Gas Station Simulator: Car Junkyards - Review
DRAGO entertainment S.A. is a gaming company established in 1998. Its founders were the father and son duo Adam and Lucjan Mikociak, they are mostly known for producing simulator style games such as Food Truck and Gas Station Simulator, but they have also stepped into the survival genre with titles such as ‘Winter Survival’ released in March this year. Gas station simulator is one of my favourite games from the simulation genre, so I was happy that we were invited to test out and play the newest DLC for the game, Car Junkyards.
For those that have never played the base game, Gas Station Simulator offers a surprisingly addictive and unique take on the simulation genre. Set in the middle of the desert, you’re tasked with restoring and managing a run-down gas station. At first glance, the premise might seem mundane, but the game quickly reveals a lot of charm through its detailed mechanics, quirky characters, and a mix of satisfying objectives.
The core gameplay revolves around maintaining the station, handling customers, and expanding your business. You will start with a dilapidated gas station and the first order of business will be cleaning it up in order for it to be somewhere that will attract customers. As you progress through the game and level up your garage by keeping customers satisfied you will gain access to more areas of the business such as the car workshop and car wash where you can further service your customer’s needs. Gas Station Simulator is the perfect game to play while watching YouTube on your second monitor (if you are lucky enough to have one) the gameplay does not require your full attention but is extremely satisfying at the same time, suffice to say if you like micro managing stock levels and staff you will definitely enjoy the game.
The Car Junkyard DLC adds several new features to the base game, though you will need to reach level 4 in the base game to start the DLC which will see a sandstorm blast its way through the station and then a stranger, who you will later find out is named Sean, will appear outside your station and start telling you about his love for cars and how he has just moved into town and started up a business and is looking for a loan.
Once you have lined your new friend Seans pockets with your hard-earned money and agreed to give him a loan he will give you a tour through his junkyard which also serves as a tutorial for the DLC. The junkyard looks the part and is a large area off to the side of your gas station bordered by old rusted out train engines and carriages. You are tasked with hiring drivers to hunt down old abandoned wrecks and bring them back to the junkyard. Once delivered you then need to strip these down which will grant you car parts of varying rarity that you can use on any cars you plan to recondition. The parts you acquire then need to be washed through a chemical bath before you can place them in your future projects. Once you have a wreck and the required number of parts you can then plan out your new build by stripping down an old wreck with the new grinder tool and placing all of your parts into the car, the rarity of parts will effect the stats of the car and also the price which you can sell it at. You can also then paint your car and apply decals to it before moving it to another spot to take photos of your magnificent new creation and then put it up for sale. There is surprising amount of depth to the customisation here and since the quality of parts you install affects the price at which you can sell the car the game really keeps you interested in trying to find the best parts for your car. As you progress through the DLC and restore more cars your fame level will rise which will give you access to new models of cars to restore, types of parts, paints, decals and decorations and landmarks for your garage.
Gas Station Simulator: Car Junkyard DLC is an excellent expansion to the main game, providing players with a fresh, enjoyable activity that fits well within the core gameplay loop, the amount of depth is surprising and is sure to keep fans of the series engaged. If you are like me and are into simulator games where you can turn your brain off for a while and grind out numerous simple but satisfying tasks, then I highly recommend not just the base game but also the Car Junkyard DLC.
The Score
7.5
Review code provided by Drago Entertainment
The Pros
Surprising amount of depth for an expansion
Sourcing parts and wrecks is an addictive gameplay loop
New mini games are satisfying
The Cons
Wont do much to sway you if you are not a fan of the genre
