With gadgets set to star in the free Springloaded Update - oh, had we mentioned that it will be free? Yeah, it is :) Anyway, this makes the perfect time for a deeper look at gadgets in the design of Dome Keeper.
Gadgets add variety to Keeper strategies. The primary gadget selected at loadout sets up a major element of the run ahead. Secondary gadgets found in the mines open up new tactics in the middle of the game. These offer interesting options affecting offense, defense, transportation, and information.
When designing gadgets, we look for creative ideas that boost one of these areas, or create a whole new way of thinking about it. New gadgets also need to be unique. They need to give players a whole new dynamic to play right in the middle of a run.
Starting with the Springloaded update, Keepers will be able to find three new gadgets buried beneath their domes.
The Autocannon
The Autocannon is an automated defense gadget for the players that want a more direct helping hand with monster defense. focusing on the source of danger itself - the monsters. The autocannon comes with a series of tech tree options allowing you to choose what fits your needs for the current situation. The key attributes of the Autocannon are bullet damage, movement speed of the cannon, bullet spray, and the time between shots.
The Autocannon will have several upgrade options, one example is the Machine Gun. This upgrade will decrease your time between shots as well as slightly increase your bullet spray.
The Heavy Bullets upgrade however, is all about the impact. Increasing the size of the bullet as well as the base bullet damage.
The Autocannon really is the very first gadget that has strong offensive abilities. It will be interesting to see how you use it to complement your main weapons.
The Prospecting meter
A new gadget to support and aid underground discovery and improve your chances to find valuable minerals to bolster your dome defenses. The prospecting meter points out how close different resources are, a bit like you are playing "hot or cold" with resources. Its main attributes are detection range, what resources it detecs and how often it refreshes this information.
The Prospecting meter starts out detecting iron, but can be upgraded to display the distance to water and cobalt too.
Its detection range can be upgraded to find resources even deeper underground.
Overall it will be an interesting alternative to the probe, especially as it does not even need a cellar slot. The probe in return also got some improvements, but more on that in another post.
The Spire
A new state-of-the-art projectile defense system, the Spire is designed to detect, intercept, and destroy incoming monster projectiles through accurate auto-targeting. The main attributes for the Spire are how often it can shoot before it needs to recharge and the recharge time.
The spire has a few critical upgrade paths, focusing on one of two fire modes. You can either go for a burst fire mode, where the spire can take out many projectile sin a short time but needs serious time to recharge.
Or you can go for a sustained fire mode, where the spire recharges between each shot, but does this quite quickly.
For defense the spire also comes with two modes. In one mode, it can either split the monster projectiles into many small ones that do damage the monsters. Alternatively it can transform an incoming projectile into an energy trap, which blocks other projectiles and can even stun monsters.
We hope you’re excited to give these new gadgets a go in the upcoming free Springloaded Update. And this really isn’t all. Many gadgets, both primary and secondary, have been reworked. Take the stun laser. We couldn’t let the autocannon have all the fun. But more on that to come.