It's been quite a journey for the extraordinarily niche ("so niche it makes Munich Bus Simulator look mainstream") off-road driving simulator Spintires: From surprise success through a beef with the publisher, allegations of sabotage, resumption of development, and ultimately a remastered edition, with updated graphics and new vehicles and maps, that arrived last year. And soon—likely next year—we'll get a full-on sequel. 

The follow-up will continue the evolution of the title, ditching "Spintires" completely in favor of just Mudrunner 2. But it doesn't sound like a dramatic departure from the core concept: The new game "once again dares players to take charge of incredible all-terrain vehicles across extreme landscapes," publisher Focus Home Interactive said.   

It didn't state specifically whether the game will return to Russia for the extreme off-road shenanigans, but said that it will bring back Spintires' "renowned physics engine, realistic driving mechanics, intense environments and sandbox gameplay, along with a host of new features and enhancements." 

Mudrunner 2 will be more fully revealed early next year at the What's Next de Focus event.   

Spintires: Mudrunner, the game about driving Soviet vehicles through Soviet mud for no particular reason, is getting new, free DLC at the end of the month called The Ridge. It adds a new coastal map to the game that's bisected by a mountain ridge players can cut across to save time—if they're willing to take the risk. 

The Ridge also adds two new vehicles to the Spintires world, the D-538 heavy duty tractor, and the B-6A lightweight tractor. It's a safe bet that neither of these machines will lay down a ten-second quarter mile, but they can probably drag a small office building, and you can use them on any map in the game as long as you've unlocked enough progression points. 

There's a new type of gameplay in store as well, called Scavenging. Instead of picking up all your logs at one place, they're scattered all over the map and you'll have to find and collect them before they can be delivered. Which really typifies the Spintires experience: It's not about competition or victory, but simply the act of doing—a Sisyphean contemplation of life in grinding gears and impenetrable mire. And for those who like it, it's compelling. 

Spintires: Mudrunner – The Ridge comes out on May 29, and will be free for everyone. 

If the trailers for Spintires: MudRunner, the updated version of developer Saber Interactive's all-terrain driving sim, are to be believed, trucking is serious business. Through offbeat music and surprisingly stirring narratives, every single one has managed to turn otherwise simple and straightforward shots of big trucks into something downright epic, including today's launch trailer ringing in the game's release. 

"This version of Spintires offers new content and unique experiences for a video game," Saber Interactive said in an announcement. "It's a genre of its own, reinventing the rules and offering new challenges for players looking for emergent encounters and true-to-life off-roading situations." 

Simulation really is the word. Everything from fuel levels and tire conditions to inventory weight and weather-battered terrain has been faithfully simulated to create a realistic off-road experience. There's also a robust array of stuff to drive, with a total of 19 "4x4s, trucks and sturdy logistic vehicles," with which you'll conquer terrain like "rivers, forests, swamps, mountains." 

MudRunner also features mod and co-op support, which is sure to expand its sandbox. There are six sandbox maps in all, including the five from the original Spintires, as well as nine maps dedicated to the new challenge mode. 

If you're hungry for more ATV action, you can get Spintires: MudRunner on Steam for $29.99. If you own the original Spintires, you can get it for 50 percent off. 

Start your engines folks, because off-road driving sim Spintires: MudRunner is due to squelch on screens in three days' time. To mark the muddy occasion, developer Saber Interactive has released a new trailer that shows some of the bother you can get into while rumbling through the Siberian wilderness.

There's not much new in terms of gameplay (most of it was shown off here), but the video does demonstrate some of the scenarios you'll run into. One clip shows a jeep trying to tow a mammoth truck up a hill, only to be pulled back down the slope and flipped over by the weight of it.

In another, a timber lorry carrying a load of logs flips over while on the side of a hill (I'm noticing a theme here), shedding wood as it goes. The whole rolling over thing looks especially impressive in first person.

I didn't take a ride in the original Spintires, of which this game is a semi-sequel, but I'm still excited for MudRunner. It's a bit of a looker, especially when the sun is setting, and I like that you can pound the Russian tarmac if you want to take it easy for a bit. 

The game costs £22.49/$26.99 to pre-order on Steam and the Humble Store, which includes a 10% discount.

I'm not normally into driving sims, but off-roader Spintires: Mudrunner has really got its towing hooks into me with a new gameplay trailer. It shows off the game's giant trucks in action as they make their way through bogged-down routes to deliver their loads, stopping on the way to repair vehicles by the roadside or tow jeeps out of rivers.

The developers released a cinematic trailer a month ago but this is the first proper look we're getting at the game in action. It shows off two player perspectives: one in first-person that ramps up the realism but also the difficulty (not being able to see all four wheels will be tricky), and a third-person view. The UI shifts when you change perspective, displaying most of the information you need on the dashboard in first-person rather than in the corners of your screen.

The third-person view is surprisingly cinematic, giving you an over-the-shoulder view of whatever vehicle you're driving. It's similar in style to the original Spintires, of which this game is a semi-sequel, but the updated visuals really make a difference, especially when the sun is setting.

The video gives you a glimpse at some of the scenarios you'll be tackling both in singleplayer and online co-op. In one, a larger truck reverses into a river and plonks down anchors to stop it moving, flicking out a grabber above the water to help a stranded jeep ashore.

It's got all the realism you'd expect from a follow-up to Spintires, by the looks of it. You can switch to all-wheel drive, toggle a locking differential or let out the winch at the click of a button.

It's out on October 31, and will cost $30/£25/€30. Owners of the original get 50% off.

I love everything about Spintires. I love the mud and the trucks and the way that the game takes what is a slightly silly premise so seriously. The semi-sequel, updated version, Spintires: MudRunner is due out on October 31, but in the meantime, why not watch this needlessly dramatic trailer?

I feel more rugged just listening to this man—let’s assume that he’s the chap inside all of the big trucks and jeeps you’re controlling—detailing just how important and epic driving through the dirt is. 

This new edition offers updated graphics, five new environments, a challenge mode and 13 extra vehicles, on top of everything that comes with the vanilla game. There’s also a 50% discount for owners of the original. Without the discount, it will set you back $30/£25/€30.

Spintires is one of those games that you either really dig, or completely don't. It's about driving big, Soviet-era trucks through thick, Soviet-era mud—not racing or in pursuit of any grand quest, but just grinding through it however you can. Despite its obviously (very) niche appeal it was quite a success, but a fallout between the developer and publisher led to controversy, and even a temporary removal from Steam. 

That was all eventually smoothed over, and the game is now back on Steam. Not only that, but a new version called Spintires: Mudrunner is on the way as well. The "ultimate version" of Spintires will feature a "total graphical overhaul," a new sandbox map alongside the five environments in the original game, a challenge mode with nine dedicated maps, and 13 new vehicles, taking the total to 19. And happily, development is once again being headed up by Pavel Zagrebelny, the creator of the original game. 

So the core game sounds essentially unchanged, but that's not necessarily a bad approach to take. Spintires isn't the sort of game that's ever going to become a mainstream hit, but it's held onto its audience remarkably well: Its average concurrent user count in July 2014 was 1,239, and its average concurrent user count last month—July 2017—was 1,124.   

Spintires: Mudrunner is available for pre-purchase now on Steam for ten percent off its regular $30/£25/€30 price, with another 50 percent off for owners of the original. It's expected to be ready for release in October.