Core Keeper News

Guess who’s about to share an update that’s almost entirely about mould. Did you guess us? Good job! The prize for guessing correctly is the mould update – yay! As we close in on the starting date for our Closed Alpha (signups are open until the 23rd of September), we want to tell you about some exciting new features you can expect to see in game.


We’re beyond thrilled to announce our collaboration with award-winning musician, Jonathan Geer. We think music has such an important role in the overall feel of a game, and we wanted our soundtrack to be both beautiful and immersive.

After working with Jonathan these past few months, is that it’s clear that he is incredibly professional. From our slightly vague descriptions of how we imagine the music in the game, he can spin together masterful tracks that go above our expectations. It’s always a joy to hear the new tracks he has been working on, and we’re looking forward to this continued collaboration.

Here’s a little preview of a piece that Jonathan created for our main menu:

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A place infested by mould. The unfortunate creatures that have travelled here have changed. Unnatural growths and mutations sprout from their bodies. “They” are a threat not to be taken lightly, but who knows what treasures they might be guarding hidden away under the mould’s many layers?

The Mould Dungeon is a fungus-infested area that can be found within the Nature Biome. We’ve been hard at work designing a full custom wall and floor tileset along with exciting new environmental objects and a brand-new enemy: the Infected Caveling.

There’s plenty to do and see in the Mould Dungeon, but you’ll have to keep your wits about you. Rumour has it that these Infected Cavelings are a little bit stronger than your average Cavelings – you certainly wouldn’t want to run into a group of them unarmed. Fighting them is a risk you might want to take though, as Infected Cavelings have been known to carry some pretty valuable loot.



Enemies aren’t the only things you have to worry about in the Mould Dungeon, however. This place is filled with dangerous fumes. Beware the mould smoke, unless you fancy taking on a hoard of Infected Cavelings at, say, -70% movement speed! It’s not all bad down here, though. If you’re up for navigating this challenging landscape, you might just find some useful jewellery and an intriguing new weapon...


Why go red when you can go scarlet? We’ve just introduced a new ore type – yep, you guessed it – say hello to scarlet ore! This hardy material is just a little bit stronger than iron and can be used to craft all manner of tools, including swords, mining picks, furnaces, workbenches, and more! Scarlet ore is found exclusively in the Nature Biome, so you’ll have to get exploring if you want to work with this fancy new material.


We’re so glad you asked! Alongside our music, mould and minerals, we’ve been working on a handful of new additions we just know you’re going to love, including.

• Updates to armour functionality (the right armour can now increase your maximum health)
  
• New buffs/debuffs in the form of conditions that can be applied to both the player and your enemies (poisoning, movement speed reduction, starvation, well-fed, glowing, healing, increased attack, increased defense, etc.)
  
• In-game chat to make online multiplayer even easier through simple text-based communication.
  

Phew, that was a big one – we hope we didn’t miss anything! We’ll have another developer update for you very soon. In the meantime, don’t miss the opportunity to experience Core Keeper first-hand, way before we go into Early Access in 2022. Sign up for the official Core Keeper Closed Alpha. Find out more, HERE.

It’s only been three months since we announced Core Keeper to the world, and we can’t believe how much our community has grown in such a short space of time. As summer draws to a close, we’re looking forward to all that autumn has to offer. Crunchy leaves, cosy jumpers, hot chocolate, the Core Keeper Closed Alpha, Halloween – you know, typical autumn stuff. What’s that? You want to know more about the Core Keeper Closed Alpha? Well, you’re in the right place!

[h2]What is the Core Keeper Closed Alpha?[/h2]
The Core Keeper Closed Alpha is YOUR opportunity to experience Core Keeper before it hits Early Access in 2022. We’ve made no secret of the fact that our community is very important to us, and we want to give you the chance to tell us what you want from the game. That’s why we’re inviting you to sign up for our Closed Alpha to spend a week hands-on with Core Keeper.

During this time, you can tell us what you like, what you think we could improve upon and what you think we could bring to the game to make it even more enjoyable. We can’t promise that we’ll input every single piece of feedback we receive, but we’ll be doing our best to ensure your feedback has an impact on the development of our game.

[h2]How do I Sign Up?[/h2]
You can sign up by visiting the Core Keeper Steam page and hitting the sign-up button HERE. Please note that sign-ups close on the 23rd of September and that we will be picking participants at random.

[h2]What Happens if I’m Selected?[/h2]
If you are selected, you will receive an email of notification from Steam on the 23rd of September, you will also see your status on the store page for the base game.

The Closed Alpha will run from the 23rd to the 30th of September. Please be aware that Steam will not email you when a build for a Closed Alpha is set to playable/non-playable, so it’s up to you to navigate to the store page and download the playtest build of the game.

While playtesting, participants will have the opportunity to provide as much feedback as they’d like about the game. Details on how to do so will be provided within the playtest build of the game.

If you don’t get selected to participate in the Closed Alpha, don’t worry! There will definitely be more alpha/beta versions of the game to apply for in the future.

