Totally Reliable Delivery Service is a game where you attempt to deliver packages, pilot an unpredictable ragdoll character, and embrace the urge to raise chaos.
Totally Reliable Delivery Service arrived at a time when we’re all stuck at home, waiting for everything we ordered to come to us. Well, after playing this game, I might be more understanding of delivery delays.
Play with up to three friends on the bumpy journey of delivering anything and everything – from engine parts, to garages, to precious toilet paper to the folks in need.
Anything That Can Go Wrong Will Go Wrong
The bumbling nature of the characters makes every task a lot harder than it should be. Every new job surprises you with another thing you never thought could be so tricky to pull off.
Even the simplest of actions can go terribly wrong. From picking up boxes (or explosive barrels) and placing them at the back seat of all sorts of vehicles, to making sure they arrive in one piece to the final destination.
Since it’s a Totally “Reliable” Delivery Service, trucks are merely a suggestion as a transport vehicle. There is a satisfying amount of heavy machinery, cars, and aircraft to choose from. These include a fire extinguisher and an umbrella, by the way.
Low Poly, High Jinks
The low-poly look suits Totally Reliable Delivery Service. It makes you feel that nothing can or should be taken too seriously. Even driving the husk of a car with nothing but wheels feels a lot better than expected.
Also, the character customization adds tons of charm. You earn so many new outfits by completing tasks, allowing you to change so many aspects of your appearance, from classic to bizarre.
On top of that, a successful delivery rewards you with cash ready to be spent on even more customizations – this time for your different vehicles and gadgets.
Some Misplaced Packages
Totally Reliable Delivery Service draws its humor from the wacky nature of its physics and clumsy characters. However, sometimes you’re not sure whether the forklift was meant to bounce off the road and into the air, or if that was a bug. It’s a doubled-edged package that sometimes contained more frustration than fun.
Playing with four players is hilarious as long as you’re just fooling around. But when you actually want to deliver some packages, you quickly find out that it’s a job for about one and a half players. Most tasks can be handled by one player alone but are more comfortable with the support of a second player. In essence, the two remaining players are left out.
Perhaps adding a second package to deliver simultaneously, or adding obstacles players need to remove out of the driver’s way could help it make everyone feel useful. Anything that would make players more dependent on each other would greatly benefit the cooperative gameplay.
Lastly, it seems like the camera is on a crusade against you. Every time I try to manually look somewhere, it automatically changes its angle. Now don’t get me wrong, dealing with a 3D automatic camera is anything but an easy task, but it did damage my experience. The first few deliveries can get infuriating, even more so for people who aren’t used to struggling with cameras in video games.
Delivers on the Fun
When played with friends, Totally Reliable Delivery Service will deliver oodles of uncontrollable laughter. This is one of the few games that manages to create a magical charm of pure, authentic, top-of-the-chart fun in chaos.
The pacing is flawless, and there’s always a close-by package to deliver. But it would have been nice to have multiple packages at the same time, so there’s more reason to play in co-op (apart from just playing in a sandbox with your friends).
While it fails to establish a clear boundary between a good and a bad mess, Totally Reliable Delivery Service is a top tier experience. The unpredictable mayhem of messing around with friends always delivers the goods.
Developer: We’re Five Games
Publisher: tinyBuild
Release Date: Apr. 01, 2020
Our Totally Reliable Delivery Service review copies were provided by the publisher.
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