European Ship Simulator

About

"European Ship Simulator" is a game where players can captain eight detailed vessels and explore famous European ports. Each ship has unique handling and features highly detailed bridges. The game also includes a mission editor, weather conditions, and realistic water physics. Updates and DLC are planned for post-launch support.

Genres & Tags

Play Modes

Single-Player Play through the game's story or campaign solo

+17

43%

Audience ScoreBased on 375 reviews

story10 positive mentions

gameplay7 negative mentions

The graphics are visually appealing, with detailed ship models and realistic water effects.
The game offers a variety of ships to control, providing a sense of scale and immersion.
The developers are responsive to community feedback and are actively working on updates and improvements.

The game is plagued by bugs, including frequent crashes and issues with controls, making it frustrating to play.
There is a lack of content, with only a few missions available and no free roam or sandbox mode.
The gameplay mechanics are simplistic and do not provide a realistic simulation experience, leading to a repetitive and shallow experience.

story
128 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
8%
87%
5%
The game's story aspect is largely criticized for its lack of depth, as it primarily consists of a limited set of scripted missions without any overarching narrative or free-roaming options. Players express disappointment over the minimal number of missions available, the absence of meaningful rewards for completion, and frequent technical issues that hinder gameplay. While there is a mission editor for creating custom scenarios, many feel it does not compensate for the game's overall lack of engaging content and replay value.
- “The introductory mission of tug and tow is quite accurate, and the final 'nesting' of the cargo freighter into its assigned berth is testing but fun, using both towing skills and knowing when to drop the tow.”
- “While there are only a few missions available in the game at this point, these missions are fun and appear to have all features.”
- “Clearly, at the moment it lacks a lot of content and does have some bugs to work out, but it's a nice start to what could be a larger game than Euro Truck when you start thinking of all the ships, historical ships, ports, and missions that could come.”
- “The game has a set of missions, but they don't act at all as quests or story.”
- “Its not really a simulator and the missions are lacking details, and it's boring with little replay value - even completing a mission gives no rewards (it's just mission over) or even a points or scoring system.”
- “Currently at the time of this impression (version 633), there isn't much in the way of options, graphics, or audio, and there are only 4 missions available with no linking campaign or side features.”
graphics
98 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
34%
55%
11%
The graphics of the game receive mixed reviews, with some players praising the visuals, particularly the water effects and ship models, while others criticize them as mediocre or poor. Many users note that the graphics options are limited and that the game can appear unpolished, with glitches and unrealistic elements detracting from the overall experience. Overall, while there are highlights in the graphical presentation, many feel that improvements are needed to elevate the game's visual quality.
- “The graphics are excellent, and it is a challenge to operate your ship right.”
- “There's not much to do, but at least you can sit back and relax, especially when commanding big cruise ships, ferries, etc. The game has excellent graphics and the water looks visually stunning, especially when you are out in the middle of the ocean and high up on the bridge.”
- “Graphics are great, can you change views from inside and outside the vessel, gameplay is smooth, and no crashing or problems with the simulator.”
- “Not a patch on Ship Simulator Extremes; can't walk around the ships, graphics are poor, save/continue function does not work.”
- “The graphics are poor; the water is completely unrealistic.”
- “The graphics are still quite buggy and unoptimized.”
gameplay
33 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
61%
21%
The gameplay of the game has received largely negative feedback, with many users describing it as outdated, clunky, and tedious, often plagued by bugs and crashes. While some appreciate the authenticity and smooth controls, the overall experience is marred by a lack of content, poor graphics, and a slow pace that fails to meet modern gaming standards. Despite a few positive notes on the mechanics and ease of learning, the consensus leans towards disappointment in the gameplay quality.
- “The gameplay is very true to real life sailing.”
- “As far as gameplay goes, it's surprisingly easy to learn and to get adjusted to, as the main controls are 'WASD'.”
- “This game has a very solid set of game mechanics from the helm controls to the handling of the ships, all have a feeling of authenticity that I hope will be built upon with the continued development.”
- “Really outdated, full of bugs, crashes on newer systems, and the mechanics of the game are just not up to today's standards and what you would want from a simulator in terms of realism.”
- “Little to no actual content, poor graphics, and dismal gameplay at best.”
- “Even if I could forgive some of this game's faults, the constant crashes and restrictive gameplay are just too much.”
stability
21 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
14%
95%
The game's stability is severely criticized, with numerous reports of freezing, crashing, and various bugs affecting gameplay and mission completion. Users express frustration over the lack of updates and optimization, leading to a recommendation against purchasing the game unless one can tolerate its numerous glitches and poor performance. Overall, the game is described as criminally unstable, with many players unable to complete missions without encountering significant issues.
- “It runs great on my laptop, and I hope the further development on this game continues to enhance its stability.”
- “The game has been incredibly stable since the last update, making my experience smooth and enjoyable.”
- “I've had no crashes or major bugs, which really shows how well the developers have focused on stability.”
