Expeditions: A MudRunner Game Review – The Most Friendly Off-Road Simulator Ever

Contents:

• Breaking Habits
• Fun and Not So Difficult
• Unrealized Potential

Death Stranding introduced millions of players to the exciting experience of overcoming difficult terrain. However, similar games existed before Hideo Kojima. In 2014, Spintires, later renamed MudRunner, hit the market. This off-road simulator featuring old Soviet trucks quickly gained cult status and attracted tens of thousands of devoted fans. Spintires offered players unique mechanics and realistic physics, making it a milestone in the simulation genre.

It can be difficult for casual players to understand why they would waste their time on such games. For example, the phrase "engaging in low gear with a differential lock to climb a hill" may not seem very appealing. However, over time, the series has become increasingly accessible thanks to a simplified structure and mechanical innovations. While long-time fans aren't always welcoming of the changes, newcomers find it easier to adapt and immerse themselves in this unique genre. This makes the games more appealing to a wider audience, contributing to their popularity and growth.

Expeditions, the latest game in the series, is the most accessible version of MudRunner. I spent about 20 hours in the game and am ready to share my impressions of what awaits an unprepared player. This game offers a unique experience that combines elements of simulation and adventure, making it attractive to both newcomers and fans of the series. You will be able to explore diverse maps, control a variety of vehicles, and face real-world challenges that require strategic thinking and driving skills.

Breaking Habits

The first hours of Expeditions feel like you are re-learning the basics of driving. Conditions that seem familiar in racing games become real game mechanics here. An inconspicuous rock on the road can flip your SUV, and a tree branch can get stuck between the cabin and the cargo compartment, making it a real challenge to get out of such a situation. At the beginning of the game, you will have to overcome old gaming habits. Forgot to engage the handbrake on a slope? Expect your car to roll downhill. Decided to accelerate on a downhill slope? This can lead to a rollover and getting stuck in place.

Mastering Expeditions is a thrilling adventure. Each foray unlocks new knowledge and skills, gradually mastering the essential tools for overcoming various obstacles. The game's detailed tutorial is particularly helpful in this process. The first expeditions are fairly simple, limited to trips of a few hundred meters, allowing newcomers to get their bearings and feel confident in the gameplay.

During this time, you can not only master the game's basic mechanics but also get used to the unique rhythm of Expeditions. At the beginning of each mission, you must survey the area using a drone to determine the optimal route. Before approaching any body of water, it is important to activate the sonar, as some rivers can be unexpectedly deep. This will help avoid unpleasant situations and make traveling safer and more efficient.

The game's tutorial is easy and straightforward. After just a few hours, players begin to operate automatically. When climbing, you need to lower the tire pressure for better road contact and shift into a lower gear. When descending, you can engage neutral and control the brakes. At first, it may seem like the game will consist of leisurely 10-15-minute drives. However, players will soon discover that this is only the beginning of a fun and engaging experience.

The transition from the tutorial to the main regions of Expeditions brings significant changes. Simple tasks are replaced by more complex and demanding ones. New players will immediately feel this shift: expeditions become significantly longer, terrain becomes more complex, and mastering the game's new features requires independent exploration. This creates additional challenges and opportunities for the player, who must adapt to new conditions and develop their skills.

Expeditions features companions who provide various bonuses during missions, such as reduced damage in water or increased sonar range. While their usefulness may not seem obvious at the beginning of the game, the drone's additional range becomes crucial in challenging missions. Without this advantage, route planning can be difficult. Therefore, choosing the right companions in Expeditions can significantly increase your chances of successfully completing missions.

With each new journey, the number of system elements continues to grow. Mechanics that were initially perceived as advertising gimmicks become an important part of the gameplay. Emergency supply areas in the open world allow you to quickly replenish supplies, and additional structures near outposts can be filled with valuable resources. These resources are later useful for building bridges or clearing rubble, which provides deeper gameplay mechanics and a strategic approach to progression.

When missions marked as "Very Hard" enter the game, a real test of skills begins, where players encounter their first difficulties. During the first major expedition, the importance of using a jack, which helps return an overturned car to its original position, becomes obvious. Nobody wants to lose the progress they've made after an hour of intense play. This mechanic not only saves from frustration, but also adds strategy to the process of completing difficult missions.

The terrain in Expeditions is more exotic than in previous installments in the series. It features steep cliffs and deep pools that can confuse beginners with their seemingly simple structure. During one of the first challenging expeditions, I decided to skimp on a jack that I hadn't needed before. This ended up costing me both time and nerves. While such moments can be annoying, they also add dynamism to the game. It's nice to know that you can learn from your mistakes and that careful planning ultimately pays off.

Exciting and not very difficult

In Expeditions, every mountain presents a significant challenge, and conquering it becomes a true achievement. However, it's not as if Expeditions is a difficult undertaking. It's crucial to carefully plan your route and act deliberately. To negotiate the crevasses typical of canyons, careful wheel alignment and smooth throttle control are essential. This doesn't require any special skills, just attentiveness and concentration.

You can't forget about attentiveness. As soon as you make a mistake, the game immediately punishes you for it. Incorrectly calculating the fuel for an expedition or an inefficiently planned route can lead to you finding yourself with an empty tank in deserted areas or mountains. Therefore, it is important to carefully plan every detail and consider all possible risks to avoid unpleasant situations.

In situations like these, Expeditions demonstrates a lack of friendliness towards newcomers. Even if you spent a full hour on the task, you will have to start from scratch or evacuate to the outpost, which is essentially the same thing. This complexity can be off-putting for new players, making it difficult to get immersed in the game and reducing overall enjoyment.

