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Game
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Core Keeper
Developer Pugstorm
Core Keeper is a survival game and sandbox game developed by Pugstorm and published by Fireshine Games. Set in a procedurally generated underground world, the game combines mining, crafting, farming, automation, and combat while supporting single-player and cooperative multiplayer for up to eight players. Critics have compared its mechanics and tone to Minecraft, Terraria, and Stardew Valley for blending… From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0)
698 reactions from 4 sources (Steam reviews, Bluesky, Mastodon, Lemmy) · newest Nov 5, 2026 · last updated Nov 5, 2026 · How this works
Audience score
87
LovedLoved
501 positive · 78 negative
95% range 84–89%
| Source | + | − | = |
|---|---|---|---|
| Steam reviews | 501 | 78 | 0 |
| Bluesky * | 44 | 3 | 57 |
| Mastodon * | 0 | 0 | 8 |
| Lemmy * | 1 | 0 | 6 |
* shown, not counted in the score (label accuracy below our 85% bar or not yet audited).
Steam's own rating
Very Positive
30,441 of 32,177 reviews positive (all languages, per Valve)
What players are saying
82% recommend · 233 yes, 51 no
Counted from the reviewers’ own thumbs up/down on the 284 English Steam reviews we collected, not by the AI. Valve’s all-language rating: Very Positive (62,353 of 67,121 positive).
Some reviewers find the late game repetitive and grindy, with progression feeling like a chore. [1][2][3][4] Several players note that the game is best enjoyed in multiplayer and with friends. [5][6][7]
Liked
Representative posts
- [3]
Core Keeper starts as an absolute gem and ends as a test of your patience. The first 15-20 hours are magical. It feels like the perfect love child of Terraria and Stardew Valley. Mining through the dark, discovering new biomes, setting up your little farm, and fighting the first few bosses is genuinely addictive. The lighting system is beautiful, and the sense of progression feels earned. Then you hit the …
- [16]
Super Fun game, BUT BEWARE! I tried to get my wife to play this game after Stardew Valley, it did not work. I was really hoping to get into this game but it did not translate like I wanted. Turns out "cozy farming sim" and "claustrophobic cave-diving game where a slime can absolutely end your run" are not the same genre, no matter how similar the pixel art looks from the store page. She lasted about 40 minutes …
- [17]
I really enjoyed this game. It feels like a combination of Stardew Valley and Terraria.
- [8]
If Calamity Mod Terraria and Stardew Valley had a child. Obviously, it took more after the former, but some elements and similarities with the latter are not to be ignored. In all seriousness, it's one of the best compliments I could give it. I've been exploring, fighting, building and generally chilling for ~12 hours on my newest save and I've yet to even scratch the surface. Beautiful pixel art, great feeling …
- [1]
Another time I wish Steam had an "eh" rating. I'm giving it a thumbs up because it IS well-made and you could tell it was made with a lot of love, too. The graphics, music, gameplay and all that is good and fine, but the game itself gets boring. It feels mobile game-esque in the way that progression happens. You have a hard/impossible time mining new biome dirt and ores, so you make new tools to deal with it. Then …
Summarised from 34 of the 376 public posts collected about this game; every point cites the posts behind it ([n] opens the post) and the split is counted from the posts’ own ratings. Updated Oct 10, 2026. How summaries are made
RottenBot@rottenbot · automated account
Core Keeper sits at 87% positive across 579 opinionated reactions from 4 sources. Fresh or rotten — where do you land?
Critics, per Wikipedia
Early-access reviews for Core Keeper were broadly positive. Critics frequently highlighted the game’s atmosphere, accessible progression, and blend of familiar survival mechanics with a distinctive underground setting. Rick Lane of NME compared the presentation to Dungeon Keeper for its dark tone and pixel art style, arguing that while the mechanics draw heavily from games like Minecraft, the shift in theme keeps them from feeling stale. Nicole Clark of Polygon described Core Keeper as a “top-down Terraria”, praising its meditative progression loop, gradual crafting reveals, and its ability to teach through experimentation rather than complex interfaces. Jason Coles of PCGamesN praised the…
From the “Reception” section of Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. Critic context only — not part of the audience score.