[h2]What We Have Been Working On[/h2]
In preparation for the Closed Alpha, we’ve been ironing out bugs that have been impacting the overall gameplay experience. Most of these have been pretty small, but others have been a bit more significant. Here are some of the bug fixes we’ve been working on for the Closed Alpha that we think you’ll enjoy hearing about:

Super-Buff Projectiles:
We designed it so that any projectiles shot by players would utilise the ranged damage skill and crit chance of the player shooting them, but this resulted in projectiles that also inherited buffs/debuffs such as glow, poison, movement speed increase and healing over time. After this happy accident, we removed many of the unintentional buffs, but we decided to keep the functionality for projectiles to glow if the player has this buff on them.

Gate-ception:
We resolved an issue with fence gates where the player could place a object on the same tile as the gate if the gate was open. This resulted in an Inception-style bug where players could place a fence gate inside an open gate, then open that new gate and place another gate inside that open gate and repeat this for all eternity – eventually crashing the entire game.

And here are some slightly sillier bugs that we’re happy to see the back of!

• Bird poop can no longer spawn on pits.
• Players can no longer accidentally spawn in the middle of The Core.
• Players can no longer place bombs on themselves.


With these fixes, the Closed Alpha build of the game is looking great, and we’re very excited for some of you to get the opportunity to play. Your feedback is going to help us make Core Keeper all the more fun, and we can’t wait to hear what you have to tell us. Make sure you’re a part of our Discord community to hear about activity like the Closed Alpha before it is announced anywhere else!

Happy September, Explorers! Does anyone else feel like 2021 is just flying by? We won’t mention that it’s just over three months until Christmas…oops. It’s been another busy two weeks here developing Core Keeper, and we’ve spent a lot of time refining some of the core (we’ll never get tired of that pun) features of the game.

We’ve also been having a lot of fun over on social media with our “choose your own adventure” game. This Friday’s video will be the fifth instalment in that 10-part series, so if you’ve not had the opportunity to join in yet, there’s still time.

Outside of Core Keeper, the team spent this week’s game session playing Dark Souls the card game, which gave rise to this quote from our CEO and pixel artist, Sven: “Nearly died, highly recommended, 10/10.”
We think that’s enough introductory ramble for now! Here’s what we’ve been working on…


We’re hard at work play testing and balancing the game. Getting the pacing right and making sure that Core Keeper is challenging in all the right places and relaxing in others is something we’ll be focusing on throughout development. We don’t want to make things too easy on you, but we also don’t want you to get murdered by slimes in the first five minutes!

We’re also taking a lot of time to listen to the community and understand what YOU want to see in Core Keeper while we’re making changes to the game. You’ve all done an amazing job of sharing your thoughts in the Discord, and we’d love to hear from anyone who hasn’t already done so – plenty of input from the community will help us make Core Keeper even better!

Oh, and keep an eye out for info on the possibility of a closed alpha sometime in the future; we’ll be sharing more on this in the Discord soon.


There aren’t classes in Core Keeper, but that doesn’t mean that your character can’t specialise in certain areas of the game. That’s what skills are for! Whenever your character performs an action in game, you will gain experience in the respective skill. Levelling up skills give you a permanent bonus to your character. At the moment, we’ve implemented the following skills in Core Keeper, though these may still be subject to change before we go into Early Access:

• Mining
• Blacksmithing
• Gardening
• Running
• Melee Combat
• Ranged Combat
• Vitality




There’s no telling what you’ll run into when exploring the underground. That’s why we recommend you take a torch with you rather than mining in the dark…but we know some of you like to live dangerously! While there are plenty of low-level enemies to keep you occupied, there’s always a chance you’ll run into a gigantic monster or a boss. Don’t worry too much, though. Since each game has a procedurally generated world, the risk is slim.

For the more dedicated monster hunters out there, we have added boss scanners. These are artefacts that you can craft yourselves – with the right *special* materials. Using these scanners will help you track down bosses so that you can take them on in a fight. Just make sure you’ve got plenty of healing potions, some strong armour and even stronger weapons.

Finally, we want to confirm that Core Keeper will now be coming to Early Access in 2022. We’d like to thank you for your patience while we work on bringing you the best possible version of the game. We hope you enjoyed this update, and we can’t wait to bring you more soon. Make sure you’re following us on Twitter (@CoreKeeperGame) for even more Core Keeper content!

Hello Explorers and welcome to our first Core Keeper developer update! We'll be aiming to share regular updates with you from now until early access (date TBC) so that you can get a closer look at the development process. We’re grateful for all of your support, and we’ve been hard at work on some brand-new biomes, characters and features for you, including...


A gorgeous natural biome filled with greenery and plants. The Nature Biome is the fourth biome discoverable in the underground. How is it so green all the way down here, you ask? That’s all thanks to the sunlight that enters through the cracks in the roof of the cave. This biome may be beautiful to look at, but don’t let your guard down. Here, you will encounter Caveling Hunters disguised as bushes and Caveling Farmers that can snare you with plants and poisonous slime. Keep your wits about you, and you just might discover new hidden artefacts and locations that reveal the lore of this underground world.




