I realize that for many, this review will be a purely perfunctory exercise: mining plus incremental tags equals an instant purchase. For the $4 asking price, Drillbound will satisfy, though not without a few frustrations in its resource management and meta-progression layers.
In Drillbound, you don’t descend to the bottom of the mine—it comes to you. The eponymous drill stays fixed on a rail, and your primary task is to guide it away from projectiles while lining it up with the gems below. This gives Drillbound an unusually authentic claim to the title of “on-rails shooter,” and the tension provided by the auto-scrolling blocks (cross the top row and your energy will take a substantial hit) amps up the action while keeping your run lengths appropriately short.
This mechanical framework—which recalls Downwell, Tetris, and other mining favorites—provides enjoyable moment-to-moment action, but at times it’s let down by the systems built around it. Aside from the requisite massive skill tree (more on that later), Drillbound’s other primary component is refining the raw ores you gather into usable form. As you purchase upgrades, the rate at which you refine these materials scales accordingly. It’s a fine system, but not one that ever felt particularly fun to engage with, despite the minor thrill of succeeding in a timing-based minigame that moves the smelting along a little more quickly.
Similarly, the skill tree is expansive, but crowded with poorly explained passive upgrades that simply aren’t that exciting to unlock. Worse still, skills that may seem relatively minor (like “drill weight”) are revealed to be nothing short of game-changing once purchased. With a sluggish start, even by genre standards, I was tempted to pack up my drill and call it a day early. I’m glad I didn’t, though, as the action gameplay became increasingly engaging, even as improved abilities trivialized constraints like health and time limits (and, really, isn’t that what it’s all about?).
If it sounds like I’m being overly critical, it’s only because the bones of an exceptional incremental game are buried within what is currently a good one. That being said, gamers, as we know, yearn for the mines, and those willing to dig a little deeper into Drillbound will find plenty to love.
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