How to Play Doloc Town
Doloc Town mixes a side-scrolling platformer with a post-apocalyptic farming sim. You start as a scavenger and end as a farming tycoon — here is the full loop, from day one to drones.
The Five-Step Core Loop
Every Doloc Town session follows the same rhythm. Once the loop clicks, the wasteland stops being hostile and starts being your farm.
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Clear the ruins
Break debris and abandoned structures with your starting tools. Clearing opens build space, reveals buried resources and extends your reach. Prioritise plots closest to your home base first.
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Gather resources
Collect 40+ minerals, plants, scraps and machine parts. Even junk has a purpose: scrap feeds crafting, plants feed cooking, and minerals upgrade your tech tree. Learn which spots respawn daily.
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Farm vertically
Craft planters and stack platforms to build upward. A single horizontal field is a drought risk and a storm magnet; vertical layers give you room to spread crops, protect them and add automation later.
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Build and upgrade
Spend resources on the tech tree, blueprints, buildings and your home. Tech Points come from Guildmaster Bellad's quests — always keep one quest active.
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Explore new regions
Use upgraded tools and your drone to reach new areas, including the 1.0 Old City Ruins. Exploration feeds back into the loop with new seeds, fish and materials.
Vertical Farming: How It Actually Works
The side-scrolling view is not a gimmick — it is the whole farm system.
Platforms stack freely; each level you climb adds buildable surface.
Jump and climb between levels — platforming is part of the daily loop, not a loading screen.
Planters sit on platforms; group crops by season so you can re-plant in one pass.
Build covers or use the Rain gene so storms and acid rain do not wipe a whole layer.
Leave vertical gaps for drone flight paths — automation in 1.0 needs clear lanes.
Weather Effects & How to Weaponize Them
Extreme weather is the game's signature. It kills careless farms and powers clever ones.
| Weather | What it does | Turn it into an advantage |
|---|---|---|
| Acid rain | Erodes uncovered crops over time | Build covers; collect acid as a crafting resource |
| Scorching heat | Bakes soil dry, slows growth | Water on a timer; plant heat-resistant gene strains |
| Thunderstorm | Damages exposed fields | Harness lightning to charge farm power (key for 1.0 automation) |
| Torrential rain | Floods low plots | Let it irrigate for free; save watering energy |
| Drought (Month 4) | Crops wither, prices spike | Stockpile before Month 4, sell during the spike |
First Week: The 5 Moves That Set Up the Run
Do these in order and the first season stops being a scramble.
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Clear your starting plot fully
Hidden corners hide scrap that funds your first planter batch.
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Plant fast crops first
Quick harvests generate the capital for tools and seeds.
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Talk to every villager daily
Friendship unlocks recipes, tech and story; it also triggers Blooming Friendship.
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Open Bellad's quests immediately
Quest rewards are Tech Points — the only reliable early tech income.
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Start stockpiling before Month 4
Drought prices make a small hoard very profitable.
Drone Combat: Controls, Then Strategy
Your drone is both weapon and survival tool. Learn the controls, then the builds.
RMB locks on, LMB fires, Space dodges, R reloads.
Upgrade chassis (survivability), barrel (damage) and battery (uptime) — in that order early on.
Charge beam (F) breaks shields on armoured Scavenger Bugs; normal fire bounces off.
Fit weapon and lighting modules before exploring ruins at night.
Rare fish drop advanced parts — fishing funds your combat build.
What the 1.0 Release Changes for New Players
The August 6, 2026 1.0 release reshapes the early game.
- Aug 6, 2026
1.0 launches: complete story ending, Old City Ruins, farming automation, Mushroom Fest, 37 new achievements.
- New players
You can reach automation earlier than EA players — solar/wind power → drone stations handle chores.
- Old City Ruins
New region with fierce enemies, new NPCs, side quests and resources; many paths lead there.
- ⚠️ Verification
Exact unlock order and build costs are still being verified in 1.0; details marked with ⚠️ are community-sourced.