It is interesting that no matter how popular racing games and car games in general are, they are mostly based on arcade driving, or focus on physics or the driving model itself, while rarely any game tries to actually teach you what it's like to drive in real life. Car Driving School Simulator tries to change that.
Before I start talking about the game itself, it is important to note that it is a phone game, which has only been ported to PC. In my opinion, this aspect hurts the gaming experience the most, because the game lacks a lot of essential PC features. You can't change the resolution or controls, all elements of the user interface are made to fit the phone screen, and the draw distance is remarkably low. Rotating the camera is also almost impossible, because you have to hold the left click, like rotating the camera with your finger on the phone.
But, leaving technicalities aside, what is much more important here is the driving experience itself. The car models are decently detailed with a solid number of polygons, especially for a mobile game. First-person gameplay is also available, for additional immersion, which I definitely recommend. The turning is very arcade and almost no skill is needed to make some difficult turns, but in this game you will definitely not race, but like a good citizen you will watch your speed. The game teaches you the rules of driving at the beginning, and this is definitely the most elaborate aspect of Car Driving School Simulator. You will have to start the vehicle fine before stepping on the gas, turn on the lights, wipers, use the turn signals, follow the lanes, traffic lights, intersections and the like. I also liked that the game penalizes or rewards you with points depending on your driving. If you finish the level with too many negative points - you have to play it from the beginning. Now, this system is not perfect, and I was especially disappointed by the fact that the game does not punish you in any way if you turn off the road onto the sidewalk, on which you can drive with impunity and without rules.
The levels themselves consist of driving around different maps, where you don't have any special task except to follow a marked route. There is no exploration in the levels, and the game actively punishes you if you don't follow the given route. For such a thing there is a free roam mode, which you unlock after collecting enough points in the levels. The maps themselves aren't overly large, nor can you find anything particularly interesting in them, but it's nice to see that the amount of maps is quite solid. Besides, there is not too much content. Once you finish all the exercises, and unlock all the maps - you are done with the game, and unfortunately you have almost no reason to play again or pass the levels again. The game can be completed in a whole hour to two, which is quite a bit for the initial price of 10 euros that the game asks for on Steam (While it is free on Google Play and the App Store).
One thing that I unfortunately have to point out as negative is the use of AI assets in the promotional material, as well as in the game itself for certain images. Such things significantly spoil the experience in games, and especially in a paid game they have no place.
If you are interested in this kind of driving simulation, you can get it on Steam (where it is currently at a 15% discount), Android, iOS and Nintendo Switch.
A copy of the game was provided by the development studio BoomBit for review purposes
