Introduction
You can buy the game on Steam for $29.99, or PlayStation 4 and Xbox One for $39.99.
Gameplay
You've seen those videos where an 18 wheeler has to wrap around a small round about, or has to park it in the loading bay of a very ridiculously designs warehouse. If you've ever told yourself it couldn't be hard, think again. The difficulty is only simulated here, but the reality of stress is probably accurate as hell. Your biggest battle will be with the camera system. There are main camera points on each side of the vehicles, front, back, and on top. It's not exactly fixed as you'll be able to pan around, but it takes a lot of getting used to. It feels as though your forced to rotate on fixed axis, yet you have all the freedom. That sounds really strange, and it is, but its something I'm not able to compare to any other games because I've never seen it before. It looks good though, and carries and almost cinematic feeling the way it shows off cool angles. If you feel up to taking on the ultimate challenge, you can drive in first person view from within the cabin.
There are two different single player modes for you to try and tackle. The first one is essentially a campaign, where you will choose between 6 huge maps (4 of which are locked at first). They will have their own unique objectives, such as traveling to and from various lumber mills to deliver wood. Variety comes from different Siberian regions, but one thing is almost always for certain, you'll be running through a lot of mud. You unlock the other maps in this mode by tackling the objects in the first two, and by doing so without destroying your trucks. It won't be accomplishable in a mere 10 or so minutes, but closer to an hour plus. Hitting fuel stations when you run low on gas, and sticking to the road best as possible are keys to surviving. The other single player mode is called and includes 9 special challenges such as picking up a trailer and delivering it, climbing up a hill, night mudding, and rivers. They are simpler in size and objectives, but can still be a super stress causer. You will be ranked out of three stars here for these, which ultimately will unlock them overtime.
I firmly stand by saying that with the right partner, almost any gaming experience is improved when you throw in co-op mode. The silent and almost dead world in single player comes to life when you have your friends yelling at you that you're screwing everything up. You can find dozens of multiplayer matches, where someone hosts a lobby at any of the maps, and varies between casual difficulty and hardcore. I was pleasantly surprised to see how big of a community there is on the Playstation 4. If playing in the mud with strangers is as off putting to you as the way I just worded it, then you can host a friends only lobby, and invite up to 3 friends of your choosing. Luckily I didn't face in performance issues while playing online. I continuously had good connection with my friends.
Sounds and Graphics
The graphics are better than I was expected, and do a really good job building an atmosphere. The forests, which make up a lot of the visuals, are extremely detailed and rich with a realistic presence when they are not being processed to be drawn. Because of the narrow paths and tricky angles you'll constantly be tested in, being able to see yourself and the truck means there could be a lot of stuff in the way. The game handles this issue by turning environment figures transparent. The issue that stems from this though is that you can often times see the game making distant objects transparent, event though it's unnecessary. This can cause branches and trees to pop in and out in a blurry fashion, which if you see enough of,matched with the wonky camera, a headache might be inevitable.
Conclusion
Pros | Cons |
+ Simulates off-road driving phenomenally | – Texture and structure popping |
+ High quality graphics and sounds | – Wonky steering and camera control |
+ Variety of gameplay | |
+ Multiplayer mode |