One of the styles of games I’ve continued to be bewildered by at times, though in some cases I have come to understand its appeal, is the work sim category. While many people play games to be challenged, or are looking for some excitement, this subgenre feels like it goes in the exact opposite direction. Here the enjoyment comes through the satisfaction of completing tasks and generally more simple and soothing repetition, turning concepts like grinding into potential virtues rather than things to be carefully managed or minimized.

Super Mining Mechs, in principle, does incorporate this sort of mentality into its play. Your goal will be to dig into the ground, gathering a variety of resources, in order to advance the story, move to different areas, and continue to upgrade your rig. You’ll also begin to have the opportunity to set up more advanced support structures the further you go, that will help ease some of the more dull aspects of your job, which is tied to the fact that once you’re full you’ll need to return somewhere to dump things off, emptying out so you have room for more.

The problem is that even amongst its peers the progression in what you’ll get to do and how, simply doesn’t have very far to go. There can be improvements, but many feel more cosmetic than truly functional, and the overall structure of everything seems quite limited. The characters you interact with in some cases may have a little personality, but it’s all pretty paper thin, more often than not reduced to a catch phrase and adding very little to the experience. There’s also a bit of a delay you’ll encounter when digging and trying to change direction, and while that’s something you can get used to, it simply feels sloppy when it comes to control, and when there’s so little here to execute on, overall even small details carry more weight to get just right. I understand that in the past this series has had multiplayer, and perhaps that could have helped to reduce the grind and at least incorporated some fun through collaboration, but as a single-player affair this just doesn’t feel like something that rewards you enough for the time you’re putting in.