Clustertruck (PC) Review

There isn't a story or a moment to really breathe in Clustertruck. This is a game entirely driven on its singular mechanic. Players must race down speeding trucks until they reach the goal. While there are certain extensions of this mechanic, like speedrunning levels and unlocking additional powers, the sole focus of the game is this one idea. Just for this, Clustertruck should be praised. It has managed to take this idea and implement it into a full, broad title.

There are plenty of different areas to explore, and the game only moves as quickly as you beat it. This lack of freedom is a little discouraging, as it seems like the kind of idea where being able to beat the levels at one's own pace would be a lot more enjoyable than following a strict line-up. Still, there's plenty of chances to mix things up, as the game uses procedural generation. It doesn't feel particularly deep, as it seems to mainly effect the behaviour of the trucks, instead of their layout.

It's surprising how deep the idea is, and how over-the-top the whole thing feels. The rules of physics don't seem to apply to the player, and it's fantastic. It's hard to truly appreciate being a super human until you're floating through the air, craning over a major traffic collision. The in air controls work very well, although aiming with the mouse could be tighter. It currently feels like having to crane your neck, and hinders the importance of feeling like a superhero.

There are some rules that will feel weird at first, but make sense in the long run. For instance, dying happens not only when falling to the ground, but when smacking against a wall. Initially, it seems odd that walls would stop you when you could safely land on a truck, but it makes sense as a firm rule. Trucks can be touched, and that is it. Moving at such a ridiculous speed, it's important to remember all of the rules, even if there are only a handful.

One major hang-up is the visual look of the game. If your PC can't run the game with everything turned on, it can with some of the visual features turned off. Regardless, the visuals are incredibly plain. It's not the worst thing at first, but it can make things look not only boring, but incredibly similar. For example, when all the trucks are white, the field of view can play tricks. Jumping to one truck can be confusing when aiming at a sea of white, and can lead to a miscalculated landing.

Not that understanding where things are is going to save you. Despite being a superhero, death is common. This isn't a negative though, as it's part of the frantic mayhem. It could turn away a lot of players, but there's still something silly at play. Without any certain physical rules, the lay of the land is getting used to how things work here. Despite being devoid of NPCs and story, Clustertruck feels deeper than most arcade games. It just depends if you want to learn a set of new rules if you can enjoy your time in this space—rules that often ignore everything gamers know about games.