Reactions
60 of 698 · most liked firstCore Keeper has such a strong start that everything after that feels like a wasted opportunity. The game feels like it could have been amazing, but because of a lack of polish in its game design and a lack of content it’s just *passable*. The basic foundation of the game is great — fun co-op, great art style, decent enough combat. But then you pull on almost any thread and start to see the issues: - The weapons and armors are all incredibly shallow, it feels like there’s 3 weapons per class…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →When you are trying to beta test your game but everyone keeps talking about Core Keeper. 🤣
neutral · AI labelView post →Core Keeper combines many gameplay elements from different genres in one game. That makes it a lot of fun and keeps you hooked. Unfortunately, in the endgame you notice that all these different areas ultimately lead nowhere. One example is the automation with conveyor belts. What do I actually need thousands of resources for that I produce there through automation? They pile up by the thousands in the box and barely help you in the further course of the game. The automated farms are fun, but in…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →just announced our new game :D if you like Core Keeper, you might like KYORA too store.steampowered.com/app/3337850/...
neutral · AI labelView post →I was sponsored to check out Core Keeper on Nintendo Switch! This has been my favourite game this year, so let's see how it performs on my favourite console 👇
positive · AI labelView post →Core Keeper starts as an absolute gem and ends as a test of your patience. The first 15-20 hours are magical. It feels like the perfect love child of Terraria and Stardew Valley. Mining through the dark, discovering new biomes, setting up your little farm, and fighting the first few bosses is genuinely addictive. The lighting system is beautiful, and the sense of progression feels earned. Then you hit the mid-to-late game, and the fun just... stops. The bosses are easy but incredibly…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Can even see the pec peak over the shoulder 😋 and some juicy buns to accompany! IG gets a unique post today! Streaming a New Game Tonight with friends after we get that last boss kill in Core Keeper! See you around 8pm MST!
neutral · AI labelView post →Super Fun game, BUT BEWARE! I tried to get my wife to play this game after Stardew Valley, it did not work. I was really hoping to get into this game but it did not translate like I wanted. Turns out "cozy farming sim" and "claustrophobic cave-diving game where a slime can absolutely end your run" are not the same genre, no matter how similar the pixel art looks from the store page. She lasted about 40 minutes before looking at me like I'd tricked her into a timeshare presentation. There…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Great start, but becomes a frustrating chore in the late game At the beginning, I had a blast. The early game is linear, fun, and easy to pick up. Even when the game introduces automation and resource management, it feels balanced—you don’t need to be a hardcore nerd to get what you need to progress. The breaking point is the Desert and Ice biomes. The difficulty curve hits an absurd wall, turning the game into pure grind and frustration. Common enemies have 900+ HP and take 4 to 5 hits…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →As a 42 year old married man, I honestly wish I could have experienced this game with friends. No one that I grew up with (or currently interact with) still plays games the way that I do. Regardless, I enjoyed my time playing Corekeeper. I logged the majority of my hours during the initial release. I've never played a game that felt as effortlessly open world as this one. Building your home(s), exploring new biomes, and even laying out your own railroad network consistently felt fresh and…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I can't wait for the modded community to make this game interesting, because I really tried to give it a good shot, and it still only ever bored me or frustrated me. A billion crafting tables to the point where they need their own room, a billion floor hazards spewed by all the bosses so far, no chest upgrades in sight, and I can't even bring myself to start on building housing because i'm already at my limit for monotonous tasks, like tunneling to new areas, mining for specific ores, or…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Love the game, over 100 hours in, but summoning is pretty busted. For a ranged or melee build, the mechanic of having to manage summons by constantly firing off a summon that lasts a minute or two (just to have an added damage source) seems reasonable. That micromanaging is NOT reasonable for a dedicated summoner. Summon armor absolutely needs to be adjusted so summons get while wearing a set, not just an extra minute or two via rings and such. If someone wants to sacrifice defense with the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →: 7.5/10 Some would say this is Terraria but top-down, in a sense they aren't wrong but that doesn't mean this is just a copy, base building feels unique and boss fights are just as fun, only modding is pretty bad with only adding a few QoL things, but that doesn't have anything to do with the base game. : 9/10 As I mentioned the base building and fighting is already very fun, but there's still the "skill" aspect which I find fun to progress and acquire different perks for different…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Overall, the game is solid, but the attempt to implement pseudo-classes—reminiscent of Terraria—has sparked plenty of controversy. It’s not Terraria, yet the game tries to nod to different damage types—magic, ranged, melee, and summoned-creature damage—so you could read it as a class system. Still, it’s hard to call them true classes: in Terraria, you feel capable at every progression stage, knowing you can clear content with any single path and that multiclassing isn’t just unnecessary, it’s…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Love this game. Well worth the price, and fun. A couple gripes. base design is pointless. Just plos it down and it doesnt matter. Farming is pointless, you can do it to get certain foods you find helpful but youll probably end up with more than enough just by playing through without planting a thing. Upgrades are so incremental that you barely notice them until the item is fully upgraded. Too many bosses are just different color slimes. Go karts are cool but pointless everywhere except the…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really enjoyed this game. It feels like a combination of Stardew Valley and Terraria.