American Truck Simulator — Review & Guide

What is ATS

American Truck Simulator is a long-haul trucking sim set across a growing map of US states. You drive freight between cities, manage your finances and your truck, and grow from a single owner-operator into a company with a fleet of trucks and hired drivers. Like ETS2, it's built around the simple pleasure of driving rather than any rush to the finish — the appeal is the open road, the scenery, and the steady satisfaction of a job done well.

Gameplay

The loop will be familiar to anyone who's played ETS2, and it's just as compelling. You take delivery contracts, watch your fuel and fatigue, obey the rules of the road, and thread your rig through tight depots and city streets to deliver intact. Long interstate runs are broken up by careful low-speed manoeuvring, and the sense of scale on the American highways is genuinely impressive. As you earn, you buy and customise trucks, take on bigger jobs, and build a business that grows over time. The driving is unhurried, detailed and deeply relaxing.

State DLC

ATS expands one state at a time, and each addition is a sizeable, well-crafted region. The map launched with California and Nevada, then grew through Arizona, New Mexico, Oregon, Washington, Utah, Idaho, Colorado, Texas and beyond, each capturing the character and landmarks of its real-world counterpart. These state expansions are the heart of the game's longevity: there's always another stretch of America to explore, and the map keeps getting bigger. Most players gradually collect the states they're most interested in, building a personal version of the country to haul across.

Mods

As with its European sibling, ATS has a deep and active modding scene. The community adds new trucks and trailers, map extensions covering regions not yet officially released, realism and physics tweaks, traffic overhauls and graphical enhancements. It's a major part of the game's appeal and a big reason it stays fresh long after release — whatever you want to change or add, there's likely a mod that does it.

Pros & cons

Pros: the same relaxing, absorbing gameplay as ETS2, set against gorgeous American scenery; a steadily expanding state-by-state map; excellent mod support; a gentle learning curve; great value; runs smoothly on modest hardware.

Cons: slow by design, so it's not for players who want speed and competition; you'll want several state DLCs to get the full experience; like its sibling, the core loop is repetitive, which is exactly the point for its fans.

Who it's for

ATS is for fans of relaxing sims, for ETS2 players who want a fresh setting, and for newcomers looking for a gentle, rewarding driving game to unwind with. If wide-open American highways and the slow build of a trucking business appeal to you, it's an easy recommendation. Players after fast, competitive racing should look at our reviews hub for something with more pace.

Getting started tips

As with ETS2, start by hauling for other companies to build up funds and skill before buying your own rig. Use the route advisor, watch your fuel and fatigue, and take depot manoeuvring slowly. When you're ready to expand, pick up the state DLCs covering the regions you most want to drive — each one adds a sizeable, distinctive slice of the country.

Verdict

American Truck Simulator is a wonderful, low-stress sim and a natural companion to ETS2. If you've enjoyed one, you'll almost certainly enjoy the other; if you're new to the genre, ATS is a perfect place to start, with the same gentle learning curve and excellent value. It's slow by design and you'll want a few state DLCs for the full experience, but the core is superb.

Our score: 9/10. A relaxing, beautifully crafted sim with a steadily growing map and brilliant mod support. Compare with Euro Truck Simulator 2, play free browser truck games, or browse the reviews hub.