Euro Truck Simulator 2
SCS Software · Simulation, Driving, Open World
Overview
Travel across Europe as king of the road, a trucker who delivers important cargo across impressive distances! With dozens of cities to explore, your endurance, skill and speed will all be pushed to their limits.
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Travel across Europe as king of the road, a trucker who delivers important cargo across impressive distances! With dozens of cities to explore from the UK, Belgium, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Poland, and many more, your endurance, skill and speed will all be pushed to their limits. If you’ve got what it takes to be part of an elite trucking force, get behind the wheel and prove it!
Key Features:
Transport a vast variety of cargo across more than 60 European cities.
Run your own business which continues to grow even as you complete your freight deliveries.
Build your own fleet of trucks, buy garages, hire drivers, manage your company for maximum profits.
A varied amount of truck tuning that range from performance to cosmetic changes.
Customize your vehicles with optional lights, bars, horns, beacons, smoke exhausts, and more.
Thousands of miles of real road networks with hundreds of famous landmarks and structures.
Play, deliver and chat online together with your friends in the Convoy multiplayer mode!
World of Trucks:
Take advantage of additional features of Euro Truck Simulator 2 by joining our online community on World of Trucks, our center for virtual truckers all around the world interested in Euro Truck Simulator 2 and future SCS Software's truck simulators.
Use in-game Photo Mode to capture the best moments and share them with thousands of people who love trucks.
Favorite the images you like the most and return to them anytime in the future.
Discuss the screenshots with everyone using World of Trucks.
See the best images hand-picked by the game creators in Editor's Pick updated almost every day. Try to get your own screenshot on this list!
Upload and use your custom avatar and license plate in the game.
World of Trucks is an optional service, registration on World of Trucks isn't required to play the game.
From the game's Steam store page.
THE GAMEQ VERDICT10,000 reviews analyzed
What players are actually saying
1. Summary
Players talk about Euro Truck Simulator 2 as a place to unwind more than a game to beat. The idea that comes up most is that it is relaxing, even therapeutic: put on music, a podcast or a real European radio stream, set cruise control, and drive through rain at night. Reviewers also praise truck handling that feels weighty, a huge map of Europe whose newer regions look superb, mods (ProMods above all) and convoys with friends. Many credit SCS with fourteen years of free updates and base-map reworks, and a few say the game helped them pass a real driving test or earn an HGV licence.
Most of the detailed criticism comes from veterans with hundreds of hours. They complain about AI traffic that brake-checks, merges into you and leaves you paying the fine, the 1.58 UI and Route Advisor redesign, an aging engine that stutters in big cities, crashes and update breakage, and older regions (the UK, Going East, Czechia, Poland) that look a decade behind the newest DLC. DLC pricing divides people. Plenty grumble that most of Europe sits behind paid expansions, yet most of those reviewers still recommend the game and advise buying on sale.
2. What keeps coming up
What players praise
A relaxing, almost therapeutic driving loopHigh
More than a quarter of the longer reviews describe the game as relaxing, chill, calming or stress-relieving. They describe a ritual: a long-haul job, music or a podcast in the background, rain on the windscreen, sunset on a motorway. Some reach for words like "therapy", "low cortisol", "meditation" and "comfort game", and a handful write about using it to get through a dark period, lockdown or lonely nights. A few say they bought it as a joke and got hooked. The in-game radio, which streams real European stations, often comes up as part of the mood. The dissent comes from players who find the same calm boring (see the split section).
Truck handling and immersion that feel realHigh
Reviewers who describe the driving say the trucks feel heavy: braking needs anticipation, trailers swing wide, hills force downshifts, and reversing into a tight dock takes real skill. Detailed licensed interiors, engine and turbo sounds, weather and the day-night cycle all add to the sense of sitting in the cab. Some HGV drivers and ex-truckers in the reviews say the feel is close to the real thing, while some hardcore sim players argue that physics, damage and cargo handling are still more "game" than "simulator" (see frustrations). One veteran also counts the new physics among recent changes for the worse.
A huge map, and the newer regions look superbHigh
Exploring Europe is the other big draw. Players enjoy crossing borders, spotting landmarks, taking ferries and trains, and chasing map-completion percentages. Newer map DLC gets glowing mentions by name: Nordic Horizons, West Balkans, Greece, and the Benelux and Germany reworks. A few tie it to a home country or a planned trip. Reviewers who praise the new regions also point out how uneven the map is, since the newer areas make the oldest ones look dated.
Mods, ProMods and the Workshop extend it endlesslyMedium
Mods come up in around one in six of the longer reviews. Some long-time players treat ProMods, graphics and lighting packs (Snowymoon comes up by name), realistic traffic and physics mods, sound packs and economy overhauls as essential, and Steam Workshop integration makes it easy to start. One reviewer says playing unmodded is like playing "half a game". Mods also cost something: they break after updates, load order is fiddly, and a few players say heavy mod stacks cause crashes.
