Core Keeper is a great adventure survival game that is still in early access. Despite the early access status, it seems to have taken the world by storm and introduced a plethora of new players looking to experience this RPG.
Nevertheless, Core Keeper is a large game that does seem to throw players straight into the deep end, allowing them to make some rather problematic mistakes that can easily affect how they think about the game and how they progress. Luckily, there are a few tips that can help any beginner succeed and thrive as they explore the creepy caverns on their own or with friends.
Updated November 29th, 2022 by Russ Boswell: Core Keeper officially released this year and players have been flocking to the adventure even months after its official opening. There is a ton to see and do in the expansive indie release and players will have a chance to "build their own world" and areas while combating back against the dangers found around them. With great multiplayer support and some rather fun cooperative play, Core Keeper offers a lot for players looking for a top-down action adventure. To better prepare new players, the following guide of Core Keeper beginner tips has been updated with even more information.
13 Choose The Right Background
Having backgrounds in Core Keeper is a wonderful way to assign roles within the group or simply get perks that could be useful in the long run. However, it can be a bit confusing for beginners since there are seven to choose from.
Ultimately, in the long run, it doesn't matter too much as players increase their skills and simply craft the items a specific background would grant them. That being said, look into where the gaps are or where the player thinks they may thrive. If someone is part of a group, they should try to get a bit of variety. Some recommended classes are the Gardener, the Miner, and the Explorer.
12 Don't Forget About Skill Points
Players will gain all sorts of experience as they make their way through their Core Keeper adventure. EXP meters will fill each time players do simple tasks like crafting items or simply mining for materials. After a while, players will successfully fill their EXP and end up with a skill point. Core Keeper will allude to this, and it's in a player's best interest to use their skill point as soon as possible. There are a wide array of skills that can help players, make their journey easier, and offer other perks that can make the overall Core Keeper experience much more streamlined and enjoyable.
11 Select The Right Skills
As players go through the game in their respective backgrounds, they will notice a few skill points being awarded when they complete tasks or just go about the cavern. These skills can both make the game easier and improve players' quality of life if they choose the right ones.
Similar to the backgrounds, players will need to look into what they feel like they need and what is missing within their game or party. If players hate fishing then it's worth leaving it alone for someone else. However, if there's nothing worth putting points in, then it is best to either save them or put them in skills that will preserve the players' life such as decreasing food usage when running.
10 Don't Get Too Cocky
Core Keeper features some fairly non-threatening creatures at the start of each game, but players would be remiss to assume that these monsters are easy to take down. That start of the game can be pretty punishing for those that don't respect the hostile landscape around them. Once players begin to build up their strengths, allocate their skill points, and unlock better gear, they'll be far more equipped to take on the threats of each area. Players should be sure to take things slow and steady when they first begin their journey, focusing on protecting themselves and not taking on too many enemies in battle.
9 Make A Workbench
There are a few things that are vital in Core Keeper: food, sleep, and crafting. After all, players can't really get very far without being able to make vital tools and items that are imperative to their survival and wellbeing.
When going into the game for the first time, players should instantly make a Workbench. This will enable them to create better equipment that will help progress them into deeper elements of the cavern. To make a Workbench, players will need eight pieces of wood. They can then upgrade the workbench to make better equipment.
8 Craft Torches
Core Keeper is quite dark due to its dynamic lighting. While this does make the game look wonderful and rather realistic for traversing a dark cavern with little light, it can get a little frustrating, especially when players are unaware of what lurks within the darkness.
This is why it's imperative players craft Torches as soon as they can and that they have them in their inventory at all times. It helps to place them down as a torch only in their inventory will not light up the space. Players can never have too many torches.
7 Craft A Bed
Sleeping has more benefits than simply creating a respawn point. It can increase the players' health bar and provides a sort of base of operations for the group to all use.
It's worth crafting a few beds since the cavern is so large, that way if players are low on health they can simply jump into the nearest bed and have a nap. This should be one of the first things players look into crafting, purely for the safety aspect and the respawn point in case it gets tough.
6 Collect Wood Constantly
Wood is one of the first and most important resources that players will uncover in Core Keeper. From the moment they enter a new world, players will need to scrounge up Wood in order to build better tools and equipment. Wood is also a prominent part of many of the workbenches sprinkled throughout the game, as well as a multitude of different random items that players can use for decoration and base-building.
Players should definitely keep an eye out for wood and collect as much as possible well into the mid-game.
5 Food Is Vital
Food can dwindle rather quickly when the player isn't paying attention to it or if they are completing some rather challenging tasks. Due to this, it's always worth having at least some food in the player's inventory and a few extra pieces in a chest nearby. Mushrooms are good food for beginners since they're the easiest to find and don't require anything else other than eating it.
However, as the game goes on, it's worth crafting a Cooking Pot to start making more valuable and healthy foods that require more complex ingredients.
4 Fishing Is Key
Fishing is a love or hate job. Some players think it's a pointless activity that will get them nowhere, especially when they could just be exploring or mining, or attacking. Whereas others will spend almost the entire game looking for useful fish in any pond they find.
With Core Keeper, fishing is ideal. It can provide the player with skill points by increasing their fishing skill and also food. Fish are particularly nutritious and can even have benefits like immunities which is ideal for the more combat-orientated member of the game.
3 Hoard Everything
Once the player has been placed into the cavern they will no doubt go off and explore the world around them, often stumbling across items of various uses and foods they will end up eating at some point.
With games like this, nothing is worse than leaving loot behind. Make some chests and bring everything found back into them. Players never know when they may need an item they found in the first hour of playing and won't be able to get it back if they left it where they found it.
2 Protection First
It's no secret that Core Keeper is a bit of a challenge when it comes to fighting. The beginning of the game is tough if the player doesn't have a weapon or if they just aren't quite strong enough to deal with the attacks being dealt.
This is why it's vital to get some armor on as soon as possible. It's not easy to gather, requiring an anvil, but that work is well worth it and will allow the player to get out and explore with a smaller risk to their life.
1 Don't Be Afraid To Run Away
Despite the use of armor or the power of a weapon, there are some battles in this RPG that beginners just aren't meant to win. In these situations, it is so much easier to run than stand and potentially lose a player.
Running away is a safer option and will allow people to get a bit stronger or potentially sleep for a while to bring their health back before going into battle again. There is no shame in choosing the right fight to get into or accepting that going that way isn't a good idea yet.
Core Keeper is in early access now on PC.