operatives who succeed at any cost. Or, as is usually the case, die, die, and die again until the enemy buckles under the attrition (or dies of boredom).

"When you’re playing solo, it even throws in some upgrades for ELIS, your little floating droid companion that provides cover fire. But in co-op, the game will randomly assign the pick order. This is where the rogue-lite structure meets co-op in annoying ways."

You have five classes to choose from, from the Falconeer, who can deploy a drone that automatically seeks out enemies and creates a barrier granting electric damage to those within, to the Slicer, who focuses on melee damage with his Plasma Blade while dashing around. Then you have wildcards like the Retcon, who can be kind and rewind to negate incoming damage (and then convert it to Rage to hit twice as hard for a period of time).

But aside from their kits and unlockable enhancements, which serve as equippable modules, like more health, increased carrying capacity, and so on, they don’t have weapons or ability upgrades to start with. Instead, you need to unlock supply caches before each run, selecting from one of three available choices, or hunt down Bio Boosters and choose one of two ability modifiers. Workbenches require locating toolkits and then selecting one of two upgrades for a weapon, equipping something else entirely – either as a backup or replacement – or further enhancing your own ability. Improving your Clearance Level will unlock additional stations for grenades and other tools.

Further to the procedurally generated levels – they’re less like the sandboxes of the base game, offering more structure and notable points of interest. Can you mine and drill in any direction? Sure, but the rallying cry of rock and stone is often more focused. Some liberal note-taking from its predecessor results in side objectives like scanning a dig site for nodes, then digging through every surface to find and deposit the ores. The Pickaxe is also essential for mining Expenite, which can be deposited into the REPD to unlock character upgrades, from flaming steps to more armor and improved ability recharge depending on damage dealt.

When you’re playing solo, it even throws in some upgrades for ELIS, your little floating droid companion that provides cover fire. But in co-op, the game will randomly assign the pick order. This is where the rogue-lite structure meets co-op in annoying ways. Any general upgrade could work for the Falconeer – play as the Slicer, however, and seeing teammates take any of the melee-focused perks can be a downer. Sure, you can tell them what you’d prefer, but that doesn’t mean they have to listen to you.

"You won’t truly know a rogue-lite without spending enough time with it – like a mineshaft, ironically enough – but just after a few hours, it’s clear that Ghost Ship Games has to dig deeper."

Furthermore, everyone needs to be present within the little circle around the REPD to receive their upgrade. What if they split up, covering more ground because that’s the most optimal strategy to net all the different upgrades (and one of the pitfalls of solo play)? Or if someone just spawned in? Have fun waiting for them, or drop whatever you’re doing and meet them en route to summon the REPD. You can – and most likely will – just keep depositing Expenite until you’re all forced together, likely at the next lift to receive your upgrades. While I appreciate how this creates friction, it’s already annoying enough when it comes to build-crafting. I don’t need the added element of trying to herd my team together.

“Well, it’s a co-op game, so what do you expect?” Remember how I mentioned that everyone splitting up is the most optimal strategy? That’s because there’s a timer. Think Risk of Rain-style, where the level becomes more challenging in terms of enemy spawns as you go along. Hit the red, and it’s a never-ending onslaught with only so much healing and armor to go around. On the one hand, I kind of like this because it encourages actually understanding the map and marking things for your teammates rather than mucking around; mastering the traversal tools and knowing whether that Expenite on the ceiling is worth the trouble.

However, it’s certainly more stressful, especially if you’re used to exploring at your own pace, Deep Rock Galactic veteran or not. The increased difficulty floor also makes solo play much more difficult because you’re forced to make tougher choices about what to prioritize (or, at the very least, dying repeatedly until you master the overall flow).

Each run comprises different floors, and you can choose a modifier for the next, either making the Corehead Creepers deal tons of melee damage in exchange for different rewards. You can spawn tons more Barnacle-like enemies that can ensnare and damage you unless rescued by a friend. Keeping all this in mind before eventually going toe-to-toe with the boss is also important, since dealing with tougher Creepers or faster tanks is hardly ideal. At least the timer resets on each floor.

You won’t truly know a rogue-lite without spending enough time with it – like a mineshaft, ironically enough – but just after a few hours, it’s clear that Ghost Ship Games has to dig deeper. The ability to equip any weapon and not be restricted by class is nice, and there are some pretty cool elemental synergies. But it currently feels like a solid foundation more than anything else.

"As it stands, you’re either going to like Deep Rock Galactic: Rogue Core because of its tension or ultimately reject it for the same reason."

