Motorway Mayhem or Merriment
By Eric, Getty, Gettinger
Mini Motorways has a very easy premise, bringing the cars of a specific color to the buildings of the matching color by placing road tiles. I have never been so relaxed and at the same time completely stressed out in playing a game in my life. Simple mechanics and a building pace leave you to coordinate or scramble through the real life stages presented in Mini Motorways. With a progression that develops slowly, the average gamer will have a good time with this puzzle game appropriate for all ages. I have no problem saying that the developer Dinosaur Polo Club has yet again found success in creating a simulation based on the everyday task of driving from point A to point B. If you are looking for a challenging and fun game to play in your downtown then Mini Motorways is the way to go.
Mini Motorways takes and drops you into different locations all over the world and access to a diversity of roadways. Levels will take you from continent to continent where you will need to build your roads among mountains, or over rivers and lakes. With the simplicity of connecting roads it’s easy until you start creating a glorious mess of traffic. When things start to get choppy you can throw in stop lights to break up traffic using, my least favorite thing in real life, roundabouts. Precise placement is key to building your score and ensuring that cars go from their garage to the color coded landmarks. In this way the first few can be replayed to get a mastery of how to manage your roads.
On a standard map the garages and buildings are randomly placed, so no two plays will be the same. Mini Motorways has a clock that shows the day of the week and day or night with a supply drop happening every Sunday at midnight. Supply drops will include more road tiles and one of the special enhancements (roundabout, stoplight, bridge, highway) At the same time the number of garages and buildings will increase in size for requiring more cars to get to a building before it overflows. If you begin to feel overwhelmed or like the pace is not fast enough there is a speed control that will even pause time while you create or fix your motorway.
The copy I reviewed of Mini Motorways was on the Nintendo Switch. I recommend playing it on a mobile gaming device because it allows you to play for a few moments when you have the opportunity. A normal map will take between 10 to 15 minutes for an average gamer to play when using normal speed. If you are looking for more difficult tasks there are weekly challenge maps that are accessible and each map can be replayed to compete against other players. So an internet connection is encouraged if you are looking to square off against your friends. Or if you are more about getting the job done you can take pride in your work knowing there is a photo mode so you can showcase your perfect chaos of a map.
Mini Motorways is short and addictive while still showcasing the complexity of a road management simulation. If you are a fan of puzzle games or even enjoy light and quick games that can be enjoyed on a break then this is your jam. With the randomization of building placement the replay value remains high. I loved the time spent playing Mini Motorways on the Nintendo Switch so I could remain mobile but for certain it can be enjoyed on Steam at your home PC.
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