Driving with friends in convoy or on TruckersMPMedium
Playing together keeps some people coming back. Reviewers describe fuel stops together, banter on voice chat, and someone inevitably flipping a truck or ramming a friend; one calls it "organized chaos". TruckersMP, the community multiplayer mod, is often recommended for driving among thousands of real players, and the Calais to Duisburg traffic jams are a running joke. Opinions on the two multiplayer options are split (see below).
Fourteen years of free updates and map reworksMedium
Reviewers often note that a 2012 game still gets substantial free updates, new trucks and base-map reworks, and some contrast SCS favourably with studios that chase annual sequels or live-service monetisation. Players who started years ago say it keeps getting better. Some of those long-time players also criticise where the development effort goes (see the split section), so this praise and that criticism sometimes sit in the same review.
Wheel support, and it still works on a pad or keyboardMedium
Some reviewers bought a wheel (Logitech G29 and G920, Moza, Thrustmaster, Fanatec, HORI) specifically for this game and call it transformative. Wide wheel compatibility is praised, including very old wheels that other games refuse to recognise. Others say a controller or mouse steering is perfectly playable, though keyboard-only players more often find steering twitchy.
Runs on almost anything, including Steam Deck, Linux, Mac and VRMedium
Plenty of players report good performance on budget laptops, integrated graphics and old PCs, and some say that is why they bought it. Native Linux support, Steam Deck play, Apple Silicon Macs and VR are all praised, and VR players call the immersion spectacular. Other players report real performance problems (see the split section).
It taught people to driveLow
A handful of players credit the game with helping them pass a car driving test or practise driving on the left, and a few say it led them to a real HGV or Class 1 licence and a trucking career. A couple say it made them more patient drivers.
Cheap on saleLow
Some players mention buying the base game for a few dollars or euros in a sale and calling it one of the best-value purchases in their library. The same reviewers tend to advise waiting for sales on DLC.
Where players are split
DLC: great value on sale, or Europe behind a paywallHigh
DLC comes up in 18% of the longer reviews, more than any other money topic. One camp says the map expansions are high quality, fairly priced for the work, and essential to enjoying the game fully, and recommends bundles or the Ultimate Edition during sales. The other camp complains that "Most of Europe is locked behind a pay-wall", that a single map expansion can cost as much as the base game, that achievements depend on DLC, and that the total for a newcomer runs to around 100 euros. Most reviewers who complain about DLC prices still recommend the game. Specific targets include the oldest expansion (Going East) still selling at full price, and a Scandinavia expansion that some owners feel was split into a second paid DLC.
"Boring" or "the point": the repetitive loopMedium
Reviewers who describe the loop agree it is simple: pick up cargo, drive, park, repeat. For most of them that is the appeal. The negative reviews that call it boring or repetitive come from players with little time in the game (a median of 13 hours). Some longer-term players say it gets repetitive after many hours unless you add DLC, mods or friends.
Performance: potato-friendly, yet stutters in citiesMedium
Budget-hardware players praise how well it runs. Others, often with strong PCs, report FPS dropping by half in big cities and newer DLC regions, stutter in rain, and a CPU bottleneck they blame on an engine that leans on a single core. A couple of low-end players say older versions ran better, and one rolled back to an earlier build to stop crashes. Mac users report mixed results depending on renderer settings.
Where SCS spends its effortMedium
The announced Coaches (bus) expansion splits the audience. Several reviewers are openly excited about it; some veterans object that a truck sim should not be adding buses while AI and optimisation problems wait. Similar complaints surround features players say were promised years ago and never fully arrived (rigid trucks, ownable electric trucks with charging, the new Mercedes Actros), and the removal of the old Calais to Duisburg road that multiplayer regulars loved. Complaints that SCS cares more about selling DLC than fixing the game, in otherwise positive reviews, mostly come from here.
Official Convoy versus TruckersMPMedium
Players value both routes to multiplayer and criticise each. Official Convoy is praised for being easy and supporting AI traffic and mods, but reviewers report "unable to join session" errors, a server browser that finds nothing, mod-mismatch errors when joining via Steam, missing trailers for other players, and small session caps. TruckersMP delivers crowds but brings griefers, heavy lag in hotspots, no AI traffic, and moderation that some players find harsh. Some recommend TruckersMP for crowds and Convoy for driving with friends.
Fines, police and the career economyLow
Speed cameras and instant fines are a common joke, and some players like that the rules push them to drive properly. Others find the fines arbitrary: a small overspeed costing thousands while ramming a car costs a few hundred, fines when an AI car hits you, and police catching you from the opposite carriageway. The career layer divides people too. Many enjoy growing from one truck to a fleet, but some longer-term players say the economy is too easy to break, driver hiring is capped and fiddly, and the business side is passive income with little depth.
What frustrates players
AI traffic that brake-checks, merges into you and gets you finedHigh
Casual and veteran players both complain about AI traffic, though the negative reviews that raise it come mostly from players with hundreds of hours. Reviewers say cars merge into your trailer, cut across roundabouts, stop at uncontrolled junctions, overtake on the inside, brake for no reason and ignore the horn. Several are angry that the player pays the fine and the repair bill when an AI car causes the crash, which can wreck an hour-long delivery.