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →there is an arcade machine with a playable Core Keeper at the local game incubator 🤩
neutral · AI labelView post →I just want my pants man. As someone who was wowed by the first few hours of the game, I really cannot express how disappointed I am with the experience after a few more hours. Core Keeper is a cave exploration game that is centered around progression by upgrading your gear and defeating bosses, pretty similarly to Terraria! The game also allows you to flex your creative muscles with some building mechanics, and even has NPCs that you can have move in as well! Let's start with the good: The…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I really loved this game. I have over 300 hours in it...but yet I have barely picked it up since the 1.0 launch. And I do recommend this game, because it is a great game. What really burned was the 200 hours in early access, where I built a base with my future husband, worked hard in gathering in-game items, and had an incredible time. Then...1.0 announcement. What were they going to add??? I was so curious, because there was so much content, so many secret little things you could…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I don't really enjoy this game and I think i'm kind of done with it. I think it has a lot of neat ideas and cute sprites and things, but I feel like I was misled into believing it was something that it was not. The advertising for this game made me think you'd be building up a base, gathering resources to that end, getting automation for things, farming, animal husbandry, etc. Lots of videos on the steam page love to show you zipping around on boats and things. I was imagining setting up…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I Have Decided to Play Every Game I Own in Alphabetical Order and Review Them All (about 700 games) Will I give up? Probably but let's see how far I get. I broke the alphabetical rule, but I'll go back to it after. My GF and group wanted to try this out- Game No: #6 of (716) Game: Core Keeper Time Played: 53h Status: Still Playing First Impressions Beautiful art style and nostalgic opening menu music. Expecting a mix of Terraria and Minecraft, you're dropped in without a huge tutorial, I…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Core Keeper summons because I like their look and is the sole reason I got interested in the game~ they are kind of lackluster on practice tho...
neutral · AI labelView post →after 1k+ hours, it's safe to say I like this game. you can play at your own pace, use your creativity, and get lost playing for hours. I love seeing how creative people get with their bases. the ONLY thing I wish it had, was to let players customize the colors of more items in the game. some styles of furniture come in only one color and it would be cool to be able to customize more. It's still the best game tho :)
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I like this game a lot - it's just nice to get lost in and explore the world for hours. The design elements for the creatures are cute and the bosses look interesting. I love the fact that they have seasonal events that you can turn on and off whenever you like. I'm excited to see what they add to the game next.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Games that almost fit the bill: - Across the Obelisk: Slay the Spire but multiple characters (but not local) - Core Keeper: Great mining game, but the bosses and action gets a bit intense to be chill - Cook Serve Delicious series: Epic cooking together, splitting tasks and getting hand cramps
neutral · AI labelView post →If Calamity Mod Terraria and Stardew Valley had a child. Obviously, it took more after the former, but some elements and similarities with the latter are not to be ignored. In all seriousness, it's one of the best compliments I could give it. I've been exploring, fighting, building and generally chilling for ~12 hours on my newest save and I've yet to even scratch the surface. Beautiful pixel art, great feeling combat, lots of variety in enemies, biomes and environments, items, procedural…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →The beginning is great but you hit a point where it's like "So.... What now?" Well "What now?" is basically aimless exploration to progress unless you decide to lookup where to go next. For me, this was the Iron Age. I Figured out which biome I needed to explore and harvest resources from and then once again hit "... So what now?" This kind of gameplay works in games like Terraria, or even MineCraft (which both still have a similar problem) because after you've built a little base you ask…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →It's a fun game with a reasonable amount of content and mild grind, overall a 7/10, worth during sale and more enjoyable in multiplayer. Pros: 1. A moderately wide array of talents and equipment sets that creates different build options. 2. Talent system that is fun to come up with strategy for levelling. 3. Ridiculous buff stacking that could potentially makes you one-shot everything. 4. Rather linear gameplay with okay in-game instructions. 5. Inventory management QoL with "stack similar to…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Welp...I have 877 hours, I guess it's time to review. I...LOVE this game. Whether I'm trying out something new or just messing about while listening to my favorite spooky podcast Core Keeper has become what I call a "Comfort Food" game for me. Perfect for mellowing out after a hard day.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →PLEASE play this blind bc exploring each outer biome is like multiple spiritual experiences at once
