I love indie developers that dare to be fun. Not many of them are like that — some are as greedy or pragmatic as your major publishers. But the others can take one silly idea and make a whole game out of it. Happy Volcano knew it was a fun concept, and they did their best to create something worth your while. And I think that they’ve succeeded.
You Suck At Parking is precisely what it sounds like: it’s a game about parking where you can’t do anything right. Parking is not even a thing in most of the driving games. Here, though, it’s the main objective. Oh, and you don’t have any breaks.
You Suck At Parking is separated into self-contained levels, each with a few parking spaces you have to occupy — preferably from the first try. Your sedan will swerve, fly in the air and fall into the abyss — it’s inevitable. But you’ll learn and gradually will become better. The goal? To not suck at parking.
And that’s it, really. It’s a simple game with a simple premise — nothing wrong with it. The main thing is the execution. Does the title have charm? It does, loads of it. There’s also a fair amount of challenge: making it to the finish line parking spot is never easy, and you’ll have to try again and again. Thankfully, restarting the level takes less than a second.
Read also: Tinykin review: The platformer you didn’t know you were waiting for
The levels are very creative and don’t repeat themselves. The game does not feel like a proof of concept but a fully realized product. It looks and controls great and has over one hundred levels already. There’s even a frenetic multiplayer mode for up to eight players!
Is there anything I don’t like? You bet. First of all, it’s a modern game, to a fault. You can buy a Parking Pass that contains more goodies, and tons of cosmetics can be purchased with your hard-earned money. The game strives to become Rocket League, but the focus on being a live service game only harms the overall impression. But then again, you have to survive in the world of Game Pass somehow.
Read also: The Company Man review: The Office of platformers?
You Suck At Parking does not suck. It’s a fun little game that stands out and does mostly everything right. Not a Rolls-Royce, but a pleasant enough ride.