I had a chance to drop by Raw Fury’s booth and spend some time with Dome Keeper. Previously known as Dome Romantik, since partnering with Raw Fury for publishing, the developer, bippinbits, has had extra time and resources to revamp the original into what I got to play on Thursday. Suffice to say I was not satisfied, because they had to kick me out for the next appointment. The rogue-lite formula has largely been figured out, but it still never fails to pull me in me when the hook is good enough.
Dome Keeper earned a SideQuesting PAX East 2022 Team Choice Award! Find out why below!
One part mining, excavating the area below the dome haven for resources, and one part dome defense, where the player takes control of the dome’s turret defense to fend off waves of enemies, Dome Keeper mixes the two elements in way that tickles my brain, egging me on. I spent my time trying to decide how greedy I could be without being severely punished.
“Do I have enough time to mine one more block?”
“If I bring back four pieces of ore, will I be fast enough to make it to the turret before the next wave of enemies shows up?”
I wanted that ore, the allure of the chance for the next upgrade was too strong.
There was always a trade off with every incremental choice, even in my short 30 minutes. Upgrade the laser, but be slower towing up the next wave of ore. Add to defense, but don’t repair the dome. It was the perfect back and forth that’s kept Dome Keeper on my mind throughout the PAX weekend, where it’s probably going to linger until it makes its way onto steam this fall.
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