When it comes to the simulation of means of transport such as airplanes, ships and machines, it is always necessary to find a right compromise between graphic quality and realism. The best driving simulators, whatever type of vehicle it is, are all paid.
We saw it in the article on simulators to learn how to drive the car and those for managing means of transport.
In this case we see a universal simulator that allows you to drive, in different scenarios, any type of vehicle you may want to try, including trucks, tugs, buses, coaches, planes, boats, street and sports cars, off- road vehicles, jeeps, monster trucks and many others.
Although graphics may not make lovers of aesthetics happy, the best feature of Rigs of Rods is the representation of physics that allows you to drive in an absolutely realistic way .
Every little detail is rendered as it would be in reality and the vehicles move the wheels taking into account the weight distribution, the dimensions, the structure, the environment and, of course, the way you drive and the type of road.
You can download Rigs of Rods from the official website or on the project website hosted by Github.
Unfortunately there is no Italian version so you will have to play with the simulator in English or other languages.
The first time you start the game, after reading the pdf that illustrates the keyboard controls, you can choose between different landscapes.
The game starts in a garage, with a little man who can walk around.
The first thing to do then is to enter the office to choose the vehicle to drive .
Once you have chosen the vehicle, you have to choose whether to use the automatic, sequential or manual transmission which will be more difficult but is much more fun.
The view when inside a vehicle is in third person, with the dashboard visible at the bottom, at the base of the window, from which to look at the odometer, the tachometer and many other lights.
The driving of these vehicles is extremely realistic, you hit a curb, the bus is likely to roll over, if you are on a steep mountain slope, the car or truck sled and so on.
The steering, if driving a sports car, is ultra sensitive while that of the truck is much heavier.
The engine sound makes itself heard with pleasure when the accelerator is pressed and, even if I'm not an expert, it also gives an impression of realism.
If you drive a trailer truck, you can choose which trailer to hook or which load to load on the tractor.
If you make an accident and break a vehicle, you have to bring it to fix it.
I recommend trying to drive a crane or other heavy work vehicle because it is truly an educational experience.
Every time you drive a different vehicle it seems to change the game because the simulation also changes radically, just think that you can also take a plane or a boat.
The choice of the scenario is decisive for the playability: on city streets you have to follow the rules of the road code while in the mountains you can run more and, if you go off-road excursions, you must be careful not to get bogged down or overturn.
You can drive on ice, on sand, on grass and on any type of surface.
Exploring and changing landscapes, you can come across a plane parked in the middle of a runway, which you can fly like in the best flight simulators (see article on the best free flight simulator ).
The ships are easier to drive and you can choose to bring a small boat or a real ferry.
I must say that exploring the various virtual landscapes with these motor vehicles is a real pleasure, especially seeing how objects interact with the machine, which responds differently depending on the vehicle chosen.
To play Rigs Of Rods you need a good computer, otherwise, you can try to set the graphics options to a minimum and hope that the PC can run smoothly because this universal simulator requires a lot of resources.
For the record, the best simulation game to drive a truck is definitely 18 Wheels of Steel, of which, however, you can only download the playable trial for free.
In another article, however, we talk about the great driving simulator of an OpenBVE train
