Expeditions: A MudRunner Game Reviews

It always fascinates me when menial service simulators become hits, be it titles like PowerWash Simulator or Euro Truck Simulator. The Mudrunner series is another great example. In theory, it’s a series of logistics games: pick up cargo, venture through crappy terrain, deliver said cargo, use money to upgrade your trucks, repeat. It has received a snow-themed sequel in the past, with both titles becoming unlikely commercial hits, with a pretty impressive and sizeable fanbase. But it was tim...

Expeditions feels like an exciting new direction for this series that encourages more experimentation on the gameplay side and I am thrilled that this didn’t just feel like Mudrunner or Snowrunner again. I am excited to see where Saber takes the game with its seasonal content, especially after the exciting editions we saw with the Snowrunner seasons.

Expeditions: A MudRunner Game continues the series legacy in emphatic style, with a true pioneering spirit that’ll keep you coming back for vehicular adventures for months to come.

Expeditions: A Mudrunner Game has a lot of tidying up to do to become what it should be, but there's a wonderfully-rewarding game in there once you've learned its quirks. I had no idea the map checkpointing system was so useful until I noticed one of the screenshots highlighting it, and then a major point of friction simply disappeared. It also took a bit to get used to the idea that the smaller trucks are better, but it only takes so much wrangling over rocky outcrops or between trees to figure out that Expeditions needs a different approach than earlier games in the series when it comes to tackling the wilderness. Once you learn the way around its awkward menu system, figure out the unexplained gameplay elements and know what bugs to avoid, the game Expeditions wants to be shines through and it's a great one. The huge, expansive maps feel like they've got endless points of interest, and the challenge in finding each one and carrying out its related tasks rarely ever feels overwhelming. The beautiful landscapes are one of the stars of the show, and there's a satisfying balance between the open areas that let you explore them at top speed (which is rarely more than twenty miles per hour, if that) and rocky inclines or thin ledges trying to push your wheels off the side. It's easy to lose hours at a time trekking through the wide open maps of Expeditions, each new task leading to a new point on the map while you solve one navigation problem after another, until finally the mission is complete. And then, satisfaction in hand, it's time to load up the next truck and do it again, because nobody knows what's going to be waiting over that next hill for the curious explorer.

More off-roading excellence from the series formerly known as Spintires, although its scientific theme is not as interesting as it could be.

Expeditions: A Mudrunner Game is a worthy new chapter in the beloved but fairly niche series. The acclaimed physics are back and better than ever, supported by some stunning sandbox regions with a lot to discover and enjoy. Newcomers and veterans alike will find something here to sink their teeth into, an almost exhausting experience as every bump, every climb seems to get to you in a physical sense, and if that’s not the best compliment that can be made for such a game, then I don’t know what it is. Buckle up, grind your teeth, and get stuck in the best kind of muddy waters in Expeditions: A Mudrunner Game.

Sound-wise the game has a bunch of generic guitar riffs that are a series staple.  It’s inoffensive during the menu screens and the main sounds you’ll have in-gameplay are your engines mixed with a bit of wilderness ambiance. The biggest issue I had by far on both PC and Xbox was the text prompts from your experts telling you what was going on and where to go.  They’re well written and crucial information was shown on screen for roughly two seconds before disappearing completely every single time and it was maddening.  I didn’t see any settings to fix it and hope it is fixed quickly at or post-launch.

If you've ever looked at a stretch of abandoned road, overcome with mud and muck, and wondered whether your little two-door compact could make it through, MudRunner might be a series you already know. From Spintires to SnowRunner, it's a lovely little franchise that seems to be surviving capably, and its latest is Expeditions: A MudRunner Game, which takes the series in an altogether more scientific direction. Now, your vehicle rescues and arduous mountain climbs have a more intellectual mission briefing before them — but the core gameplay hasn't changed too much.

Expeditions: A MudRunner Game is a departure from the series, relying on short mission-based adventures, but it runs great on the Steam Deck!

Expeditions: A MudRunner Game shifts the slow-moving action of its predecessors from small scale levels full of straightforward challenges to a set of large open world maps designed specifically for freewheeling offroad exploration. The magic of SnowRunner et al remains intact here, with a gloriously atmospheric bunch of regions to get busy taming as you push forward through swamps, across rivers and over mountains in a game that genuinely feels like Death Stranding in a truck at points. Co-op mode may be missing at launch, which is a real shame, and there's a few graphical issues to sort just now, but we reckon this is still Saber Interactive's best crack at the offroad sim yet, and that's saying something.

Expeditions: A MudRunner Game succeeds in being a more varied, interesting and accessible entry in Saber’s Runner series, although it’s still on the challenging side and has niche appeal. We’ve had a great deal of entertainment from it though, and will continue to do so — it’s 70-plus expeditions present a seriously considerable time investment. With DLC and a co-op mode to come, it’s likely to get even better, too. Ultimately, it’s not for everyone. But for those who dream of navigating harsh environments in an assortment of vehicles, it’s a blast.

Saber Interactive is back with another off-roading sim that’ll force you to face the consequences of your own stupidity.

Expeditions: A MudRunner Game is an interesting iteration on Saber Interactive's earlier off-road simulation titles that brings some new features while keeping the core challenge familiar to fans of the series. There is a lot of content available, though much of it inevitably boils down the main concept of having to deal with hard environments. Most of this works reasonably well, but some of the new additions feel a bit light and not as fully fleshed out as I'd like them to be. Overall, it is an enjoyable experience, but only the hardcore fans of the series are likely to make it through the hundreds of hours spent climbing over rocks and sinking into pits of mud.