Despite these complaints, especially when solo, I had fun with Rogue Core. When things really hit the fan, whether you’re trying to take down a boss or proceed to the next level, it can make for some hectic battles, especially as foes crawl on walls, leap from afar and throw increasing amounts of firepower at you. The responsiveness of each weapon is also on point, be it a satisfying headshot with the Bulldog Revolver or the satisfying ping of a Garand Sniper, especially when executing charged shots.

For a game preoccupied with subterranean breach and clearing, each biome feels distinct enough in its aesthetics and hazards to feel notable, especially when dealing with more complex jobs, which can have glowing crystals that emanate damage, or nodes that explode when shot. Each run also feels distinct enough between the experimental Expenite creatures that can explode and dot entire surfaces with the material, or the hostile Surveyor Drones, which provide data for a worthwhile node when shot down.

Granted, it doesn’t take long for the same set of staircases and corridors to become familiar, but it’s a small thing in the grand scheme of the level design. And of course, performance is on point while ensuring that the voxel-like composition of biomes looks as endearing as ever.

As it stands, you’re either going to like Deep Rock Galactic: Rogue Core because of its tension or ultimately reject it for the same reason. The rogue-lite elements, REPD upgrade nags, timer, and whatnot can all be adjusted accordingly as early access proceeds, and there’s a pretty hefty amount of content to be had. But unless you’re on board with the core gameplay, it may be hard to really embrace. If nothing else, you have to credit Ghost Ship Games for attempting something new – even if its biggest hit is most notable for the exact opposite gameplay flow. Here’s hoping it can hone a strong identity for Rogue Core throughout early access because while “rogue-lite DRG” sounds intriguing, the execution may leave some wanting.

This game was reviewed on PC.

A new narrative trailer for the game, delivered as a sort of PSA to all you miners out there, details how all mining facilities have suddenly gone dark in the wake of attacks by the Corespawn, an alien race that’s definitely hostile to your presence. You’re going to take on the role of a Reclaimer, a specialized unit that doesn’t flinch at entering mining facilities with just armor and a pickaxe, using their prodigious skill to gather potent weapons along the way.

The Reclaimers can also work with Exponite, a valuable power source to upgrade your gear in the field. Every Reclaimer has been encouraged to make the most out of Exponite they find. You’re going to need it all as you search for the elevator on each floor of hostile facilities, making your way to the Rift at the deepest levels of each one to rid the region of the Corespawn once and for all.

Overall, this looks like a roguelite spin on a popular franchise that’s sure to appeal to fans and newcomers alike when it enters early access on May 20th for PC. Rock and stone until then.

Year-over-year sales continue to rise, with 2,567,251 units sold in 2023. The average Steam player has spent 46 hours and one minute on the title, while 800,715 players have clocked over 100 hours. Daily active users hit 150,300, up from 113,700 in 2022, while monthly active users hit 1,018,230. As for in-game stats, fall damage is the biggest player killer, followed by the Glyphid Grunt and friendly fire.

Aside from supporting Deep Rock Galactic, Ghost Ship Games is publishing two new titles in the franchise. Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor is a survival title similar to Vampire Survivors, while Deep Rock Galactic: Rogue Core is a roguelite co-op shooter. The former enters early access in Q1 2024, while the latter has yet to be dated.

Much like Deep Rock Galactic, Deep Rock Galactic: Rogue Core will be a co-op first-person shooter. However, in stark difference to its predecessor, Rogue Core will feature a roguelike game structure. Players will start out missions with only a few pieces of equipment, and progressing through runs will allow them to get new upgrades, equipment and abilities.

The Steam store page for Deep Rock Galactic: Rogue Core is live right now, offering a little more detail about the game aside from the teaser. Among other things, the store page features a “living roadmap”, which indicates that the game will be getting a closed alpha launch in Q1 2024, while the Early Access release for the title will happen in November 2024.

While Ghost Ship Publishing hasn’t made any official announcements for its future releases, the company has stated that it is currently working with a number of studios on releasing a slate of games over the year.

According to a statement by CEO Soren Lundgaard, becoming a publisher was the next step in the studio’s evolution, and it is a way for the studio to give back to the gaming industry. The publisher hopes to help developers across the globe, and especially the Danish gaming scene.

For its releases as a publisher, Ghost Ship Publishing will use the design of Deep Rock Galactic as the blueprint to help publish games. The publisher hopes to help studios in establishing a solid business, as well as helping them with funding and marketing expertise.

“Becoming a publisher is a way for us to give a bit back to the industry, and to help lift up both the Danish gaming scene and other small developers like ourselves across the globe,” said Ghost Ship Games CEO Soren Lundgaard. “Our goal is to assist fellow developers with funding and marketing expertise, while also helping them establish a solid business. Founding a publishing brand is a passion project for us, and we are very excited to make this a reality.”

