The Game Census
Drill Core cover art

Drill Core

Hungry Couch Games · tinyBuild · 2025-07-17

SteamPlayStation Store

IndieStrategy

Modes: Single player · Perspectives: Side view

Releases: Sep 12, 2024 (PC (Microsoft Windows)), TBD (Nintendo Switch)

Corporate greed meets strategic planet-mining in Drill Core! Drill to the heart of planets while managing workers, researching cutting-edge tech, and fortifying against alien attacks. Will you prioritize efficiency and risk your workers' safety, or focus on defense for survival?

Drill Core is an Indie and Strategy game released in 2025, with an estimated 100,000 to 200,000 owners, priced at $19.99, and holding a Very Positive review sentiment (85% of 2459 reviews).

72
playing now
85%
positive of 2.5k reviews
Very Positive
steam's rating (official)
100,000–200,000
owners (SteamSpy est.)
3.43★
PlayStation Store rating (90 ratings)
gold
deck/linux tier (ProtonDB)
Verified
Steam Deck (Valve)
SteamOS: Playable
$19.99
steam price (US)

72 players in-game as of 2026-10-14 15:00 UTC (census sample)

As a Platform Manager at DrillCore, you'll oversee a dedicated team of miners, carriers, and guards. Your mission? Navigate them through perilous missions to extract vital minerals and power our drill platform. Every strategic decision will test your planning and resource management skills. You’ll report directly to your Sector Manager, he will make sure you keep the operation running smoothly, whatever the pressure you’re under.(Storyline via IGDB)

Health check

Cooling
  • · 72 players in-game at the last census sample.
  • · 41 reviews in the last 8 weeks (~5/week).
  • · Review velocity down 53% vs the prior 8 weeks.
  • · Current weekly pace is under 5% of the all-time peak week (373 reviews).
  • · Top 6% of 49,790 Indie games in the census by review count.
Estimated sales: 49k–111k copies

Review-multiple estimate from 2,469 total reviews — how this is computed.

All-time low: $9.98 at GameBillet (2026-08-24) · bundled 1×via IsThereAnyDeal

12-month high $19.99 · on sale 63 of 91 observed days (census price snapshots)