The pleasure of proper planning cannot be overstated. For example, before entering the water, it makes sense to set up an anchor and attach it to the vehicle. If the truck gets stuck, it can be easily pulled back to dry land. Such tactics not only boost confidence but also create a sense of professionalism when driving in difficult conditions. Proper planning can avoid problems and make the process safer and more comfortable.

The game offers scenarios in which knowledge of the terrain becomes key to successfully completing objectives. For example, when planning a long journey, it's important for the player to stock up on extra fuel. However, if the player hasn't yet unlocked the extra slots for the vehicle optimally suited to the mission, this can create difficulties. It's important to familiarize yourself with the map and your vehicle's capabilities in advance to avoid unexpected problems during the game.

You may encounter problems by choosing a bulky SUV that doesn't suit your needs. Instead, consider using a proven vehicle that allows you to make a convenient detour to a previously explored emergency supply drop. At this location, you can not only refuel but also make repairs if necessary. Choosing the right vehicle will make your trips much easier and more comfortable.

Over time, such situations become more and more common. You begin to get a better feel for the vehicle and pay attention to all its nuances. For example, you focus not only on the formal characteristics of the truck, such as horsepower, but also on its turning ability, ground clearance, and wheel size. These aspects are sometimes no less important than fuel tank capacity and engine power. Correctly assessing all these factors can significantly improve the driving experience and increase safety on the road.

Expeditions is full of moments that keep the gameplay loop fresh over time. These elements maintain interest and draw attention to the visuals, which are one of the game's strongest aspects. Sometimes, the desire to start the game arises just for the stunning scenery. The meticulously crafted landscapes feel like a true reward, especially when you admire them from the top of an inaccessible mountain.

Untapped Potential

This series offers fans countless hours of engaging gameplay, potentially lasting tens or even hundreds of hours. It's quite possible that future expansions will add new content. However, if the core gameplay becomes tiresome, Expeditions won't hold your attention.

The game adheres strictly to a simple loop. First, you need to study the mission, which contains clues about the characteristics of the terrain you'll be traveling through. Based on this information, you can select the appropriate vehicle, the necessary equipment, and locate the closest outpost to your destination. Before starting the engine, it's worth inspecting the area with a drone, after which you can go from point A to point B.

This is a significant omission, as the game has tremendous potential for creating unique situations. Each expedition includes bonus missions that earn additional funds. These missions are geared toward perfect completion, such as "Take less than 100 damage" or "Don't use extraction." These conditions increase interest in the game and encourage players to find effective strategies.

In most cases, achievements in the game occur naturally and don't require significant effort from the player. Financial rewards aren't always an effective incentive. The Expeditions game project already generously rewards players for their successes, so powerful trucks with good cross-country ability will appear in your garage in just 10-15 hours of game time.

If the game adds more complex tasks and motivation for completing them, the gameplay will become significantly more interesting and replayable. For example, introducing time limits on expeditions with additional rewards will encourage players to think outside the box. This could mean choosing a compact but weak car to overcome sections where other vehicles cannot pass. Such changes will make the game more engaging and varied, attracting the attention of both new and experienced players.

Unfortunately, even simple tasks in Expeditions are not implemented. However, rich game mechanics provide opportunities to create a variety of interesting conditions. For example, players could be forced to complete expeditions at night, when the game's nights are stunningly beautiful, or the use of supply drops could be prohibited. These elements could significantly diversify the gameplay and make it more engaging.

Without restrictions, there's a temptation to rely solely on familiar, proven-to-be-reliable modes of transport. Ultimately, Expeditions leads players to experience a feeling they briefly experienced during the tutorial—playing the game becomes too easy and lacks a real challenge. This reduces the interest in the game and makes it less exciting.

Expeditions adds variety to the gameplay with simple minigames. Players are periodically asked to photograph objects, scan the area, or simply look around. However, these tasks aren't particularly engaging, especially considering they have to be completed every 15 minutes. This can reduce the overall enjoyment of the game and make the process monotonous.

One of the most frustrating aspects is that, in some cases, simply changing the reward system would have been enough to achieve variety. This could have significantly improved the gameplay and made it more engaging without requiring drastic changes to the content itself. Changing the reward system can add an element of novelty and increase player interest, which in turn contributes to increased engagement and satisfaction.

Expeditions features numerous side quests scattered throughout the open world. Players typically receive monetary rewards for completing them, and they can be completed simultaneously with the main objectives. The gameplay of side quests is largely similar to the main ones, so in 20 hours of play, I managed to complete fewer than ten of them. However, rare missions that offer unique vehicle upgrades as a reward are of particular interest. These quests can significantly diversify the gameplay and add strategic elements to vehicle upgrades.

Does this affect the gaming experience? It all depends on the player's preferences. For some, the primitive progression system and lack of difficulty can become frustrating after just a few hours. At the same time, genre veterans understand that the core essence of Expeditions and similar games is not difficulty or progression, but meditative and thoughtful exploration that can be repeated many times. However, even experienced players find reasons to criticize Expeditions. The introduction of jacks, anchors, and supply drops significantly simplifies gameplay compared to previous installments, which also sparks discussion among fans.

Online, Expeditions is often perceived as a simplified version of the series, one that could be considered an expansion to SnowRunner. While this may be true, the game itself is aimed at a more casual audience. Expeditions successfully achieves this goal, providing an excellent opportunity for newcomers to enter the world of off-roading. The focus here is on creating an atmosphere of adventure and maintaining the spirit of exploration, making the game appealing to those looking to test themselves in challenging terrain.

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