RoadCraft is an upcoming game from Saber Interactive, developers of Snowrunner and more recently Expeditions: A Mudrunner game. I am just one of the many people that have sunk heaven knows how many hours into their previous titles, guiding a fleet of vehicles through treacherous unforgiving terrain. The environments they create have always been as pretty as they are brutal.
This new offering features that same in house engine which means we can look forward to tackling stunning new environments, but with a new twist. This time around, instead of merely using trucks to transport cargo across these worlds, we are challenged with rebuilding them. Yes, fellow Tonka truck kids, this time we are getting behind the wheel of proper full on construction vehicles, dumptrucks, bulldozers, cranes and more!
In RoadCraft, this time we are running a disaster recovery company. Using the vehicles at our disposal we will be clearing roads of debris, replacing faulty equipment, rebuilding roads, bridges and more. When the game arrives there will be over 40 unique vehicles at your disposal, everything you need for a good time. As an aforementioned fan of their previous works I was more than keen to get my hands on this preview, dive into this world and have a play around.
First impressions were a familiar world, their engine has a certain look about it, the environments and the way the earth reacts to me driving my massive machines all over it and the way it tries to hold me back. Taking control of the trusty scout vehicle to check the lay of the land and think about how I plan to achieve my objective is as fun as ever. Snowrunner was a slow burner, and to be honest this one heads even further in that direction and is more of a smoulderer, but still fun none the less.
The graphics are as expected; still looking very good but regardless the new environments reminded me of previous games. This isn’t a bad thing, this is just the result of the same engine being used. Many AAA titles share one of the big, commercially made readily available engines on the market, so at least this one is custom and you know when you are playing a Saber Interactive game just by looking at it.
Although RoadCraft is a slow burner, it is also a tonne of fun. The cool thing about pretending to be in construction means when I’m clearing debris from a road I can just fling it away with my crane. Or just drop it wherever I want and generally act very unsafely. It’s not news to me, but my behaviour in this one confirms that I would not be fit for a role in real life construction and would be fired or dead. But I have to admit its a blast to play this game with no abandon.
Working my way through the objectives and scenarios in the preview build, these included laying power cables from one plant to another, which again proved that I am not a fit person for these sorts of roles. Repaving a road to get some vehicles from A to B and carting around replacement pipe to fix up broken piping. You could be forgiven for thinking that, if not in the right frame of mind, some of these tasks could be boring. But they aren’t.
One thing I really liked was the ability to put some of these trucks on auto-pilot. Building a road, for example, I could undertake all the steps myself or just use the map and just direct the construction vehicles to do what they need to do. This is a time saver and also lets you focus on other things whilst they do their thing. This game supports multi-player, which is for sure reccommended with some like mended friends but its still a perfectly enjoyable game playing solo.
The final game is set to contain the following features:
- Rebuild devastated areas alone or in co-op up to 4 players in an advanced physics simulation.
- Operate over 40 vehicles, from bulldozers to construction cranes.
- Intervene in various regions around the world across 8 maps, each 4 km² in size.
- Manipulate elements like wood, sand, and asphalt powered by Saber Interactive’s new physics engine.
- Construct new roads and bridges to ease travel across rough terrain.
- Plot point-to-point routes on your map to guide your logistics convoys, and recycle every piece of debris into reconstruction material.
Overall, from what I have played, I think RoadCraft is a worthy next entry in this series of games by Saber Interactive. I think that those of us that have played through MudRunner, SnowRunner and even those of us that checked out Expeditions, won’t be disappointed. They just keep building more and more over time; I hesitate to think about how many hours could be required to complete the full game once it launches. But I am equally sure that the faithful will be there to support it.
RoadCraft launches for PC, PS5 and Xbox Series X|S on May 21, 2025.
About the Author
Kolby James
He/Him
Advocate for Sega. Fan of the 90s.
