I, myself, have slowed way, WAY down on buying new games. Honestly, not a lot of new stuff has interested me. (And I don't follow any Facebook/Meta or Reddit game groups). Most of my money now goes towards either getting expansions for games I already own, or for "fancy-up" my existing games. I have been playing a lot more of my games over and over again, learning to appreciate what I have and get things played. So you're not wrong for slowing down on new game purchases.
It's a very tight game which is good for solo play because it keeps it challenging. After a while you will probably become more efficient at getting the gears moving. The bottom of the mines goal is one of the harder to complete. If you get good items and the goals synergise you'll make it. Real solo might be easier too, I think 2-3 characters is harder than 1 or 4 players because of the way the goals scale.
