Dome Keeper review: a small, but perfectly formed tower defence game that strikes gold
AlienWorld Dig
As players of Image & Form's excellent SteamWorld Dig games will know, there is something innately calming about chiselling your way through a hunk of rock. In both of those western-themed platformers, you were hunting for gem-like treasures to take back to the surface so you could get bigger and better equipment to begin the dig cycle anew. Now imagine that surface is constantly under threat from waves of alien attacks and that's pretty much Dome Keeper in a nutshell, a moreish, meditative mining game that sees you balance digging for resources and hunting for all-important relics while defending your eponymous dome from being smashed to smithereens.
Having first clapped eyes on Dome Keeper back at PAX East earlier in the year, I was instantly struck by its gorgeous pixel art and impressive sense of scale - neither of which have dimmed on its final release. The alien worlds you visit during each run are frequently stunning to behold, and I often wished I could break free of the bounds of my protective little dome and go exploring. Not that I'd survive very long, mind, as the black, beady-eyed monsters inhabiting these lands pack a surprising punch. As the health of your dome depletes after repeated bashings, its glass surfaces splits and cracks where it's suffered the most damage, providing an instant, visual reminder of how long you've got left before it shatters. You do have a more traditional life bar to keep tabs on as well, I should add, but it's a pleasing visual detail nonetheless that helps to make the perilous nature of your situation feel all the more fragile and precarious.
