18 Wheels of Steel: American Long Haul

Don't Laugh, But I played this for six and a half hours over the weekend. I trucked from San Jose to Roswell, and from there to LA and San Francisco. It was hard work, an epic journey of 1,800 miles spanning many in-game days of lane changes and weigh stations.

On more than one occasion I'd trucked too hard and found my in-game self falling asleep. I imagined my virtual head lolling back as I gently choked on my cyber tongue, an unstoppable 40 tonnes of metal cruising at 50mph, inching its way into the outside lane. A jolt woke me from my snooze. I'd ploughed into a van, probably killing someone, incurring a bothersome fine.

I pressed the button to make me sleep, which you can do anywhere, at any time, without consequence, and continued on my journey refreshed. If I could avoid the police for a few days, the fine would be forgotten about, and I'd remain free. So I constantly scanned the layby for bears. That's what truckers call police. For fun, I'd wait until a car was trying to pass me on the motorway, before indicating into their lane and forcing them to brake suddenly.

I did this over and over again. Sometimes I'd talk to people on the CB radio. I'd say things like "Anybody got a 10-13?" which translates to: "How's the weather?". They'd ask about traffic, and I'd feed them misleading untruths, announcing that there were jams the next 10 miles when the roads were empty.

18 Wheels of Steel has a real sense of progression as you claw your way across the country. But it's lonely, simulating that part of the trucker life a bit too well. That was a pretty desolate weekend for me.