Pacific Drive Review: Wheelin’ and Dealin’
Roads? Where we’re going we don’t need— no. You know what? I’m not going to make that joke. I have to be better.
Pacific Drive from Developer Ironwood Studios is a first-person survival-adventure game where players must keep themselves alive in a brutal post-apocalyptic world. In the game, your only companion is your vehicle, called a “Remnant,” which seems to be a kind of “otherworldly being” that is connected and protects you as you venture out into the dangerous and unstable land of the Pacific Northwest of the United States.
Open Roads in a (Mostly) Open World
At the beginning of Pacific Drive's story you are introduced to the game's three main characters: Oppy, Tobias, and Francis who will guide and give you direction as you progress. As a nameless and voiceless protagonist, you don’t respond, but that doesn't stop them from arguing with each other and giving you orders. You'll uncover a lot about the story and the world just by listening to them and piecing things together.
While these characters do provide some guidance, Pacific Drive truly encourages self-discovery as a semi-open world with many non-linear paths to follow. The more you explore the more you'll uncover. This post-apocalyptic world is far from normal and you'll have to deal with all manner of dangerous anomalies along the way. From entities that will try to steal parts of your car to inclement weather that can sap your car's battery in a second, you never know what you might come across. Let’s just say, it’s not a safe space so you’ll want to make sure you’re prepared.
Chasing Those Upgrades
And that's where keeping your car upgraded for the road ahead will come in handy. The world outside the garage is scary so collecting parts and materials, doing research, and kitting out your car with better armor and defenses will prepare for the hazards ahead. Thankfully, after you’ve explored, you'll always end up back at the garage where any extra materials gathered can be stored for later use.
Unfortunately, making it back to the garage isn't as easy as simply driving back the way you came. Things are pretty complicated out on the road and if you're trying to make your way back to safety you'll first have to connect anchors to your vehicle and open a gateway to get back. This gets increasingly harder to do the longer you stay out on a run. As soon as you open a gateway, you've got to get out, fast. The best thing to do is loot quickly, grab anchors (which aren't always easy to find) and get back to avoid damaging your car, or worse, losing all the precious loot gathered on your trip.
Along with upgrading your car, you can also create and upgrade items for the garage. Research blueprints to unlock more upgrades and add a variety of machines and doohickeys to your home away from home. Machines like a deconstructer can break down unwanted items for parts. An outfitting station can be used to upgrade your character with new outfits that resist damage and radiation or give you more backpack space to help out with future runs. Can't find what you're looking for in storage? The friendly dumpster located at the garage seems to always know what you need and may just provide it to you if you ask nicely.
Use Caution: Bumpy Roads Ahead
In terms of difficulty, Pacific Drive can be unforgiving, especially when you're just starting out. There's a million different things that can go wrong with your car from a flat tire to a dead battery, and just as many items needed to fix it. And without being able to spend a lot of time out on runs gathering materials, the first few hours of the game can be rough. If you decide not to make the fixes you need or can't because of the lack of materials, you risk not making it back at all and losing everything. Once you're really able to make yourself and your car stronger, you can spend more time out on runs, gather more materials and make more upgrades, but you'll likely hit hour four or five hours of gameplay before things start to get easier.
There are other elements of Pacific Drive that are likely to frustrate players that don't have a lot of patience. Finding anchors can be difficult at times, though later there are tools to make it easier. Traversing certain areas, especially the swampy mid zone can be a huge chore and sometimes just the sheer amount of anomalies getting in your way feels completely unfair. It can also be hard to progress the story at times with the characters giving you directions that aren't very specific or helpful. But all of these nit picks and frustrations aside, Pacific Drive really is a triumph.
I'm not ashamed to admit that the game had me wanting to give up near the beginning. The world is so extensive and there is so much to see, do, read and experience. It is very overwhelming from the get go but the more you learn and play, the more you'll want to progress. Ironwood Studios has created something truly unique here and, in spite of its difficulty level, players that stick it out are sure to become completely immersed.
Breakdown
Game: Pacific Drive
Availability: PC, PlayStation 5
Reviewed on PC
Pros
+ Incredible semi-open world with lots to discover
+ Intriguing story and characters
+ Loads of customization options and upgrades
+ Banging road trip radio
Cons
- Brutal difficulty at the start
- Way too many articles and documents to read
- Can sometimes be difficult to determine how to progress the story
Final Thoughts
Pacific Drive is definitely not for the casual player. Gameplay can be very unforgiving but the more you uncover, the easier it becomes. For the player that sticks with it, it will soon become impossible to put down. From the extensive amount of vehicle customization options to the massive and unique open world, Pacific Drive is an experience players won't want to miss out on.
Review by Becca Smith