“Starting a publishing company is a natural next step for Ghost Ship,” added Ghost Ship Games CCO Mikkel Martin Pedersen. “We love games and the success of Deep Rock Galactic has now enabled us to help other developers create theirs. We can’t wait to get started.”

Ghost Ship Publishing will announce the first games released under its new label on March 2 as part of the fifth anniversary stream for Deep Rock Galactic.

As part of the celebration, Deep Rock Galactic will be getting a new Year 5 Anniversary event, which includes Space Rig decorations as rewards, and more botched Longbeard Freight deliveries. More details are set to be revealed closer to the start of the event, which is slated for March 2, until March 16.

The game is also getting a playable version of the original early access release of Deep Rock Galactic from five years ago for players who might be feeling nostalgic about the original 2018 release.

And finally, Deep Rock Galactic is getting a new Support 2 Upgrade DLC, set for release on March 2. The DLC will feature cosmetic items, including a new set of weapon frameworks, as well as paintjobs and VIP treatment at the in-game Abyss Bar, complete with an exclusive beer available for the whole team.

Deep Rock Galactic is available on PC, PS4, PS5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X/S.

In terms of user engagement on Steam, the average user spent 42 hours and 45 minutes playing the game. Players have collectively logged 25,691 years since launch in 2018, with 506,929 players racking up over 100 hours. When Deep Rock Galactic was available with PlayStation Plus in January 2022, 9.5 million players claimed it.

Over 750,000 players also joined through Xbox last year (though how many were through Game Pass is unknown). Other interesting stats include fall damage being the number one cause of death, followed by Glyphid Grunts and friendly fire.

Deep Rock Galactic is currently in the middle of Season 3, which added a chance for Meteor Showers to occur during missions. Seasons last about six months, so Season 4 should land in April. Stay tuned in the meantime.

Previously available for PC and Xbox platforms, Deep Rock Galactic is a co-op first person shooter that sees space Dwarves venturing to hostile planets and excavating materials. Areas are procedurally generated and rife with deadly monsters, each with their own unique strengths and weaknesses. PlayStation players will have access to the full game along with Season 1 and its free Battle Pass (Season 2 arrives in March/April 2022).

DiRT 5 is Codemasters’ most recent entry in the franchise and features 10 locations from around the world with more than 70 routes, numerous vehicle types and four-player split-screen support. Persona 5 Strikers is a spin-off of Atlus’s acclaimed RPG with the Phantom Thieves venturing to and liberating mysterious Jails in Japan. It offers action RPG-esque, Musou elements but is still a compelling story.

Check out Deep Rock Galactic’s PS4/PS5 launch trailer below to see the game in action.

In an announcement post on Steam, the developer has revealed the release window for the next Season to be March or April of 2022. In addition to this, Ghost Ship Games has also confirmed that the upcoming Season will be less ambitious than the first, and as such will have a rapid development cycle as opposed to the 7-month long development cycle of Season 1. That said, you can still expect it to be pretty packed.

“We expect Season 02 to go live sometime between March and April 2022 – first on Steam, and then a few weeks later for both Xbox and PlayStation,” the developer wrote. “Season 01 exceeded all our expectations and catapulted the player numbers into space. But it was also a very big update, taking almost 7 months to produce and prepare. Season 02 will be a bit less ambitious and will come out faster. Not to say, that won’t still be an impressive update with all the bells and whistles, of course!”

Deep Rock Galactic has sold over 3 million units, and is available to download right now on PC and Xbox platforms. The game will be coming to PlayStation platforms as well in January 2022, although it will not have cross-platform play support at launch.

Publisher Coffee Stain has announced via press release that Deep Rock Galactic will be releasing for PS5 and PS4 in January 2022- though a specific date for when in the month the game will arrive on the consoles hasn’t yet been shared. There’s no word if a native version for Xbox Series X/S is also in the works, though one would imagine that that would also arrive down the line, now that the PS5 is getting its own native version as well.

Ghost Ship Games CEO and co-founder Søren Lundgaard said: “While it hasn’t been the best kept secret, we are delighted to finally come clean and stop hiding our long awaited arrival onto PlayStation! We are bringing the game to PlayStation fans at one of the most exciting times in the game’s development path, and are so excited to open the doors to a whole new set of fans.”

Currently, Deep Rock Galactic is available on Xbox One and PC (via Steam). Stay tuned for more details in the coming weeks on when exactly it will launch for PlayStation consoles.