This game is like if you took the first FlatOut by Bugbear, removed the driver ragdolls, and replaced the regular street cars with diesel-powered semi-tractors. But I have to say, Truck Racer is a surprisingly fun and surprisingly fast arcade racing game.

While there are only six trucks available to drive, there are numerous ways to modify and tune them. One thing that I honestly didn't see explained well enough and never really felt the influence of(maybe I just wasn't paying attention) is having to select suspension components to attune your truck to race on different surfaces; but then again, there are only two surface types represented - Asphalt and Dirt - and trucks seem to drive about the same on either. But maybe I've just been too methodical in upgrading my trucks and need to deliberately tune my truck wrong to see the difference.

And let me remind you: this game is actually quite fast. Don't pay attention to the numbers on the speedometer; feel how fast the tracks and the races feel. Once you've fully tuned even the Raion Calvin, the game's slowest truck, you'll feel like you're driving a finely tuned racing machine, to say nothing of the more expensive trucks later down the line.

The racing environments are all nicely varied; though again, there are only two racing surfaces present, and none of the in-game environments mix the two surface types in a single locale, let alone a single circuit. But that aside, they're all pleasant enough to look at. This is no Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 2010; but it's not trying to be a AAA title.

The biggest faults I have are the lack of in-race music, and the abysmal rival AI. The menu music loop isn't terrible, at least. The rival driver AI, however, is awful. They'll spend all race bouncing from one wall to the other, and often wrecking themselves out with no influence from the player. This does make the "Championship" mode feel uneven in its difficulty, though, as it seems like the Time Trial events replace the dummies you usually race against with drivers that can actually stay off the wall. However, once you get one of the later trucks upgraded, the Time Trials as well fall into the category of "dreadfully easy".

I haven't tried the multiplayer yet, and I fear I'll never find another living soul playing this piece of ancient history online. Pity that, because having actual human drivers to compete against could make this game more exciting.

Honestly, for its current $2.49USD sale price, it's an easy buy. No major bugs or glitches that I could find, no serious problems with anything other than the AI of the rival truckers, just fairly simple straightforward fun. I give Truck Racer an 8 out of 10.

This game is like if you took the first [i]FlatOut[/i] by Bugbear, removed the driver ragdolls, and replaced the regular street cars with diesel-powered semi-tractors. But I have to say, [i]Truck Racer[/i] is a surprisingly fun and surprisingly fast arcade racing game. While there are only six trucks available to drive, there are [b]numerous[/b] ways to modify and tune them. One thing that I honestly didn't see explained well enough and never really felt the influence of(maybe I just wasn't paying attention) is having to select suspension components to attune your truck to race on different surfaces; but then again, there are only two surface types represented - Asphalt and Dirt - and trucks seem to drive about the same on either. But maybe I've just been too methodical in upgrading my trucks and need to deliberately tune my truck wrong to see the difference. And let me remind you: this game is actually [b]quite[/b] fast. Don't pay attention to the numbers on the speedometer; [b]feel[/b] how fast the tracks and the races feel. Once you've fully tuned even the Raion Calvin, the game's slowest truck, you'll [b]feel[/b] like you're driving a finely tuned racing machine, to say nothing of the more expensive trucks later down the line. The racing environments are all nicely varied; though again, there are only two racing surfaces present, and [b]none[/b] of the in-game environments mix the two surface types in a single locale, let alone a single circuit. But that aside, they're all pleasant enough to look at. This is no [i]Need For Speed: Hot Pursuit 2010[/i]; but it's not [b]trying[/b] to be a AAA title. The biggest faults I have are the lack of in-race music, and the [b]abysmal[/b] rival AI. The menu music loop isn't terrible, at least. The rival driver AI, however, is [b]awful[/b]. They'll spend all race bouncing from one wall to the other, and often wrecking themselves out with no influence from the player. This [b]does[/b] make the "Championship" mode feel uneven in its difficulty, though, as it seems like the Time Trial events replace the dummies you usually race against with drivers that can actually stay off the wall. However, once you get one of the later trucks upgraded, the Time Trials as well fall into the category of "dreadfully easy". I haven't tried the multiplayer yet, and I fear I'll never find another living soul playing this piece of ancient history online. Pity that, because having actual human drivers to compete against could make this game more exciting. Honestly, for its current $2.49USD sale price, it's an easy buy. No major bugs or glitches that I could find, no serious problems with anything other than the AI of the rival truckers, just fairly simple straightforward fun. I give [i]Truck Racer[/i] an [b]8[/b] out of 10.