Review momentum

PositiveNegative
29229220242026Week of 2024-09-12: 292 positiveWeek of 2024-09-12: 81 negativeWeek of 2024-09-19: 112 positiveWeek of 2024-09-19: 30 negativeWeek of 2024-09-26: 50 positiveWeek of 2024-09-26: 9 negativeWeek of 2024-10-03: 34 positiveWeek of 2024-10-03: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-10-10: 19 positiveWeek of 2024-10-10: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-10-17: 16 positiveWeek of 2024-10-17: 5 negativeWeek of 2024-10-24: 15 positiveWeek of 2024-10-24: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-10-31: 15 positiveWeek of 2024-10-31: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-11-07: 25 positiveWeek of 2024-11-07: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-11-14: 20 positiveWeek of 2024-11-14: 3 negativeWeek of 2024-11-21: 28 positiveWeek of 2024-11-21: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-11-28: 56 positiveWeek of 2024-11-28: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-12-05: 13 positiveWeek of 2024-12-05: 2 negativeWeek of 2024-12-12: 19 positiveWeek of 2024-12-12: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-12-19: 5 positiveWeek of 2024-12-19: 1 negativeWeek of 2024-12-26: 11 positiveWeek of 2024-12-26: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-01-02: 11 positiveWeek of 2025-01-02: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-01-09: 2 positiveWeek of 2025-01-09: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-01-16: 12 positiveWeek of 2025-01-16: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-01-23: 14 positiveWeek of 2025-01-23: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-01-30: 8 positiveWeek of 2025-02-06: 6 positiveWeek of 2025-02-13: 9 positiveWeek of 2025-02-13: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-02-20: 19 positiveWeek of 2025-02-20: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-02-27: 10 positiveWeek of 2025-02-27: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-03-06: 16 positiveWeek of 2025-03-06: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-03-13: 9 positiveWeek of 2025-03-13: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-03-20: 10 positiveWeek of 2025-03-20: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-03-27: 10 positiveWeek of 2025-04-03: 14 positiveWeek of 2025-04-03: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-04-10: 12 positiveWeek of 2025-04-10: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-04-17: 5 positiveWeek of 2025-04-24: 5 positiveWeek of 2025-04-24: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-05-01: 16 positiveWeek of 2025-05-01: 8 negativeWeek of 2025-05-08: 16 positiveWeek of 2025-05-08: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-05-15: 7 positiveWeek of 2025-05-15: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-05-22: 7 positiveWeek of 2025-05-22: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-05-29: 12 positiveWeek of 2025-05-29: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-06-05: 3 positiveWeek of 2025-06-05: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-06-12: 9 positiveWeek of 2025-06-12: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-06-19: 6 positiveWeek of 2025-06-26: 7 positiveWeek of 2025-06-26: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-07-03: 6 positiveWeek of 2025-07-03: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-07-10: 10 positiveWeek of 2025-07-10: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-07-17: 136 positiveWeek of 2025-07-17: 20 negativeWeek of 2025-07-24: 67 positiveWeek of 2025-07-24: 16 negativeWeek of 2025-07-31: 34 positiveWeek of 2025-07-31: 14 negativeWeek of 2025-08-07: 40 positiveWeek of 2025-08-07: 10 negativeWeek of 2025-08-14: 30 positiveWeek of 2025-08-14: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-08-21: 19 positiveWeek of 2025-08-21: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-08-28: 12 positiveWeek of 2025-08-28: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-09-04: 9 positiveWeek of 2025-09-04: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-09-11: 11 positiveWeek of 2025-09-11: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-09-18: 15 positiveWeek of 2025-09-18: 5 negativeWeek of 2025-09-25: 14 positiveWeek of 2025-09-25: 4 negativeWeek of 2025-10-02: 12 positiveWeek of 2025-10-02: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-10-09: 10 positiveWeek of 2025-10-09: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-10-16: 7 positiveWeek of 2025-10-16: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-10-23: 9 positiveWeek of 2025-10-23: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-10-30: 29 positiveWeek of 2025-10-30: 7 negativeWeek of 2025-11-06: 14 positiveWeek of 2025-11-06: 5 negativeWeek of 2025-11-13: 12 positiveWeek of 2025-11-13: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-11-20: 40 positiveWeek of 2025-11-27: 34 positiveWeek of 2025-11-27: 1 negativeWeek of 2025-12-04: 8 positiveWeek of 2025-12-11: 5 positiveWeek of 2025-12-11: 3 negativeWeek of 2025-12-18: 8 positiveWeek of 2025-12-18: 2 negativeWeek of 2025-12-25: 6 positiveWeek of 2025-12-25: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-01-01: 5 positiveWeek of 2026-01-01: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-01-08: 13 positiveWeek of 2026-01-15: 8 positiveWeek of 2026-01-15: 3 negativeWeek of 2026-01-22: 10 positiveWeek of 2026-01-22: 4 negativeWeek of 2026-01-29: 4 positiveWeek of 2026-01-29: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-02-05: 8 positiveWeek of 2026-02-12: 3 positiveWeek of 2026-02-12: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-02-19: 2 positiveWeek of 2026-02-19: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-02-26: 7 positiveWeek of 2026-02-26: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-03-05: 3 positiveWeek of 2026-03-05: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-03-12: 8 positiveWeek of 2026-03-12: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-03-19: 3 positiveWeek of 2026-03-19: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-03-26: 7 positiveWeek of 2026-03-26: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-04-02: 2 positiveWeek of 2026-04-02: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-04-09: 6 positiveWeek of 2026-04-09: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-04-16: 2 positiveWeek of 2026-04-16: 5 negativeWeek of 2026-04-23: 7 positiveWeek of 2026-04-23: 4 negativeWeek of 2026-04-30: 28 positiveWeek of 2026-04-30: 10 negativeWeek of 2026-05-07: 15 positiveWeek of 2026-05-07: 4 negativeWeek of 2026-05-14: 7 positiveWeek of 2026-05-14: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-05-21: 4 positiveWeek of 2026-05-21: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-05-28: 3 positiveWeek of 2026-05-28: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-06-04: 3 positiveWeek of 2026-06-11: 4 positiveWeek of 2026-06-11: 3 negativeWeek of 2026-06-18: 2 positiveWeek of 2026-06-18: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-06-25: 5 positiveWeek of 2026-06-25: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-07-02: 7 positiveWeek of 2026-07-09: 3 positiveWeek of 2026-07-09: 2 negativeWeek of 2026-07-16: 4 positiveWeek of 2026-07-16: 1 negativeWeek of 2026-07-23: 2 positiveWeek of 2026-07-30: 4 positiveWeek of 2026-08-06: 6 positiveWeek of 2026-08-06: 3 negativeWeek of 2026-08-13: 3 positiveWeek of 2026-08-20: 2 positiveWeek of 2026-08-20: 1 negative
Weekly review counts (Steam review histogram). Positive above the line, negative below.

