Desert Race Adventures Nintendo Switch Review 7/10 "Oregon Trail With Less Dysentery and More Horsepower!" 🚛 @bssgameshq #IndieGame #GameDev

This new title from Firedrake Games is a rally game with a difference, as opposed to actually racing, your vehicle instead trundles on regardless as you take a backseat from driving, and instead focus on the logistical side of this mammoth task – which is driving across Europe and Africa.

With some lovely pixel visuals, and simple, looping music to keep you company on your trip, Desert Race Adventures begins with choosing your driver and co-driver from the six available and selecting up to three items for your vehicle loadout. 

Whilst each driver / co-driver has their own strengths and accompanying weaknesses – perhaps they fatigue slower, or require less nourishment than the other, greedier drivers, but also suffer more in crashes – the balancing act of switching between the stock in your limited carrying space makes up a very important part of your journey.
A lot of things can go wrong on the drive, as the – admittedly quite samey - environments roll past you will find yourself dealing with roadblocks, crashes, wounds and punctures, as well some more beneficial stops such as photo opportunities and breaks with other racers etc. 

Your levels of food, petrol, and car status steadily drop, meaning that you have to keep your eye on these as well as also managing your characters’ tiredness, it all adds up to a pacey game that fixates more on stats and gauges than the road ahead of you.

Whilst I had a good time with Desert Race Adventures, I did find that the various predicaments that I found myself in felt a little repetitive, and I found myself wishing for a layer of extra gameplay such as unlockables or upgrades to make each run stand out a little more. 

SUMMARY

I love the idea; and the tone, visuals, and music are all up to par, creating an accessible game, but I can’t imagine it would hold plyers’ interest for more than a couple of hours. 

That said, at a fiver, it’s a great way to spend an evening, and has put the studio on the map for me, with their esoteric take on the rally genre!

COOL

🆒7/10🆒

(also available on PC)

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Keep Driving PC Review 7.5/10 "The Crazy Gas Fuelled Adventures Of A Sedan!" 🚗 @YCJYgames #IndieGame #GameDev | ❄️ Games Freezer | Retrogaming, Indie Games and Games Culture