Underkeep Launches on Steam and GOG With Classic Dungeon Master-Style Exploration and Modern Conveniences

Rake in Grass launches Underkeep on Steam and GOG, reviving grid-based dungeon crawling with handcrafted puzzles, tactical combat, and full voice narration.

Fans of traditional first-person dungeon crawlers have received a new adventure with the release of Underkeep, a fantasy role-playing game developed and published by Rake in Grass. The title launched on November 5 through Steam and GOG, bringing another modern interpretation of grid-based dungeon exploration popularised by classics such as Dungeon Master, Eye of the Beholder and Ishar. Underkeep deliberately embraces the fundamental structure of those historical adventures. Players assemble a party of adventurers, explore interconnected dungeons, investigate mysterious locations and engage in tactical turn-based encounters where positioning and preparation matter considerably more than frantic button pressing. Movement follows a traditional grid, encouraging players to study their surroundings carefully rather than sprinting through corridors as though they were late for a railway connection. The game's environments are handcrafted rather than procedurally assembled, allowing its designers to place puzzles, secrets and encounters with greater precision. Exploration includes abandoned camps, cryptic symbols, hidden passages and unusual characters whose conversations may reveal useful information. Party composition also plays an important role, with different adventurers contributing individual strengths and weaknesses. Although its design draws heavily from the 1980s and early 1990s, Underkeep introduces modern conveniences intended to make the experience more approachable. These include a minimap with player-written notes, clearer interface elements and controller support. The developers also introduced professional voice narration for the opening and ending sequences. Underkeep is a new retro-inspired PC game rather than a port or remaster. Its release demonstrates that grid-based dungeon exploration remains an active design tradition. Apparently there is still a substantial audience for games in which opening an innocent-looking door can lead to an angry monster or several hours of wondering whether the party should have turned left three corridors earlier.