Jalopy

In Brief

Navigate miles and miles of tyre changing, fuel burning, carburettor busting, mud clattering terrain, through night and day, rain and shine. Adapt to whatever the procedurally generated world of Jalopy can throw at you.

To get a feel for Jalopy before you enter the competition, please check out the following game play videos, HERE, HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE Hopefully these will give you a better idea as to whether you feel it's worth the effort of entering the limited giveaway. You can also see more game play videos of Jalopy in the ‘Other Reviews and Videos’ section after the main review below.

Introduction:

Upgrade, maintain and care for your Laika 601 Deluxe motor vehicle. Keep close attention to everything from the state of your tyres, the condition of your engine and even the space in your trunk. Repair each aspect of your scrappy little car and install unique upgrades to deal with the changing world. Everything from cargo weight to the condition of your carburettor will determine how your car performs on the open road.

The rise of capitalism brings an economical conundrum. Scavenge for scraps to make a small return of investment, or become a baron of the open road and smuggle contraband under the eyes of border patrols to make a sizable profit.

Developer Greg Pryjmachuk worked on the Formula 1 franchise from 2009 through to 2014. In late 2014, Greg began work on this new driving simulation featuring the fictional Laika 601 Deluxe car; reminiscent of the East German “Trabbie”, it will need much love and care to keep it going on this memorable road trip

Reference accessed HERE August 29th 2018.

If you have a problem installing or activating or getting Jalopy to work, please visit the problems section over in the Game Discussion forums, which I've now incorporated into the FAQ's thread, and which you can find HERE or check the Steam forums or contact Steam support.

The Game:

It’s the year 1990, the Berlin Wall has fallen, and you’ve just come into possession of a Laika 601 Deluxe. This beat-up old car goes from 0-60 in 22.5 seconds and has a top speed of 100kmph. It’s not exactly a powerhouse, and it’s constantly in danger of breaking down, but it’s all you and your uncle have to get across Germany. As far as premises for games go, Jalopy is pretty unique. It was initially an early release on Steam but was fully released earlier this year back in March.

But before I can hit the road, I have to build it. At the beginning of the game, the car sits in my uncle’s driveway, a shell with no wheels or inside bits to make it go. I believe that’s the technical term. I replace a missing door, which naturally has a different colour of paint. Then I grab various parts from around the garage—carburettor, fuel tank, ignition coil, engine, battery—to bring the beast to life. And as I do my uncle explains what they all do. The bold, stylised art is striking, with a muted colour palette that perfectly captures the era and setting. There’s a nice physicality to grabbing the objects and slotting them into the car too. When I’m done, it’s time to go on a very peculiar road trip.

I noticed as I fitted the engine that each part had a durability rating. Jalopy is something of a survival simulator, except you aren’t managing your hunger and tiredness; you’re trying to keep your dilapidated old car alive. Weight is also an issue, and the speed the Laika moves depends on the weight of the parts I use and whatever I have in the trunk. There’s an impressive amount of simulation, even down to the lever you have to yank under the steering wheel to pop the hood. The entire game revolves around the car, and I can see myself getting attached to the little wreck as I spend time tinkering with it.

The Laika has a two-stroke engine, which means I have to pour oil into the fuel mixture as I juice her up. If I don’t the engine won’t be lubricated and will wear out at an increased rate. But if I put too much oil in I’ll see a performance drop. It’s all about the balance. I’m learning more about two-stroke engines and ancient old automobiles playing Jalopy than I have in my entire life. Developer Greg Pryjmachuk previously worked on Formula 1 racing games, so it’s clear he loves cars on a deeper level than just driving them.

In the car my uncle points out a few useful items. There’s a maintenance manual that will instruct me how to repair the car when it inevitably breaks down, and there’s a map that will let me select a route through the country. When I do the game will procedurally generate a landscape that I’ll then be able to drive across. In the manual, I learn that the Laika is named after the stray dog the Soviet Union launched into space in 1957. “Your new car, with its distinguished name, shall forever be a faithful companion to you.” reads a piece of introductory text with a slightly propagandist tone.