Players online

126292026-09-15 15:00 — 121 players2026-09-17 00:00 — 91 players2026-09-18 07:00 — 65 players2026-09-19 15:00 — 115 players2026-09-20 22:00 — 88 players2026-09-22 06:00 — 66 players2026-09-23 14:00 — 75 players2026-09-24 21:00 — 69 players2026-09-26 05:00 — 58 players2026-09-27 12:00 — 110 players2026-09-28 20:00 — 69 players2026-09-30 03:00 — 45 players2026-10-01 11:00 — 44 players2026-10-02 18:00 — 60 players2026-10-04 02:00 — 58 players2026-10-05 10:00 — 41 players2026-10-06 17:00 — 75 players2026-10-08 01:00 — 42 players2026-10-09 08:00 — 36 players2026-10-10 16:00 — 64 players2026-10-12 00:00 — 29 players2026-10-13 07:00 — 34 players2026-10-14 15:00 — 72 players
Concurrent players, hourly average, last 30 days (census samples).
98556Sep 2024Aug 2026Sep 2024 — avg 985 · peak 2,523Oct 2024 — avg 256 · peak 677Nov 2024 — avg 149 · peak 370Dec 2024 — avg 156 · peak 295Jan 2025 — avg 122 · peak 274Feb 2025 — avg 138 · peak 397Mar 2025 — avg 140 · peak 298Apr 2025 — avg 118 · peak 357May 2025 — avg 208 · peak 490Jun 2025 — avg 131 · peak 298Jul 2025 — avg 480 · peak 2,031Aug 2025 — avg 304 · peak 720Sep 2025 — avg 132 · peak 244Oct 2025 — avg 113 · peak 443Nov 2025 — avg 177 · peak 527Dec 2025 — avg 89 · peak 185Jan 2026 — avg 104 · peak 222Feb 2026 — avg 62 · peak 131Mar 2026 — avg 85 · peak 258Apr 2026 — avg 78 · peak 481May 2026 — avg 172 · peak 437Jun 2026 — avg 70 · peak 140Jul 2026 — avg 56 · peak 123Aug 2026 — avg 65 · peak 124
Monthly average players (source: steamcharts.com) — history via steamcharts.com; live census sampling since Aug 2026.

Price history

$19.99$0.002024-09-032026-08-252024-09-03 — best price $19.992024-09-16 — best price $15.992024-10-07 — best price $19.992024-11-15 — best price $19.992024-12-02 — best price $19.992024-12-18 — best price $14.592025-01-07 — best price $14.592025-01-27 — best price $19.992025-02-10 — best price $15.792025-03-07 — best price $14.592025-04-01 — best price $15.992025-04-30 — best price $12.642025-06-02 — best price $19.992025-07-10 — best price $19.992025-08-06 — best price $19.992025-08-24 — best price $15.892025-09-10 — best price $15.992025-09-29 — best price $12.222025-10-16 — best price $15.182025-11-07 — best price $15.992025-11-19 — best price $19.992025-11-30 — best price $19.992025-12-19 — best price $15.992026-01-16 — best price $13.992026-02-02 — best price $15.992026-03-03 — best price $14.532026-03-25 — best price $15.992026-04-07 — best price $14.352026-05-03 — best price $16.842026-05-21 — best price $12.772026-06-18 — best price $19.992026-07-11 — best price $15.992026-08-07 — best price $16.842026-08-25 — best price $12.89
Lowest recorded price across tracked stores, per day (census snapshots).

Completion

60+
achievements tracked
95.7%
earned "Bug-Buster"
35.1%
median achievement earned by

Global achievement rates from Steam.

Details

WindowsFull controller supportSingle-playerSteam AchievementsFull controller supportSteam CloudSteam LeaderboardsFamily Sharing3 DLC

10 supported languages: English, French, German, Spanish - Spain, Portuguese - Brazil, Russian, Simplified Chinese, Ukrainian, Japanese, Korean

Post-launch support: 3 DLC released, first 2024-09-12, latest 2026-04-28 (Steam store data)

Console footprint

PlatformPlayers trackedCompletionTrophies/achievements
Steam (Steam)2,2791%83
PS5 (PlayStation)1122%50
Xbox Series (Xbox)180%49

Players tracked by Exophase (achievement/trophy trackers) — a sample of the player base, not total sales.

Where its players are

Share of Steam reviews by language (top languages measured) — a proxy for where the player base lives.

Player tags

2DActionSandboxStrategyStylizedColony SimManagementRogue-likeRogue-liteExploration

Census log

Computed from census-recorded observations only — dates are observation dates.

Recent updates

Players also track

Star Control®: OriginsUnclaimed WorldRimWorldZigguratSol 0: Mars ColonizationPlanetbaseJudgment: Apocalypse Survival SimulationRise of Industry

Similarity via IGDB.

Official site ↗Discord ↗