Prospector is an action RPG set on the surface of a distant moon where the player controls drones to explore settlements, abandoned facilities, mines, and other locations. The journey begins near a small trading post after landing in a shuttle. Building a base around the landing site provides an initial objective, but the larger story is uncovered by traveling farther from this area. Encounters with different beings, locations, and events gradually reveal what happened on the moon and provide information about the fate of humanity.

Exploring and Gathering Resources

The world can be explored freely, with locations including underground bases, bio-domes, military facilities, caves, and abandoned mines. Resources are limited, so exploration is closely connected to mining and equipment management. Drones can use drills to extract materials, while dedicated mining machines can process resources more efficiently. Rare materials are often located deeper underground or in areas that require better equipment to reach safely.

Crafting and Customizing Drones

The landing shuttle contains basic crafting machinery, and additional machines can be constructed for processing resources, assembling materials, and producing equipment. Some recipes require blueprints, which can be obtained through trading or discovered during exploration. Drones have limited inventory and equipment capacity, but modules allow them to specialize in different roles such as combat, mining, or defense.

Players can:

•         mine raw materials with drones or machines;
•         construct processing and crafting equipment;
•         equip weapons, tools, shields, and modules;
•         obtain and use crafting blueprints;
•         complete missions in generated areas;
•         fight hostile robots and creatures in real time.

Combat becomes more important when traveling away from the starting area. The player can scout enemies before engaging them, change drone behavior, defend positions, and activate special actions. Equipment selection matters because different situations may require different weapons or tools. Current mechanics also include fire, flame grenades, critical attacks, and oil that can slow nearby units and interact with fire.

Expanding Beyond the Landing Site

Progress is based on developing better equipment, gathering resources, completing missions, and reaching more dangerous locations. Some missions use procedurally generated areas containing bosses and locked treasure rooms. The player begins without a weapon, making early exploration and avoiding unnecessary fights important until suitable equipment is found. As additional modules, machines, weapons, and resources become available, drones can be prepared for more specialized tasks and longer expeditions away from the base.