Tears of Metal is an action roguelite about reclaiming an island after the Dragon Stone Meteor brings invading forces and dangerous supernatural powers. The player leads a Scottish battalion across large battlefields, fights groups of enemies, recruits soldiers, and works toward stopping the invaders from extracting power from the Mother Dragon Stone. The campaign is run-based, so each attempt can develop differently depending on the hero, upgrades, artifacts, and route choices.

Battles and Heroes

Combat focuses on fighting large groups of enemies directly on the battlefield. Players choose from several heroes with different abilities and can create builds around their strengths. During a run, new upgrades are acquired and combined with artifacts, allowing attacks and special abilities to become much stronger. More than 100 artifacts can be used to create different combinations.

Soldiers and Upgrades

The player does not fight alone. Scottish soldiers can join the battalion, gain experience, and receive permanent improvements between campaigns. Main gameplay activities include:

•         fighting large enemy groups;
•         choosing different playable heroes;
•         recruiting Scottish soldiers;
•         improving troops with permanent skills;
•         collecting artifacts and upgrades;
•         creating combinations between different bonuses;
•         completing special objectives;
•         exploring more than 45 handcrafted environments;
•         defeating stronger enemies and major bosses.

Settlement and Campaign Progression

Between campaigns, players can expand their settlement. New buildings provide access to shops, permanent upgrades, and additional challenges with better rewards. Special objectives can unlock artifacts, characters, cosmetics, and new upgrade combinations. The campaign also contains several major sections and bosses, so progression involves pushing farther across the island while preparing stronger builds for later battles.

The basic gameplay loop consists of choosing a hero, entering a campaign, fighting through large battlefields, collecting upgrades, strengthening the battalion, and pushing toward major enemies. After a run, permanent soldier improvements and settlement upgrades can make later attempts stronger. Different heroes, artifacts, objectives, and upgrade combinations encourage repeated campaigns, while the main goal remains reclaiming the island and stopping the forces using the Dragon Stone’s power.