Developer: Teyon
Publisher: Nacon, Bigben Interactive
Platform: PC, Xbox One, PS4, Switch
Tested on: PC, PS4
Monster Truck Championship – Review
The dream of every (man)child is a huge truck with wheels bigger than ourselves. Ever since monster trucks were invented, it was something that everybody liked (except for environmentalists). These huge gas-guzzling monsters can climb any obstacle. In the past, there were some games where we could drive these fun vehicles. Now Nacon has taken up the mantle to create a simulator game where we can do all sorts of events in these monsters and it actually plays pretty good.
Story
Just like in most race games, there isn’t a story present. You just have your monster truck and can build a team and gain sponsorships that pay extra during races. You can start the game guided with a very well explained tutorial, but after that, you are on your own. In the way that the game is created, you won’t really miss a story, you will have enough fun racing against opponents and crashing into stuff.
Graphics
The game actually looks really great, as some games published by Nacon are of lesser quality, yet Monster Truck Championship amazed us with how well the game was made. The vehicles look really nice with many customization options that look like they belong on the vehicle and are not just pasted on. Probably the coolest feature in the game is the realistic damage model. When you play roughly the truck will become dirty and parts will fly off and as a result, the damage looks realistic and will impact how the vehicle will behave on the track.
Sound
The most widely known fact about monster trucks is their amazing sound. Their V8 has a burly sound that has you scream ‘Murica’ every time you hit the accelerator. Racing just sounds great, the sound of the trucks, the music playing in the background and the announcer informing you about who is in what place all fit this redneck-ish picture. For a racing game, it has a great sound design to keep you pleased, but the most important thing is the flush gameplay.
Gameplay
Monster Truck Championship is a racing simulator that realistically emulates driving a monster truck. In the game, you will race in various disciplines on many tracks in multiple disciplines. You begin the game in the career mode where you can follow a very well explained tutorial about how to drive and do tricks with your monster truck. The first thing that the game gets right is how the truck handles; you can steer with both front and rear wheels and you will need to master this technique if you want to be successful in events. A small downside about the allowance of realistic driving is that the controller layout for driving with a clutch is very badly designed, but a simple solution is to use the automatic clutch.
After completing the tutorial you will gain access to your crew quarter and garage. In the garage, you will be able to customize your monster truck will all kinds of body shells, paints, parts and more. You can also fine-tune all the settings like suspension, gearbox and more. There are many parts available to set the monster truck to your own liking, as the vehicle is an icon, you will want to stand out. In the crew quarters, you can recruit new members, these will add bonuses but can also take a cut from your winnings.
When you are finally ready you can start racing in the small leagues. Each event is a championship event with various races such as drag racing, stunts and destruction. Drag racing is a 1v1 knockout bout against an opponent, learn how to launch perfectly and be the first to cross the line. In normal races, you will face off against multiple opponents on a track where the tuning and handling of your truck are really important. Stunt and destruction races take place in an open area where you get points by either pulling nice stunts or destroying everything on your path. Because most career events are mainly the same, it does get boring quite fast. In other racing games driving on other tracks keep the experience fresh, but sadly in this career mode, it’s more of a rinse and repeat style of gameplay.
The game controls really great, but it is advised to play with a controller. If you want the best experience, then you will want all the control over your truck for getting through those tight corners. The only real downside is the manual clutch button location that just doesn’t work. For the rest, the game plays really smoothly and the trucks handle realistically.
Conclusion
Monster Truck Championship is a nicely made game that does have a small downside, which is that the career mode can become really stale quite quickly. There are many options to customize your experience and besides the staleness of races, you will have a lot of fun on the track. The graphics are pretty and the sounds are also great. The developers said that this was a monster truck simulator and they delivered on that specific experience.
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