Crashes, freezes, lost saves and updates that break thingsMedium
Crashes and bugs are the most common reason for negative reviews, cited in 14% of them. Reports include crashes on launch, crashes when opening the pause menu, truck dealer or bank, crashes specific to certain garages or DLC regions, saves that vanished or corrupted, controls and settings resetting after updates, and a completed delivery lost to a crash just before the drop-off. Several reviews tie a wave of problems to specific updates (1.58, 1.59 and 1.60), and a few note that fixes or rollbacks resolved them.
The 1.58 UI and Route Advisor redesignMedium
Barely half of the reviews that attack the new interface still recommend the game. Long-time players describe the old Route Advisor as perfect at-a-glance design and the new split layout (a round speedometer on one side, navigation on the other, key info moved into menus) as a downgrade built for consoles. Specific grievances include the missing bank balance and job distance, the loss of the F5 to F9 panels, grey icons that are hard to tell apart, readability problems, and constant tooltips. The request that recurs is a way to switch back to the old UI. A minority say the new menus look cleaner, and some note later updates made it more tolerable. The negative reviews that raise it come from players with hundreds of hours.
An aging engine and older regions left behindMedium
Veterans say the engine shows its age: jagged edges and flickering poles without proper anti-aliasing, dated vegetation, no multi-core support, and graphics that need paid or third-party mods to look modern. Some call for an engine upgrade or an ETS3. Older map areas draw steady criticism too: the UK (a rework had been announced), Going East and much of Poland, Czechia and Slovakia are described as looking "stuck in 2012" next to the newest DLC, with tiny cities and generic assets. Players praise the reworks that have landed and want the pace to pick up.
Controller and wheel setup headachesLow
A smaller group could not get their hardware working: controllers not registering triggers, Steam Deck buttons unresponsive on first boot, bindings resetting when a controller reconnects or after updates, force feedback feeling "like driving on glass" or going haywire after a patch, and wheel steering that feels touchy.
Simulation gaps veterans keep asking aboutLow
Long-time players list missing features that stop it from feeling like a full simulation: no leaving the truck, no visible damage or deformation, always summer with no seasons or snow, rest areas where only one parking spot works and long trailers cannot use them, towing that cancels a contract, a fixed sleep length, border and toll barriers damaging trailers, cargo too large for the exit, and achievements that depend on luck of the job board. A few find the Driving Academy too strict, since one mistake means starting a challenge over.
3. The player conversation
The tone is warm, affectionate and often joking. A huge share of reviews are one-line love notes, memes about "truck go vroom", fines and flipped trucks, or tongue-in-cheek stories about delivering bananas across Europe. Some of the long reviews are personal: players describe it as a comfort game that helped them through hard times, taught them to drive, or reminded them of a trucking parent. The slice is 96.1% positive, and from March 2026, when weekly volume picks up, the weekly positive rate stayed between about 94% and 99%, with no sign of a collapse around any update.
Reviewers who gave up within two hours mention crashes, lag and fiddly controls, or say it simply isn't their kind of game. The pointed criticism comes from players with hundreds of hours. Many of them still call it a great game, and they object to the UI redesign, AI traffic, the engine, and development priorities that they see as tilted toward new DLC and buses over fixing the core. Some are updated reviews, flipped negative after an update and occasionally flipped back once it was fixed.
4. What the developers could do
- Overhaul AI traffic behaviour and fault assignment. Casual and veteran players both raise it, and they are most incensed that AI drivers who merge into or brake-check them leave the player paying the fine and repair bill.
- Offer a classic Route Advisor and HUD option. Barely half the reviewers who attack the 1.58 redesign still recommend the game, and loyal players ask above all for a toggle back to the old layout with the bank balance and job distance visible at a glance.
- Harden stability and protect progress. Crashes, lost or corrupted saves, and settings or bindings resetting after updates are the leading cause of negative reviews, so automatic save backups and update-safe controller profiles would address the most common reason people quit.
- Improve engine performance in cities and add proper anti-aliasing. Players on strong and weak hardware alike report FPS halving in big cities and newer regions and flicker without mods, and they ask for multi-core use and a modern AA solution.
- Accelerate reworks of the oldest regions and rethink old DLC pricing. The UK, Going East, Czechia and Poland are singled out as dated next to Nordic Horizons and West Balkans, and several reviewers suggest the oldest map DLC should be discounted, bundled cheaply, or folded into the base game.
- Fix Official Convoy joining and mod syncing. Players report "unable to join session" errors, an empty or spam-filled browser, mod mismatches when joining through Steam, and invisible trailers, which pushes friends onto TruckersMP instead.
- Make updates gentler on mods, jobs and hardware settings. Veterans with large mod stacks describe updates that break mods, cancel in-progress deliveries, and reset wheel and controller configuration.
- Close the long-requested simulation gaps. Seasons, visible damage, usable rest-area parking for long trailers, and towing that does not cancel a contract are the features veterans keep asking for, ahead of new content.
