Bridge Constructor (PC) Review

Bridge Constructor throws players in head first to begin constructing bridges. The focus point is ensuring various types of automobiles—and in the DLC, trains—can make it across a makeshift bridge. There are various kinds of cars, trucks, and trains, and each acts as a kind of difficulty increase. While the four-door sedan is an easy car to get across, the box truck is exponentially harder.

There are only a few kinds of material to construct a bridge from, so the trick is figuring out the perfect design that will withstand the weight of the vehicles, at least until they make it across. The game very quickly explains the design fundamentals, and then allows the player to jump in and try it over and over.

Trying it repeatedly becomes tiresome, especially when the tutorial is so short that mistakes are largely based on ignorance, instead of failing to exact a plan correctly. Too often, even following the rules leads to failure, because there are caveats to each rule that are never explained thoroughly. Add in a max amount of materials the player can use, which is critically low even early in the game, and most bridges collapse under the weight of repeated failure.

Never once is discovering the solution a moment of elation. Trying repeatedly leads to a moment of "Finally" and then debating whether to move on. The Trains DLC somewhat alleviates this monotonous trial and error, but eventually drops back into the same pattern. The most upsetting part is how similar the levels frequently look. One stage looks almost exactly like the last, yet the solution is wildly different.

While the gameplay is commonly just frustrating for all the wrong reasons, the physics are pretty spot on. The controls are somewhat finicky, and this leaves the whole experience depending on how well the levels are designed. They are, unfortunately, annoying and malicious, leaving the player with repeated failures that never result in feeling accomplished. It's just a repeated reminder that you don't know enough to escape each level.