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Play Overview
Core Keeper (2022) is a life-simulation strategy game set in a vast cave system where you construct a sprawling base. It crosses the exploration and discovery of Stardew Valley with the camaraderie and adventure of Valheim. In this way it combines unexpectedly deep combat with building and farming in a game you can enjoy on your own or with other people.
You explore a huge cave system, filled with lakes, caverns, and echoes of a lost civilisation. It's tough to start as you have to use what you can find to scrape out an existence. The world is procedurally generated, meaning that the cave systems are infinitely large and explorable and that no two games are the same.
To progress you use survival skills to hunt food and grow plants. Eventually you have enough resources to craft a simple base and wide array of weapons to help you fend off the ancient monsters that dwell in the darkness. Be sure to bring torches, weapons and gear along with you whenever you leave the safety of your base to deal with the pitch blackness and the varied monsters you share the world with.
There's also a complex skill tree that consists of nine branching avenues for character development. This enables you to customise your character to suit your play style, be that ranged or close-quarters combat, enhanced crafting, or quicker mining.
The result is a game that not only combines popular elements from other base-building, farming, crafting and dungeon-crawling games, but that manages to get them to work together to create a coherent whole.
Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Core Keeper 3 years ago. It was re-examined by Thom Robertson and updated 2 weeks ago.
You explore a huge cave system, filled with lakes, caverns, and echoes of a lost civilisation. It's tough to start as you have to use what you can find to scrape out an existence. The world is procedurally generated, meaning that the cave systems are infinitely large and explorable and that no two games are the same.
To progress you use survival skills to hunt food and grow plants. Eventually you have enough resources to craft a simple base and wide array of weapons to help you fend off the ancient monsters that dwell in the darkness. Be sure to bring torches, weapons and gear along with you whenever you leave the safety of your base to deal with the pitch blackness and the varied monsters you share the world with.
There's also a complex skill tree that consists of nine branching avenues for character development. This enables you to customise your character to suit your play style, be that ranged or close-quarters combat, enhanced crafting, or quicker mining.
The result is a game that not only combines popular elements from other base-building, farming, crafting and dungeon-crawling games, but that manages to get them to work together to create a coherent whole.
Our examiner, Ben Kendall, first checked Core Keeper 3 years ago. It was re-examined by Thom Robertson and updated 2 weeks ago.
There are lots of games similar to Core Keeper. Here are some we picked for you:
Play Style
This is a Traversal and World Building game with Action, Adventure, Collecting and Creative elements. You can play this by yourself or as a 8-player online game. By playing with up to eight players together online, you can split roles between people to each focus on your favourite aspects, or all work together on larger projects.
You can play this game in the following styles:
Duration
Play Time: This game will take between 30 and a half hours and 66 and a half hours to complete. Thanks to the game's open-ended nature you can spend hours gathering resources, building your base and uncovering secrets.
Benefits
This game is good if you want to:
Age Ratings
Content Rating
Users Interact: The game enables players to interact and communicate with each other, so may expose players to language usually associated with older rated games.
Rated for younger players in the US. Rated ESRB EVERYONE for Mild fantasy violence. Players explore different biomes, gather crafting materials, and engage in combat with enemies (e.g., mushroom creatures). Players can craft swords to attack enemies; numerical values appear over characters' heads to indicate damage.
Skill Level
11+ year-olds usually have the required skill to enjoy this game. Some of the more advanced concepts, such as the skill tree and the combat, require a degree of skill that makes it most suitable to older children.
Account Rating
- You need be 18-years-old to to subscribe to Xbox Live Gold for online play, but can then configure family accounts for younger players to play online with Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S.
- You need be 18-years-old to subscribe to Nintendo Online, but can then create accounts for children of any age to play online with Nintendo Switch.
- You need be 18-years-old to subscribe to PlayStation Plus for online play, but can create sub-accounts for younger players of 7-years or older to play online with PlayStation 4 or PlayStation 5.
Costs
Core Keeper usually costs £15.99 to £16.24.
It's important to set up your accounts and devices appropriately. More information is on our Financial Resources page.
Core Keeper
There are the following additional costs associated with this game:
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You need a subscription to play online:
- You need to purchase a Nintendo Online subscription to play online with Nintendo Switch.
- You need to purchase a PlayStation Plus subscription to play online with PlayStation 4 or PlayStation 5.
- You need to purchase a Xbox Live Gold subscription to play online with Xbox One or Xbox Series X|S.
It's important to set up your accounts and devices appropriately. More information is on our Financial Resources page.
Game Details
Release Date: 08/03/2022, updated in 2024
Price: 33% Off
Out Now: PC, PS4, PS5, Switch, Xbox One and Xbox X|S
Skill Rating: 11+ year-olds
Players: 1 (8 online)
Genres: Traversal, World Building (Action, Adventure, Collecting and Creative)
Accessibility: 0 features documented (Tweet Developer )
Components: 2D Overhead, Grid, Open World and Pixels
Developer: Pugstorm Games (@PugstormGames)
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Written by parents for parents, the database complements the in-depth discussion about video game addiction, violence, spending and online safety in the Taming Gaming book. We are an editorially independent, free resource without adverts that is supported by partnerships. |
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