Deep Rock Galactic Survivor 1.0 brings a deep gear system to the dwarf roguelike

Vampire Survivors may not have invented its brand of wave-based roguelike survival, but it certainly popularized it to the point we've seen many other developers put their own spin on the format. Among them, Deep Rock Galactic Survivor might be the biggest winner. Boasting sales in the millions, Funday Games' twist on the iconic dwarven action of Ghost Ship's beloved mine-em-up was already one of the best roguelike games contending for Poncle's crown, but it just got a whole lot bigger and better.

Deep Rock Galactic Survivor 1.0 has now launched, and there's certainly ample reason to give it the time of day, whether you've played it previously or not. Funday thanks returning players "for your support and for helping us shape the early access version into the game you are opening today" over the past year and nine months. To new players, it pitches this version of DRGS as "the most approachable it's ever been." The full release includes "clearer goals, expanded mission variety, and a deeper progression system."

The introduction of Diablo-style gear is the part I'm most excited about. You'll find random drops as you play, with bosses guaranteeing a reward, and will have the option to equip a loadout before starting each mission. There are six slots: armor (defense), weapon mods (combat stats), canisters (weapon effects), gadgets (mining efficiency), tools (reload and range), and chips (unique upgrades for your companion, Bosco).

The level of the gear you'll find scales up as you reach certain progression milestones, meaning that, while you can upgrade pieces a handful of times with your credits and minerals, you'll gradually discover more potent options the further you get. Some of the most powerful 'quirks,' which you can find multiple of on high-rarity loot, have the potential to dramatically alter or enhance your preferred play styles.

There's a new mission type, Escort Duty, which requires you to protect a Drilldozer called B0b-33 as it smashes through the environment to reach the Ommaran Heartstone. This requires you to take a different approach from the standard Elimination format, with BoB-33 requiring regular refueling to proceed. Funday notes that you're therefore likely to want to focus on swarm management builds over boss-killing options.

Funday has also rebuilt the way runs are structured. Each of the mission types now has a track of five sectors broken up by gates. You'll need to clear enough goals at each tier in order to unlock the gate, which will then enact a special dive which takes place one hazard level above your current rank. Beat it, and the next sector becomes accessible, ramping up the challenge with tougher objectives, gameplay modifiers, and threatening mutators.

Alongside this, hazard levels have been rebalanced "to keep late-game challenges meaningful" as you collect powerful gear upgrades. Funday recommends "warming up in hazard 3-4" if you have an existing save you'd like to stick with, but it's also introduced the option for multiple save slots if you want to start fresh without losing your progress from early access.

Deep Rock Galactic Survivor 1.0 is out now, and there's a 30% discount available through Wednesday September 24. Expect to pay $9.09 / £6.92 while the sale lasts, or $12.99 / £9.89 thereafter. Find it right here.

If you love blasting through hordes in search of loot, you'll be well served by our list of the best games like Diablo. We've also rounded up more of the best single-player games in 2025.

Which survivor is your favorite? Let us know in the PCGamesN community Discord server, where you can chat with staff and thousands of other readers.