Mining in Dreadzone isn’t particularly simple when it comes to collecting Stone, Metal & Sulfur Ore. At a glance, the system can even seem broken, rocks won’t react, swings can feel pointless, and it’s hard to know what is actually mineable. But once you comprehend how this system works, it can become clearer.
The game is more about exploration and testing than a standard highlight-and-mine approach. On that note, here are the steps to mine all Ore in Dreadzone.
Getting Started: Pickaxe from the Tent Mission
The moment you’ll be able to mine anything is once you unlock the Pickaxe. You get the pickaxe fairly early in the game which happens automatically as part of an early mission from the NPC in the tent. Once you unlock the pickaxe, you are ready to start harvesting resources like stone, metal, and sulfur ore.
Not Every Rock Can Be Mined
One of the main things to keep in mind is that not all rocks are mineable. Some will react when hit, others won’t. The system isn’t broken — it’s just designed so that only certain nodes can be gathered from.
When you find a valid rock, you’ll see visual feedback right away — small pieces will fly off, and you’ll get a message on the right side of your screen like “Stone Gathered”, “Metal Ore gathered”,“Sulfur Ore gathered.” If there’s no response after a few swings, move on to another rock.
Also Read: Dreadzone: Find the Lost Key Mission Guide
How to Identify Valid Nodes
There’s no specific marker or highlight for minable rocks, so you’ll need to test them manually. Here are some tips:
- Grey Rocks are usually for standard stone. If they’re valid, they’ll break immediately when hit.
- Red-Tinted Rocks can contain metal ore, but again, not all of them work.
- Sulfur Nodes look slightly different, but follow the same pattern; only some are interactive.
Use the left mouse button to swing your Pickaxe. If it’s a valid rock, it will begin to break. The right mouse button doesn’t help with mining, so you don’t need to use it.
Keep Moving and Testing
Often times, you might feel like none of the rocks are good. When this happens it is best to continue to explore and try other locations. You will eventually find a rock that triggers, and will collect several ores from that area.
Sometimes it appears that a rock can be broken, when it can’t. You don’t need to restart the game, just continue to explore other rocks.