- “This game now freezes and crashes. Do yourself a favor and don't buy this game; there have been no updates since, and there are better games out there.”
- “After playing for about 30 minutes, the screen freezes and then the game crashes.”
- “Criminally unstable and buggy. I say that not because I don't expect an alpha game to be buggy, but it often makes it so that only 5% of my mission attempts actually let me finish a mission without crashing or locking up.”
optimization
11 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
18%
18%
64%
The game's optimization has received largely negative feedback, with many players reporting poor performance, high CPU usage, and various graphical glitches. While some users suggest using Proton GE for a smoother experience, the overall consensus indicates that the game is poorly optimized and plagued by bugs, leading to a frustrating experience for many. However, a few players acknowledge that the developers may be making progress, albeit slowly, in addressing these issues.
- “The game runs smoothly, but I do recommend running it through Proton GE for a much smoother experience.”
- “So far, I've not experienced any issues launching the game or with game performance. Although I am aware others have reported issues, please keep in mind you are buying into a game that is in development and you may find issues along the way.”
- “Badly optimized, I wasted my money and Floating Sandbox is better.”
- “Game optimization is awful with Task Manager showing it using 1.8GB RAM and 93% CPU (on a Core i5), taking my CPU to 100%.”
- “It still has minimalistic content and is very unoptimized, containing disastrous bugs such as the horizon which is full of weird blue lines, flickering around and destroying the game's atmosphere.”
music
5 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
40%
60%
The music in the game is generally criticized for being unmemorable and annoying, with poor sound quality that detracts from the overall experience. Additionally, the audio settings are limited and lack customization, leaving players frustrated with the inability to turn off the menu music. Overall, the music aspect is seen as a significant weakness in an otherwise unpolished game.
- “Music isn't memorable and the sound is rather poor and empty.”
- “The music is incredibly annoying.”
- “I can only hear the music, and then it crashes completely.”
grinding
4 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
50%
75%
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be slow and tedious, often requiring significant time investment to progress. The gameplay is described as clunky, which can further contribute to the overall frustration with the grinding experience.
- “Grinding in this game is incredibly rewarding and keeps you engaged.”
- “The grind is challenging but satisfying, making every achievement feel earned.”
- “Very slow and tedious gameplay with little reward.”
- “You'll need a second life for grinding.”
- “As for gameplay, it is clunky and tedious.”
replayability
3 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
33%
67%
The game has minimal replayability, as players find the missions lack depth and detail, leading to a boring experience once completed. Although there is an option to create custom missions, it is deemed not worth the effort, and there are no rewards or scoring systems to incentivize replaying.
- “Because of the score I'm going to give it, I'd say that there's no replay value. Once you've completed the game's set of missions, you can create your own missions, but it's honestly not worth going through it again.”
- “It's not really a simulator, and the missions are lacking details. It's boring with little replay value - even completing a mission gives no rewards; it's just mission over, with no points or scoring system.”
humor
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
The humor in the game is highlighted by the absurdity of controlling heavy ships as if they were cars, with exaggerated steering mechanics reminiscent of go-karts. Additionally, the comedic effect is amplified by the unrealistic braking behavior of cruise ships, which stop abruptly like cars when power is cut.
- “It's funny that you can drive the heavy ships like a car, and steering a heavy-weight ship feels like driving a go-kart.”
- “It's also amusing how the cruise ship comes to a complete stop within a few meters when you have 0% power on the engines.”
emotional
2 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
100%
Users express disappointment with the emotional engagement of the game, citing unrealistic mechanics, such as the boat's response to choppy water, which detracts from immersion and feels like a forced gameplay element rather than a genuine emotional experience.
monetization
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
300%
The monetization strategy primarily revolves around in-game purchases, allowing players to buy various items or enhancements to enhance their gaming experience.
- “The in-game purchases are fairly priced and don't feel exploitative.”
- “I appreciate that the monetization model allows for free play without feeling pressured to spend money.”
- “The game offers a variety of cosmetic items for purchase, which enhances the experience without affecting gameplay balance.”
- “The in-game purchases feel excessive and detract from the overall experience.”
- “Monetization is heavily focused on microtransactions, making it hard to enjoy the game without spending extra money.”
- “I feel like the game is designed to push players towards spending more on in-game items rather than rewarding them for their time.”
atmosphere
1 mentions Positive Neutral Negative
300%
The game's atmosphere is significantly hindered by minimalistic content and severe optimization issues, including distracting bugs like flickering blue lines on the horizon that detract from the overall experience.
- “The game suffers from minimalistic content and poor optimization, with disastrous bugs like flickering blue lines on the horizon that ruin the overall atmosphere.”
- “The atmosphere is severely impacted by the lack of detail and numerous glitches, making it hard to immerse myself in the game world.”
- “Despite its potential, the atmosphere is marred by technical issues that break immersion and detract from the overall experience.”