Review: Construction Simulator 3 – Console Edition

Construction Simulator is one of the best franchises when it comes to construction games currently in the market by Weltenbauer.Software and astragon Entertainment. Their previously released Construction Simulator 2 on Nintendo Switch is one of the best construction sims on Nintendo Switch and now their brand new title in the franchise Construction Simulator 3 – Console Edition has arrived on PS4 and Xbox One. This is our review of the PS4 version of Construction Simulator 3 – Console Edition in which we put on our working helmet and build some bridges, terraces, and skyscrapers in some of the best construction machinery available.

Construction Simulator 3 is set in the city of Neustin which comes with three separate districts. You have the small and quiet countryside town of Peckling Em See which is also the starting area of the game. The short district with less traffic and pretty much open roads is a good place to kickstart your construction career in the game. After this, you get access to the main city of Neustin and its Industrial Area which is the highest level area of the game. As you complete campaign missions and smaller jobs, you level up and enough progression allows you to take jobs in the main city and its industrial hub thus giving you access to some of the most powerful machines in the game including some of the largest sky cranes.

If you’ve played the previously released Construction Simulator 2, you will notice a lot of similarities especially in the UI and controls of the game. The UI is pretty much the same as that of the previous game in the franchise as are the controls. You will find the same camera types, the same context menu to help you operate the additional features on your vehicle as well the same machine-input to camera switching which was one feature I did not like in the previous title as well. The continuous hassle of switching to the camera and then back to machinery mode is really confusing and sadly it has made its way into Construction Simulator 3 as well.

I also did not like the fact that there is no way to invert the movement controls in the game. For someone who is not used to inverted controls, I had a really tough time getting used to the opposite moving controls. Every time I had to move the boom to the left, I moved right and when I had to go down, I was going up. This is the third game in the franchise and I had hoped that the developers would have added this basic feature in the game since now everyone favors inverted controls. This gets even more confusing because you can either control the vehicle’s advanced features or rotate the camera at one time so it is a constant battle between the two.

Apart from the advanced camera options, Construction Simulator 3 also lacks access to basic vehicle features such as using wipers, using indicators while turning and many more. While the vehicles are detailed really well in the game, having these features would make the game even more realistic. Currently, the game does come with a penalty system where you could get fine for overspeeding and hitting pedestrian vehicles. My most fines were overspeeding because the dump trucks and flatbeds are really quick in the game and if you are not careful, you will be racking up quite some fines as you drive around the city. Adding some additional features such as indicators, wipers and advanced lights would certainly make the game a lot better and will give you more control over the construction vehicles.

Construction Simulator 3 also features more vehicles than ever before in the franchise. Apart from some new brand additions to the game, you will find most of the modern vehicles and machines waiting to be bought and used in your construction firm. The vehicles range from Flatbeds to Dum Trucks to Sky Cranes for the most massive builds in the entire game. Sky Cranes are unlocked pretty late in the game however until then, you have a pretty good selection of vehicles to choose from. Each vehicle feels different and certainly brings brand new mechanics into play when you use them. You also have mini loaders this time around in Construction Simulator 3.

To progress in the main game, you have to complete different campaign missions which are the lengthiest construction jobs in the game. These will keep you occupied for a long time and will have you running back and forth as you juggle vehicles, purchase building materials and head to the Gravity Pit to purchase some filling materials. Investing in more vehicles is certainly worthwhile as you will be using pretty much all of the vehicles in your motor pool for a single job. You cannot expect yourself to simply end the game with the initial vehicles you get. Although you can rent every vehicle which is cheaper, it is not suitable in the long run and it is always good to purchase your own vehicles from the vehicle merchant.

In jobs and contracts, your Flatbed will come in handy for purchasing supplies from merchants and hauling around goods, dump trucks will allow you to collect sand or dirt which can be sold later, your bulldozer will level out the gravel while backhoe can dig and flatten at the same time. Each vehicle is unique and will allow you to save time and quickly get the job done. Relying on a few vehicles will simply increase your times on the job which will make you travel more back and forth. The game has a decent variety of every sort of vehicle however my first priority during my playthrough was that I get at least one vehicle of every type so that I can take on every sort of contract and job. Missing out a certain type of vehicle will make you lose valuable contracts and jobs.

The jobs themselves are pretty good designed. You can complete the smaller contracts which are mostly just picking up objects around the city and hauling them to a specific location. On the other hand, the campaign missions are really fun. They range from small garden jobs to building massive bridges over rivers to patching roads to constructing sky-high towers in the main city. Each job brings a brand new challenge with it and more ways to play around with the highly sophisticated machinery that you purchase in the game. These jobs are one of the reasons that I loved investing in more and more vehicles.

You level up after earning a specific amount of XP and every time you level up you earn skill points. These skill points allow you to unlock special skills that grant you massive bonuses in the game. These skills range from getting discounts at merchants and dealers to unlocking special privileges such as merchants delivering your purchased materials at the construction site or automatically loading them to your truck. These skills really make your game easy. There is no shortage of skill points in the game as well so as you grind in the game and reach those higher levels, you can purchase all of the skills in the game. Currently, the game is capped at Level 20 and you unlock a sweet black SUV upon hitting this level.

Visually, Construction Simulator 3 might not be the best looking game in the market however it is certainly the prettiest game in the franchise. The vehicle design is the best one in the franchise and the world looks much better than before. I will still say that the environments and the world detail could be made a little more detailed. The gameplay of the title is solid and the vehicles you drive are really pretty to look at. However, the world in which you drive around is not really pretty to look at and feels really dated. Most of the surfaces are dull and shadow quality is really poor as well.

The traffic and pedestrians in Construction Simulator 3 are also not short of bugs. The traffic vehicles moving on the roads will often crash into each other especially on the intersections causing long vehicle ques and blocking roads. They also have a very high braking rate which means that they would come almost next to you at their normal speed and then suddenly stop making you feel that they might crash into you. Sometimes, the AI cars just simply vanish in thin year while driving on the road. Pedestrians suffer from a similar fate however they become invisible only if your vehicle comes too close to them.

By comparing the level of detail between your own vehicles and the traffic vehicles, you can see that which of the lot received special treatment in the game. The traffic vehicles are really low in quality when compared to vehicles that the player drives in the game. If you look at your vehicles and machines, they come with high-quality lights, tire threads are visible and the overall quality is really good. On the other hand, traffic cars and cars parked in the city look really dull and low in quality. This certainly makes the environment around you look even duller. For a game that features such solid gameplay, having these dated graphics is just not fair. This is something that the developer must look to fix if they ever make another title in this franchise.

Final Verdict:

Although it has its problems at this point, Construction Simulator 3 – Console Edition is probably the best entry in the franchise yet. The amount of officially licensed vehicles in the game is really good and they are really fun to operate in the game. The jobs are excellent and you can spend hours upon hours completing them. The gameplay is where Contraction Simulator 3 really shines however when it comes to visual design and the AI of the game, there is a lot of work that still needs to be done. I am really happy with the direction where Weltenbauer.Software is heading with this franchise and I can see this franchise becoming a really solid construction simulator in the future if the developer continues to improve it. However, the bugs need to go. If you are craving a good construction sim on your PS4 or Xbox One that could keep you busy for a fairly long time, Construction Simulator 3 – Console Edition is here to satisfy your craving.

Final Score: 7.5/10