Rumour has it that there is a mysterious creature lurking somewhere within the Nature Biome. It’s up to you to locate his lair and find a way to lure him down from up above. Defeat him to capture his power and use it with the Core!


A friendly Caveling that offers fine wares if you have the coin. The Merchant can be found in the stone biome where the Cavelings live, and you will be able to buy items from and sell items to him. Like the look of this little guy? Perhaps you just fancy some company? The Merchant can move into your base if you have a room free for him!


We’ve made some cosmetic and mechanical updates to the armour available in game. Introducing Iron Armour: tough armour made from the finest iron that allows you to take a beating without suffering as much damage as with lower tiers of armour. And Larva Armour: use this to your advantage to disguise yourself as a larva and sneak past unscathed.




We’ve also added 20+ new environmental objects that can be used as decorations; 5+ new food items and consumables; and 15+ new pieces of equipment, weapons, and tools.

We’ve had an amazing time getting to know you all on the official Core Keeper Discord, and we’re extremely grateful for all of your feedback. If you’d like to become a part of our community, take part in exclusive game discussions, and get a first look at things like concept art and game updates, join the other Explorers here!

Greetings Explorers, we're hard at work developing Core Keeper, and we will have a developer update for you soon! In the meantime, we wanted to take this opportunity to introduce ourselves and talk a little bit more about some of the core (get it?) features in the game.


We're Pugstorm, an indie game studio based in Sweden, and this is our second game following on from last year's Radical Rabbit Stew (which we were so glad to see that our players loved). We're a team of four developers, consisting of Sven, our CEO and the pixel artist for Core Keeper; David, whose focus is on gameplay programming; Julian who is the lead artist for Core Keeper; and Max, who is responsible for general programming and multiplayer.


When we’re not hard at work developing Core Keeper, we enjoy playing role-playing-games together. We’re having a blast playing weekly sessions of Gloomhaven, and we are thrilled to announce that our characters have now reached level four after a close victory at The Temple of The Seer.

Sven, playing as the Brute, charged into a mob of bears, living spirits and spitting drakes, and he died a valiant death. The rest of the team face palmed, and with the help of Julian’s magical powers as the Spellweaver, David’s supporting healing powers as the Tinkerer, and Max’s trickery as the Mindthief, the team defeated the mobs and the campaign was won. Adventure awaits. Huzzah!


Core Keeper is a 1-8 player mining sandbox adventure with a procedurally generated map and plenty of mysteries to uncover. Whether you’re an intrepid explorer looking to see as much of this underground world as possible, a keen strategist who prefers to build a base and expand outward, or a gentle farmer who prefers to tend to their crops, there’s something for everyone in Core Keeper!

We’re adding new items, biomes and features daily, and we’re having so much fun building this world and hiding all sorts of little secrets for you to unearth. It’s up to you to discover the secrets of the Core and find a way to return home. While you’re underground, however, we’re sure you’ll love…


Lighting plays a key role when exploring the world, and there are multiple light sources in Core Keeper. From the humble torch and the beautiful Glow Tulip, all the way to unique wearables that will light your way while keeping your hands free, different light sources will help you uncover different things. Certain lighting might even unlock secrets that would otherwise remain hidden.

We’re putting a lot of focus into creating beautiful lighting for Core Keeper, and we’ve had to implement some pretty creative solutions to get the game looking exactly the way we want it. While Core Keeper looks like a 2D game, you might be surprised to find out that it is actually rendered using a mixture of 3D meshes and 2D sprites. First, the mineable world is procedurally generated as 3D blocks and combined with 2D characters and objects. Then, by adding mathematical tricks to the camera, we are able to make the game appear entirely two-dimensional with gorgeous 3D lighting effects.




Farming crops and cooking food will be essential if you are going to survive in the underground world. To start a farm, you need three things: seeds, the right tools and water. You can plant your crops wherever there is soil, and if you don’t have easy access to water, you can dig your own path to redirect water back to your base. With a flourishing garden, you will have access to various types of food. These can either be eaten as they are or be combined in the cooking pot to create various meals with powerful buffs that you can share with your teammates.


Core Keeper’s combat is inspired by old-school classics like The Legend of Zelda: A Link to the Past. However, you will have access to a wide arsenal of weapons that you can either craft yourself or find in the world. This includes swords, pickaxes, slingshots, muskets, traps, bombs and more. Players are free to explore whichever weapon suits their playstyle and may need to switch between weapons to the one best suited for the situation.


Multiplayer is supported for up to eight players, allowing you to play with plenty of friends! Characters are not bound to a certain server, instead players can choose to play with the same character on multiple different servers, so you can have several multi-player games running alongside one another if you’d like. As of right now multiplayer is hosted by the client (peer to peer), however we're always exploring new options as the game progresses.

Meet your fellow Explorers and become a part of our community by joining the official Core Keeper Discord server!