Mr. Driller: Drill Land (Game)

Mr. Driller: Drill Land

GAME » on December 20, 2002

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The fifth installment of the Mr. Driller series of puzzle-platformers, bringing Susumu and his friends into a new underground theme park full of attractions that are... drilling.

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Overview

Mr. Driller: Drill Land, sometimes stylized as Mr. Driller DrillLand and known in later Japanese re-releases as Mr. Driller Encore, is a puzzle-platformer developed by Project Driller and published by Namco for the GameCube (Platform) exclusively in Japan on December 20, 2002. The fifth installment of the Mr. Driller series, Drill Land builds on Mr. Driller G with new variations of the traditional Mr. Driller gameplay, including modes with more puzzle elements and four-player multiplayer. Its plot and theme revolves around a new underground theme park known as "Drill Land", with Susumu and his friends being invited to the park's opening ceremony. However, the park's architect Fluid may not be as benevolent as he suggests, especially with the Dark Drillers working the attractions. The game also features bonus connectivity with the Game Boy Advance, including being able to use the handhelds in multiplayer modes, and being able to transfer content from Mr. Driller A (such as the Pacteria pets for the bonus parade mode). It later received an enhanced digital re-release worldwide by Bandai Namco for the Nintendo Switch (Platform) and PC (Platform) on June 25, 2020, with releases for the PlayStation 5 (Platform), Xbox Series X|S, Xbox One (Platform), and PlayStation 4 (Platform) on November 4, 2021. Developed by Infinity Co. and known in Japan as Mr. Driller Encore, this version features high-definition graphics, online multiplayer, and a bonus Casual difficulty for beginners.

Game Modes

The game's five included single-player modes are stylized as theme park "attractions", several of which feature unique gameplay variations. In addition, the game features a "Drill Town" attraction for purchasing items (to aid players in the other modes) and bonus goodies, as well as a bonus "Dreamin' Parade" attraction (which shows an animated parade that can be controlled by the player). Each mode has four difficulty levels: Level 1, Level 2, Level 3, and Special. Level 1 is the only one unlocked from the start, and each difficulty mode usually increases the mode's target depth (500m for Level 1, 1000m for Level 2, 2000m for Level 3, and no target depth for Special). Once all five attractions have been completed at least once, players conclude the main story with a bonus boss fight against the true villain. Known as "Emergency: Alert! Alert! Alert!", this segment tasks Susumu with drilling down to catch up to the "DX Destruction Drill", where falling 100m behind it causes a game over.

World Drill Tour

The series' traditional arcade (or "Mission") mode, playing nearly identical to Mr. Driller G. Themed on travel, players "travel the world" as any of the protagonists by drilling down to the target depth. As with Mr. Driller G, each of the playable characters have their own strengths and weaknesses:

Susumu Hori - The series's main protagonist and the titular "Mr. Driller". He has no advantages or disadvantages, making him ideal for all players.
Anna Hottenmeyer - Susumu's rival. Ideal for intermediate players, she moves faster than Susumu, but consumes air at a faster rate.
Puchi - Susumu's dog. Ideal for beginner players, they can climb ledges that are two-blocks high and consume air at a slower rate than Susumu, but move slower.
Ataru Hori - Susumu's older brother. Ideal for advanced players, he moves much faster than Susumu, but consumes air at a much faster rate.
Holinger-Z - Anna's prototype robot who transforms themself into a drill. Ideal for beginner players, they can withstand being crushed by blocks once per life and consume air at a slower rate than Susumu, but move slower.
Taizou Hori - Susumu's father and the protagonist of the Dig Dug series. Ideal for advanced players, he can break X-Blocks instantaneously, but moves slower than Susumu while consuming air at a much faster rate.
Usagi - Ataru's pet rabbit and a hidden unlockable.

In addition to a longer target depth, harder difficulty levels also increase the size of the playfield (7-column, then 9-column, then 15-column).

Star Driller

Themed on science fiction, with elements from the spin-off Star Trigon (Game), Star Driller tasks Susumu with space travel by digging through space debris. While it plays nearly identical to the traditional Mr. Driller mode, this mode features bonus item blocks that grant a variety of random temporary benefits (such as an AIR meter boost, a temporary bubble shield, or a UFO using its beam to prevent blocks from falling on top of Susumu). This mode uses a 9-column playfield. In addition to a longer target depth, harder difficulty levels also reduce the amount of item blocks.

