SnowRunner

SnowRunner is a game thoroughly, single-mindedly, in love with the open road. It just happens that it’s the kind of love that’s bred by getting that road so thoroughly under your nails, you occasionally have to wonder whether it’s actually hate. Care, attention and time will show that SnowRunner is a passion project worth putting the extra mile in for.

While playing, I am reminded of the feelings I got from Minecraft, Euro Truck Simulator, Portal, and SimCity 2000.  Simultaneously relaxing, infuriating, perplexing, and rewarding, SnowRunner is on my shortlist for game of the year. If I could show this to my six-year-old self, he would give birth to a litter of puppies on the spot due to sheer excitement. If you need a path cleared, a load hauled...

A beautiful-looking simulation with very specific appeal that will likely turn off as many people as it interests. If you’re in the latter group, however, this is an indispensable physics toybox.

This game is so damned relaxing, but it is not going to be for everyone. It is never fast, and any attempts at doing things quickly will almost certainly end in disaster. If you’re looking for something that can last you hundreds of hours as you slowly and sometimes surely search through the wilderness and deliver much needed supplies then this is a Game Pass game that should be right up your alle...

Pick a fight with nature in this punishing off-road sim.

It’s not a flawless experience; using lookout towers to discover new locations is a little old hat and the handling of SnowRunner’s smallest vehicles feels a bit off. However, even when you’re struggling up an incline with a 20-tonne load, SnowRunner is a joy to play. Driving around, making deliveries at your own speed, is just as much fun as leaning into the gripping off-roading elements and, no ...

While SnowRunner has a few quirks here and there, overall it's a fantastic game of exploration and brute-force driving.  The maps are beautifully designed, seeming much bigger than they actually are and filled with gorgeous scenery and plenty of goals to track down.  The slow pace of the driving takes a bit of getting used to, but fans of the series have already made that leap and those who haven'...

Whilst the opening hours suffer from a lack of communication, SnowRunner is an excellent and rewarding vehicle simulation.

But there’s a mainstream audience out there waiting for a game like SnowRunner, prepped by the tightrope act of transporting cargo in Death Stranding. The same slowburn satisfaction sits in my chest as I ease my GMC MH9500 down a dirt path, watching the rain caps on the exhaust pipes nod back and forth to one another like little birds. I hope the flickering headlights of a glowing review are enoug...

An earnest, unapologetically tricky, and time-consuming trucking experience, SnowRunner’s peculiar brand of off-road ordeals is oddly addictive, deep, and rewarding when played in the right spirit. It’s not often we see an authentic, slow-paced delivery sim that doesn’t baffle you with nonsense or try to upsell you a $2,000 jacket, but SnowRunner’s no slouch.

Basically, if Forza Horizon 4 and American Truck Simulator got drunk and hooked up one night then SnowRunner is what I imagine the result would be. A slower paced game that challenges throughout and stays fresh with a good range of vehicles, upgrades and locations to explore and a great deal of customization.

SnowRunner is an excellent game with wonderful visuals and great controls. It also has a massive amount of content for players to sink their teeth into. The game is slow and can be frustrating, but it's very much worth getting down and dirty with this one.