Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor is adding a bulldozing new class, while fellow spinoff Rogue Core gets an early access release date

Local miner drinks, drives

In today’s dwarf news, both Deep Rock Galactic spinoffs had announcements to make at the Future Games Show Spring Showcase. Loudest and crunchiest of the two was autoshooter Deep Rock Galactic: Survivor revealing its first new class, the bulldozer-riding Demolisher, who’ll get to work shifting shale on April 30th. Also approaching is co-op roguelike shooter Deep Rock Galactic: Rogue Core, which is launching into early access on May 20th.

RPS law dictates that I may embed but one trailer at a time, so obviously I’m going to start with the little bearded dude misusing heavy machinery.

The Demolisher is part of Survivor’s Heavy Duty update, which also adds 10 new weapons that all five classes can employ for freshened-up bugsmashing. Thus spake the press release: "The new lineup ranges from the elemental firepower of the Twincoil Arc Burster and Dragonstorm Incinerator to gadgets like the Carrier Drone and the chain of Slither Drones, which bring automated support to the battlefield, keeping the bugs busy while miners focus on the job at hand. For those who prefer a more tactical approach, the Proximity Mine, Voltaic Field Generator, and the Kaisong Scissor Ray provide new ways to control the swarm. And, when subtlety isn’t required, heavy hitters like the Chimera Fragcannon exterminate converging enemy hordes."

I don’t know what a Scissor Ray is, but I know I want one strapped to the side of my comedy killdozer. Or do I? As much as terrain-reshaping helps DRG: Survivor stand out from other Vampire Survivors-likes, I am a little concerned that the Demolisher’s specialisation in high-speed rockbreaking might run bulky tyres over the toes of the existing Driller class. Here’s hoping the new guy’s unique class mods – Contractor, Gridrunner, and Operator – keep him distinct from the Deep Rock’s OG digging expert.

Rogue Core’s early access trailer is less about highlighting new-new additions and more a showcase of what the action-heavy FPS has been adding across its various alpha playtests, like the ladydwarf Retcon class and its gradually widened catalogue of mid-run gear upgrades.

I wasn’t entirely convinced by Rogue Core when I tried it last summer – next to the chilled-out, friendly booze-ups that are vanilla DRG games, this felt intense to a fault, and built with fewer opportunities for genuinely cooperative inter-class play. A lot can change in an alpha, though, never mind the course of an early access phase. May 20th might be just the time to give it another shake.