Horror Night House

Themed on supernatural horror, Horror Night House tasks Ataru with digging deep underneath a cursed mansion, collecting Drystals from ghosts roaming through the blocks (which must be weakened by applying Holy Water (Object) to blocks they are in). Unlike traditional Mr. Driller, this mode does not have a target depth, instead having Ataru progress through multiple endless "floors" that are reset once all Drystals in the floor has been collected. In addition, the air meter is replaced with a HP gauge (that only depletes by either getting crushed by a falling block or bumping into non-weakened ghosts), and there are no cascading block clears. This mode uses a 9-column playfield. Rather than a longer target depth, harder difficulty levels increase the number of floors that have to be cleared (5 for Level 1, 8 for Level 2, 10 for Level 3, and endless for Special).

Drindy Adventure

Themed on an archaelogical adventure, Drindy Adventure tasks Taizou with digging deep under ruins, collecting a certain amount of golden statues before reaching the exit. Unlike the traditional Mr. Driller mode, Drindy Adventure replaces the air meter traditional life meter, which only depletes by getting crushed by a falling block or getting hit by a trap (such as rolling boulders, spikes, or fire). In addition, there are no cascading block clears and groups of floating blocks that cannot be drilled. This mode uses a 9-column playfield. In addition to a longer target depth, harder difficulty levels also increase the target requirement for golden statues.

The Hole of Druaga

Themed on a high-fantasy adventure, with elements from the classic Namco arcade game The Tower of Druaga (Game), The Hole of Druaga tasks Anna with navigating the demon Druaga's labyrinth and using the power of the Dristone to rescue "Priestess Kial". This mode is the most complex in the game, with various elements from action RPGs (including enemies to fight, inventory to collect, and randomly-generated dungeon layouts). Rather than simply making her way down to the bottom, Anna must navigate between different rooms using doorways, using a Warp Dristone when she reaches the bottom of a room with no exit. The goal is to find a key guarded by a mini-boss, then find the boss room and defeat Druaga. This mode combines the Air and Life systems into a single HP gauge, which only depletes every time a block is cleared (with X-blocks depleting more), she gets hit by an enemy, or she gets crushed by a fallen block. Along the way, Anna can kill enemies to collect Dristones for use as items (which can only be accessed through the inventory screen). Up to 30 can be carried at a time, with the option to discard them if needed. These Dristones come in four colors:

Red Dristones destroy groups of blocks. Some of them also damage Druaga, based on his current color.
Blue Dristones change the color of groups of blocks. Some of them also change Druaga's color.
Green Dristones replenish some of Anna's HP.
Yellow Dristones grant special buffs to Anna, including a higher jump, temporary barrier, and improved drilling.

This mode uses a 10-column playfield. Rather than a longer target depth, harder difficutly levels increase the number of rooms in the labyrinth. The Special difficulty level is unique, with Anna tasked with collecting Medals (similar to Drindy Adventure) with no labyrinth to navigate (as all rooms are connected downward) and no bosses to fight.

Drill Camp

The game's multiplayer mode, also stylized as an "attraction" of Drill Land, has up to four players competing in one of two game modes. In the original GameCube version, players can opt to play with connected Game Boy Advance handhelds, while the remake instead supports online multiplayer. Each player can pick any of the characters from World Drill Tour, each with their own advantages and disadvantages.

Race

A split-screen mode that puts each player in their own 9-column playfield (which have the same layout for all players) as they dig down in a race to reach 500m first. While there is an air gauge, there is no lives system, and losing all air (or being crushed) stuns the player temporarily. Similar to Star Driller, there are special item blocks that either increase the player's viability or hinder each opponent.

Battle

A single-screen mode that puts all players in a single 20×13 playfield that doesn't scroll down as they try to be the first to collect a medal hidden somewhere in the playfield. There is no air gauge or lives system, and being crushed instead stuns the player temporarily. The playfield resets after the medal has been found, and the first player (or team, in team matches) to collect three medals wins the game.

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