▶ A meditation-style excavation game with no enemies or time limits
▶ Goal to reach the 999th basement floor… A 14-hour healing adventure
“DigDigDrill,” a healing mining collectible game developed by Japanese solo developer Toorai and published by Phoenixx Inc., was officially released on Nintendo Switch on March 18.
The game is a case of expanding to console platforms after gaining word-of-mouth popularity with over 30,000 “overwhelmingly positive” reviews on Steam, iOS, and Android. It is sold for $9.99 on the Nintendo eShop, and is available for purchase at a 20% discount for $7.99 to celebrate its launch.
No enemies, no time limits… only the fun of digging deeper
‘Dick Dick Drill’ is a healing game focused solely on mining and collecting, without combat or time limits. It is a mining and ore collection simulation game.
The gamer’s goal is simple: to reach the 999th floor underground. The gameplay proceeds by mining ore, discovering hidden treasure chests, and gradually upgrading the drill to descend to deeper levels.
The game’s playtime is approximately 14 hours, and a long journey unfolds as you clear the 999th floor by repeating the process of resetting the mine to obtain bonus equipment and crafting and synthesizing drills.
A drill manufacturing system assembled like a puzzle
The core fun of the game lies in the drill crafting system. Rather than simply paying currency or materials and pressing an upgrade button, you must fit ores onto a blueprint like puzzle pieces. Crafting is not easy in the beginning due to a shortage of materials, but as you descend to deeper layers, you acquire a variety of ores, and the satisfaction of completion grows.
While some ores possess fixed power values, others apply random values within a range, adding tension to the crafting process. Resource management, such as deciding whether to sell the ores to cover crafting costs or hold onto them to create stronger drills, also adds strategic fun.
Afterwards, a charm system that operates via a separate puzzle placement method provides additional reinforcement layers. The depth of customization is also considerable, such as synthesizing drills or equipping drill tips that enhance explosions to expand the dynamite explosion range.
Charming visuals and a cozy soundtrack… “A game you delve into like meditation”
‘Dick Dick Drill’ is a healing game that combines warm pixel graphics with a calm soundtrack. The charming pixel art style characteristic of 2D mining simulations vividly portrays the underground world, while the changing colors as you go deeper and the visual discovery of new ores and objects double the enjoyment of the game.
Developer Toorai stated, “Although this game deals with mining, it is surprisingly quiet and calm,” adding, “I wanted to provide gamers with an experience where they can briefly disconnect from the world and fully immerse themselves.”
A Japanese solo developer who loves time-consuming games
Gifu Prefecture, Japan Toorai, who lives in [location] and develops and operates games as a sole proprietor, introduces himself as “a Japanese solo developer who loves time-consuming games.” ‘Dick Dick Drill’ is his first and, to date, only work, and he handled the entire process alone, from planning and programming to art, sound, and operation.
In particular, the fact that the developers have maintained a communication style of directly responding to gamer feedback in the comments, stating that they would “continue to improve the game to make it more enjoyable and comfortable to play,” is considered to have had a positive impact on building the fanbase.
‘Dick Dick Drill’, which started small on Steam, later expanded to mobile platforms and has now reached the Nintendo Switch, and is being highlighted as a representative success story of a one-person indie developer that has grown through consistent updates and community communication.
Thumbs up from both users and critics, “Once you start, you can’t stop”
LadiesGamers, which reviewed the game ahead of the Nintendo Switch release, awarded it the highest rating of ‘Two Thumbs Up,’ calling it an “excellent mining game with added depth through puzzle-style drill crafting.” Nintendo Life described it as “the definitive progression-based mining game that you can’t put down once you start.”
Reactions in the Steam community include comments such as, “The repetition of ore farming and drill upgrades is too addictive,” “An hour flies by when you just mindlessly dig,” and “It is a relaxing game, but the drill build strategy is quite deep.”
Dick Dick Drill is currently available to play on Nintendo Switch, PC (Steam), iOS, and Android, and supports English, Japanese, and Chinese (Traditional and Simplified), including Korean.
In a world of rapidly consumed and forgotten content, ‘Dick Dick Drill’ captivates gamers solely through its ‘quietly digging’ gameplay. The repetition of descending floor by floor in a space free of competition and pressure is simple, yet possesses a strange charm that puts the mind at ease. When you want to pause for a moment amidst your busy daily life, Attention is focused on whether the mining journey through ‘DickDickDrill’ can become a small but cozy ‘shelter’.
Information regarding DigDigDrill
| item | detail |
|---|---|
| Developer | Toorai (Japan, solo development) |
| Publisher | Phoenixx Inc. (Established in 2019, Japan) |
| Genre | Cozy Mining Collectaton / Simulation |
| Release platform | Nintendo Switch / PC (Steam) / iOS / Android |
| Nintendo Switch release date | March 18, 2026 |
| background | A mineral-filled underground world extending down to the 999th floor |
| graphics | Charming 2D pixel art aesthetic / Layer-by-layer changing rock and ore visuals |
| sound | A calm and cozy ambient soundtrack |
| Core mechanics | Hack-and-slash excavation, blueprint puzzle drill crafting, ore collection and selling strategy |
| Playtime | Approximately 14 hours (based on reaching floor 999) |
| Steam rating | Overwhelmingly positive (over 30,000) |
| Language support | Korean · English · Japanese · Traditional Chinese · Simplified Chinese |
| Age rating | ESRB E / EU 3+ |
| Steam Page | store.steampowered.com/app/2916770/DigDigDrill/ |