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →the worms. the worms. the worms. the worms. the worms scare me. the worms make me afraid. they dig. they dig and they dig and they dig and it hurts it hurts so much the worms they are the source of dread. they are the origin of malice and know nothing but hunger, for i am the feast. good game! :D
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Terraria + Don't starve + cuteness = Core keeper Good game, worth your time
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This is an odd one to review. I enjoyed my time with Core Keeper. However, after a certain point I felt like I had experienced most of what the game had to offer that I was interested in. The idea of fighting tougher bosses doesn't interest me and the loop of further upgrading things after the sixth bench wasn't as gripping. So it became a question of am I interested in watching the numbers go up and the answer is no. It's a good game loop, just one that was less exciting after doing it for…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →This was fun during the early progression, but as you go farther, it doesn't feel like there are meaningful rewards. It all feels a little bland and repetitive. Either way, It was worth the money for the 15 or so hours of enjoyment.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Another time I wish Steam had an "eh" rating. I'm giving it a thumbs up because it IS well-made and you could tell it was made with a lot of love, too. The graphics, music, gameplay and all that is good and fine, but the game itself gets boring. It feels mobile game-esque in the way that progression happens. You have a hard/impossible time mining new biome dirt and ores, so you make new tools to deal with it. Then you can only explore so far before you're stopped again. and have to grind out…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →🕹️ My main base area I made in Core Keeper. Absolutely love the creativity in this game 😍 I need to tidy it up a bit, but it's a start! 😅 #corekeeper #gaming #gamer #tuesdayfun #ps5 #playstation
positive · AI labelView post →Happy Visions of Mana Day! Can't wait to tear into this game (as soon as I finish Grandia and tear myself away from Core Keeper 😓)
neutral · AI labelView post →Lovely co-op game for us all; maybe you want to be a builder, explorer, farmer, fisher, engineer.. You can have chill building session or maybe try to get all achievements done. Maybe boss? Item loot, sorting and crafting is made easy in base game, love it!
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I heard about the game from the Terraria collab, so the expectations were higher than for an average game. But it really disappointed. I killed 11/18 bosses and just cannot bring myself to finish the game. I did watch an hour and a half playthrough. Progression is quite lacking to be honest, it really feels like there should be more and more creative, tbh. Killing bosses often gives you no useful gear, and when it does the power increase does not feel impactful like in Terraria. Most weapons…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Spoken from the heart. <3 I didn't mention this in my article, but I always wondered whether the particle effects in Core Keeper (light, water, fire, etc.) were inspired by Studio Ghibli as well. I've never seen a pixel-graphic game have such pretty light/darkness ratio and water rippling effects.
positive · AI labelView post →Game isn't super bad or anything but like The later you get the less fun you have. I think the challange mode is no where near as interesting or well balanced as it should be. Classes are unbalanced in terms of effectiveness throughout the game and the different weapon varieties (you get just a couple of summon weapons). Most of the gear you get just changes what stats are buffed (yippee more max hp that doesnt even stop me from getting two-shot by any enemy in the game). Skill tree is…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Core Keeper is already fun and addictive! Thank you for this amazing cozy game gift! 🙌🥰
positive · AI labelView post →I’ve been playing Core Keeper with @blackgirlmage.bsky.social and @bruderkaitlin.bsky.social the past couple of days and now they’re as obsessed with it as I am!!! Gonna get @cutestpatoot.bsky.social hooked next 😈😈 Look!! 🥺💖🥺
positive · AI labelView post →Core Keeper Fan Art It's so cool that such a great game is being made by a studio in my very own home town (+ remote), a big congrats to the team! Excited to play 1.0 after work today. Here's some fan art to celebrate the release 😃
positive · AI labelView post →Bought the game to play with my brothers. Couldn't stop playing. Almost missed work the following day.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Terraria but 2.5D and you kill lots of bosses like terraria and then you build a cozy home for yourself and an appartement for your npc's like terraria and its a really cool game but its not terraria. 10/10 but it's not terraria guys
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →I am NO gamer by any stretch, but I love this game. This takes everything great about Stardew Valley and everything great about Minecraft and puts it all together for a lovely relaxing game that just keeps going. It's simple enough for a noob like me to pick it up without getting frustrated, yet challenging enough to not feel grind-y.
