My Summer Car

Even though the title of this game may not seem enticing, My Summer Car offers an intriguing and offbeat premise that truly delivers. As is the case with other indie games, My Summer Car does not easily fit into a single genre or category; the one that comes the closest would be job or business simulation because many of the tasks and challenges involve auto mechanics, but there are strong elements of the survival and adventure genres in an open-world game environment.

The game is set in the Finnish countryside of the mid-1990s; the underlying story involves an 18-year-old male whose parents have gone away on vacation to the Spanish island of Tenerife. At the heart of the game is a rebuilding project: a junked Japanese sporty hatchback inspired by the Datsun Cherry of the early 1980s. The rusted chassis is propped up on beer crates; players have most of the parts and tools at their disposal to rebuild their summer car, but there are no instructions.

My Summer Car is not an easy game. The simulation elements go beyond auto mechanics; players need to survive the summer, which means hydrating, eating, resting, sleeping, and obtaining money necessary to order missing or broken parts. The atmospherics of the game are very thoughtful, hilarious, and observant of rural life in Finland. Drinking beer to the point of inebriation, random urination, getting in trouble with the local police, and generally being an awful teenager driven to tears by boredom are all incorporated into the game.

Even though the game's graphics look as if they were designed for old PlayStation titles, they actually fit the general vibe. This is a very difficult game because of the controls and lack of instructions, but an online community has emerged to help players navigate this quirky world.

My Summer Car Pros

• Very original premise.
• Europop songs on the radio are catchy.
• Will appeal to car lovers.

My Summer Car Cons

• Difficult to the point of frustration.
• Not every action has a logical consequence.