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This fun to play free download lets players experience the excitement of off-road trucking

This fun to play free download lets players experience the excitement of off-road trucking

Vote: (1,226 votes)

Program license: Free

Developer: Oovee

Version: 60.891.0.0

Works under: Windows

Vote:

Program license

(1,226 votes)

Free

Developer

Version

Oovee

60.891.0.0

Works under:

Windows

Pros

  • Simple yet engaging premise
  • Simulated real-word physics
  • Mastering vehicles and terrain is rewarding

Cons

  • Demands patience
  • Learning curve can be steep

Spintires is a truck-driving simulation game with a realistic physics model that allows for repeatable results.

Spintires is a video game that gives you the chance to operate real-world trucks in challenging yet realistic off-road scenarios. These aren’t your usual passenger trucks. These are massive, heavy-duty trucks, such as those used in construction, logging, the military and so forth. The premise is simple: You have a payload that you have to get from point A to point B. There are no paved roads, and the ideal route is often uncertain to users. You’ll have to figure out as you go.

Simple perhaps, but there’s also something fundamentally engaging about this goal. Mastering the trucks and the various terrain is a lot of fun. The physics model is one of the best around. That model’s important because as you make mistakes you can learn from them in a very precise manner. Once you’ve mastered a route, you’ll get from point A to point B on a repeatable basis. Then, it’s just a matter of refining your driving technique and targeting the best times on a series of leader boards.

Each environment is quite different, and that provides a lot of enjoyable gaming as well. You’ll tackle makeshift roads, deep mud, vegetation, rivers, woodlands and much more. You’ll learn to master four-wheel drive, different lock and so forth. You even have a tow cable. It may seem impossible to use at first, but then, you’ll be using it to pull yourself out of bad situations. As you start to excel at the game, you may even be able to use to shorten your times on various routes.

The simulation goes beyond just driving. You’ll have other real-world concerns, such as fuel consumption. In fact, some of these monsters consume almost eight gallons a minute. That means that you’re working against the clock as well as the land and weather. The terrain is also quite concealed. You’ll have to do quite a bit of exploring before you even set out to determine the best path. That exploration process can actually be quite a relaxing experience. That is until you get stuck. Again.

Spintires may not be for everyone. This is a game that demands patience. A lot of trial and error will be involved, particularly if you lack real-world knowledge of the subject. If you get antsy, one wrong move may seem to undermine everything you’ve done so far. The learning curve can be steep. People who love trucks and have off-roading experience should have a much easier time starting out than those who are truly green.

The good news is that no matter how bad a mistake you make, it’s never truly game over. One of the ingenious game design decisions is the ability to use multiple trucks for a given path. Multiple trucks aren’t how you’ll post the best times generally, but it does help you learn. If the first truck gets stuck, bring out a second to help free it. Get that second truck stuck? Bring a third, and so on and so forth. What makes this so brilliant is that you don’t have to keep restarting a level as you work to learn it.

Pros

  • Simple yet engaging premise
  • Simulated real-word physics
  • Mastering vehicles and terrain is rewarding

Cons

  • Demands patience
  • Learning curve can be steep