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Core Keeper is a good game
positive · AI labelView post →Core Keeper (Switch/PS5/PS5/Xbox) is $24.99 on Amazon buff.ly/4fOX5V3 GameStop buff.ly/40Tga4i Walmart buff.ly/4ge4VbC $14.99 XBL buff.ly/4gAGODS (Steam) $11.49 Fanatical buff.ly/4gT60pl #ad also on Game Pass Ultimate
neutral · AI labelView post →yea look, ppl don't enjoy being tricked. if you offer a single-session-demo and call it "free weekend" instead, then don't be surprised if that upsets ppl enough to downvote your game. well deserved, honestly.
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Hi Folks, My name is Joshua Garrity and I'm the Head Game Scout at Secret Mode. Previously I worked for Team17 and Fireshine in similar capacity. I have signed games such as Core Keeper, Shadows of Doubt and Everything is Crab. I'm always on the look out for exciting new pitches! #IndieGameBiz
neutral · AI labelView post →In under an hour! It's time to unwind from a long week and get cozy 💜 I'm starting a new Core Keeper world and I wanna keep it chill today~ Boot up a game of yourself and I'll see you in 30 mins💜
neutral · AI labelView post →I can see many reasons why this game isn't for everyone. It fells addicting playing for the first time; the game has great atmosphere, musics and visuals. The new biomes that you discover and items that you find gets you hooked into the game. However, after playing for a while the game tends to be a bit repetitive and tedious which causes a burn-out from the game, if you are not a big of fan of these types of games. You generally tend to find yourself unable to mine the new biome stones and…
positive · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Overall was a good game, enjoyed it until I realised that my friend and I couldn't both work towards the legendary gear for the both of us. The fact that it was 1 item per world of each piece.... Killed it for us, unless the devs give us a tick box allowing us to both get this gear I will not be coming back
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →My feelings about this game are very mixed. Its almost a truly great game but it just fumbles it again and again. The vibes are great, the music is atmospheric, the early game is very nice but after you unlock the outer regions, problems arise. The world is too big for its own good. Every biome has only a couple of different enemies, very similar dungeons and a subbiome. After being in a biome for 15 minutes, you have seen it all. There are beatiful set pieces occasionally but finding them is…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →Perhaps something like Core Keeper? There are enemies and even boss monsters in places, but it is a fun little game.
positive · AI labelView post →This game is good in theory. i like the classes and getting to choose one at the start is fun along with getting some fun starting gear. the first hour of this game will feel so insanely cool to you and this game is so beautiful. but roughly after you beat the first 3 main bosses the cracks will start to kinda show. This game just has 0 weapon variety and for some classes (like summoner) just no weapons. Summoner has SIX summon weapons in the whole game, and two of them are orbitals which orbit…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →After over a year of adventures, Core Keeper will be leaving the Game Pass catalogue on the 15th of October. We hope you'll continue adventuring with us in future and we're offering a 40% discount Microsoft Xbox and Windows players until the 22nd of Oct.
neutral · AI labelView post →Core Keeper is $24.99 on Amazon PS5 buff.ly/3ALv1TM PS4 buff.ly/3ZaVsfa Best Buy PS5/PS4/Switch/Xbox buff.ly/3Oe03qz GameStop buff.ly/40Tga4i #ad also on Game Pass Ultimate
neutral · AI labelView post →solid first few hours, but you get the full extent of the gameplay loop very quickly. after the first set of bosses the gameplay loop really becomes stale; enter a new biome, get killed by strong enemies until you get the materials necessary to summon the next boss, then move on. i played through the entire story and cannot recommend doing the same unless you are a serious fan of this genre, but even then i have some complaints. the biggest complaint is that every class/build besides melee…
negative · reviewer's own thumbsView post →
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