The first section of my journey is driving from Berlin to Dresden, which is a distance of 210 kilometres. I stick the keys in the ignition, fire up the Laika, and soon I’m leaving my uncle’s garage and speeding down the Autobahn towards Dresden. I can hear the two-stroke engine heaving and groaning as I drive along and I wonder how long it’s going to hold out. I see other cars on the road, war memorials, and a lot of trees. There’s no in-game music, so I fire up a Spotify playlist of late ‘80s music to enhance the atmosphere. ‘Looking for Freedom’ by David Hasselhoff seems appropriate.

Although the simulation of the car itself is fairly deep, the driving model doesn’t seem to have many nuances to it. If you’re used to the weighty feel of something like Euro Truck Simulator, you might be disappointed. But I get the feeling the driving isn’t really the focus in Jalopy. It’s more about keeping your car running, making money by trading and delivering goods, and there appears to be a storyline involving your uncle returning to his hometown that I didn’t get much of a taste of in this very early build

My mind begins to wander, then suddenly I smash into another car. I notice a small amount of smoke belching from the hood of the Laika and I know I’ve done something terrible. My uncle tells me to stop whenever it’s safe to do so and I splutter along looking for a place to make repairs. Eventually, I reach a town and I stop in a motel car park. Luckily I put a repair kit in the trunk back at the garage and I use it to repair the busted engine. Satisfied, we decide to stay at the motel for the night and continue our journey the next day.

Except I can’t, because in this press build the game ends as soon as I go to sleep. Lucky, really, because as I was attempting to unlock the motel room door with the key, I accidentally dropped my wallet and passport and they disappeared into the ground. Driving around the former Eastern Bloc without a passport seems like a very bad idea. Alas, I won’t find out what happens until a more complete build of the game is released. Jalopy is one of the weirdest games I’ve played in some time, but also one of the most fascinating. I’m looking forward to learning more about the political situation in that part of the world in the early ‘90s, if I can avoid smashing into other drivers.

Edited reference accessed HERE. Originally posted By Andy Kelly April 19, 2016. Edited and reposted by Whiterabbit-uk 29th Aug 2018.

Reviews and Videos of Jalopy:

You can see community reviews of Jalopy HERE, as well as more videos of game play HERE, HERE, HERE, and HERE.

Conclusion:

I was given a key for free but didn’t see it until a few hours after the game had gone live. I was on the way out at the time and only got a little game play in before having to leave it. Despite this I would recommend this game. The graphics and initial game play reminded me a little of the graphics and driving aspect of the Walking Dead game, but without the zombies. There is of course a world of difference between the games, but it did remind me somewhat of that game. I like the idea of having to keep the car serviced. It’s almost like playing a survival game, except in this case you are trying to keep your car working while you make your journey. Go for this one; Good luck to all.

I'd like to take this opportunity to thank the developer Excalibur Games for providing 4 keys for this excellent game and also to the game giveaway team, as always, for securing other ways to get free games.

Useful Information not related to today's game giveaway:

If todays' game doesn't grab you, but you still hanker for a new game, you'll find details of some game deals whether they be sale items, indie bundles or games being given away for free in the 'Weekly roundup of game deals', HERE (I've not updated in in a while, but most of the links still take you to the latest deals).

The rest of the information that used to be posted in the game review can be found in the forums HERE. Finally, check out Delenns thread for details of other free games and offers HERE

If for any reason you want to contact the giveaway team, for example, if you have a problem getting the latest game or other issues that the FAQ's thread or these comments don't cover or solve or if you have a game to offer the community you can do so HERE

If you've previously won a Steam key for previous giveaways and have still not received your key, please contact the giveaway team via the contact form HERE. Please include details of the name and the email you used when you entered the competition, plus a screenshot of your name in the winners list would be useful to confirm your win, be sure to have checked the email you used to enter the competition. That is the email used to send your key, thank you.