After being fired from a trucking company, you and your partner decided to open your own business. Only having your partner’s truck you decide to open your HQ in your hometown. From there you must manage your logistics and resources to continue to grow, while keeping the US economy running. If you enjoy management games and trucks then you’re in the right place! TransRoad USA by Deck13 Hamburg and astragon entertainment is listed at $24.99 on Steam for PC.
TransRoad USA has two modes: story mode and sandbox. The main difference between the two modes are that in sandbox you get to decide where to establish your HQ. I found sandbox to be more enjoyable, personally. Using different locations allow for different pros and cons. I also found that it was easier to distribute the money and gain it accordingly. Story mode also has only one difficulty setting.
Unlike most walk through tutorials, TransRoad USA only supplies you with tips. I found this very confusing and much harder to grasp how to play efficiently. My friend, however, thought it was only a little confusing and picked it up a lot quicker than me, so it may be different for every individual. Something that came in handy, because I was so confused by the tutorial, was that you could access the manual any time throughout the game. The controls for the game can be very laggy and buggy.
The art style is interesting. I feel like a lot of their aesthetic is playing off trucker stereotypes. The USA theme is definitely amped up by imagery of eagles and the classic dinner breakfast in the loading screen and menus. I personally find this cheesy and to be a weaker point of the game. I feel like it is too predictable to rely on trucker stereotypes. I wasn’t surprised at all, it’s what you would expect a trucker game to be. I wish there was a more professional feel, one you usually find with business related games.
The sound has its ups and downs. The story mode does have voice acting, which can be rare for 2D games, but the voice acting would cut out before the end of the written dialogue. For example, the screen may say something like, “Oh no! What are we going to do?” The audio would then only say, “Oh no! What are we…” For a PC game listed at this price, it is surprising how many audio errors there are. One really cool feature of the game is that you can “change the radio station.” At the top right corner there is a radio icon, when you click it you can download listen music to listen to in game. I think this is really immersive and an awesome detail.
Overall, I think if you enjoy the trucker aesthetic and logistic management then I think you will enjoy this game, though I’m not sure at the price it is listed for. I think this game has a lot to be fixed but isn’t a terrible game.
5/10
Here is the TransRoad: USA Release Trailer:
TransRoad: USA is available now on PC via Steam for 24.99 USD / 24.99 Euro//22.99 GBP.
PC Review
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Overall Score - 5/105/10
I'm a postgraduate Information and Library Studies student at the University of Strathclyde in Glasgow, Scotland. I'm originally from Texas and have a BFA in Creative Writing from SFASU. I grew up playing video games and now enjoy watching other people play as well. I love anything with a good story!
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