Expeditions: A MudRunner Game

Lore & Background

Expeditions: A MudRunner Game was developed by Saber Interactive, the studio behind MudRunner and SnowRunner. Creative director Oliver Hollis-Leick noted that compared to SnowRunner, Expeditions has a 'more adventurous spirit', as players use technology to identify and reach objectives. The game was announced by Focus Entertainment in August 2023 and released on March 5, 2024, for multiple platforms. A cooperative multiplayer mode was planned as a free post-launch update.

Gameplay retains the series' core challenge of driving all-terrain vehicles through difficult terrain but replaces cargo transport with exploration. Players lead scientific expeditions across three distinct environments: Little Colorado, Arizona, and the Carpathian Mountains in Central Europe. Each map is a large open environment with optional objectives, though freeroam mode is only unlocked after completing each map's expedition mission. New tools include jackscrews for flipping vehicles, metal detectors and camera drones for scouting and finding caches, and a sonar detector for measuring water depth. Players can also attach a winch to trees or rock surfaces to scale steep cliffs. Progress involves expanding the base camp's research structure and trade sites, unlocking tools and recruiting non-playable characters.

Reader's Guide

Expeditions: A MudRunner Game received generally favorable reviews according to Metacritic, and OpenCritic reported that 79% of critics recommended it. Luke Reilly of IGN described it as a 'worthwhile complementary experience' to SnowRunner, noting that its 'unique brand of slow-paced bushwhacking' offers an oddly satisfying challenge where the journey matters more than the destination. Jan Ole Peek of Shacknews called it an 'interesting iteration' for the franchise, though he felt the new additions were underdeveloped. Rick Lane of Rock, Paper, Shotgun wrote that the game 'nonetheless succeeds in its primary objective, to build a world where the car and the ground are at irrepressible odds', but criticized the user interface, underwhelming objectives, and lack of a central story, concluding that 'doing fake science is quite dull without any characters or stakes to pin it to'. The game's legacy lies in its attempt to evolve the MudRunner formula by emphasizing exploration and technology over logistics, offering a distinct experience within the series.

Did You Know?

• Expeditions is a spin-off in the MudRunner series, shifting focus from cargo transport to exploration.
• The game includes tools such as jackscrews, metal detectors, camera drones, and sonar detectors.
• The game was released on March 5, 2024, for Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X and Series S.

Exploration Over Haulage: A New Design Philosophy

Where earlier entries in the MudRunner franchise threw players into the role of cargo haulers, Expeditions deliberately reorients the core loop around scientific discovery. Rather than ferrying supplies between fixed points, players lead research expeditions across three sprawling open-world maps set in Little Colorado, Arizona, and the Carpathian Mountains of Central Europe. Each map is packed with optional objectives, though the free-roam mode only unlocks once the player finishes that region's main expedition mission. The toolkit has been expanded to support this exploratory focus: jackscrews can right a vehicle that has rolled onto its roof, metal detectors and camera drones help locate hidden caches and scout distant terrain, and a sonar detector reveals the depth of water crossings. A winch can be anchored to a tree or rock face, letting the player haul a truck up otherwise impassable cliffs. As the campaign progresses, the base camp grows—research structures and trade sites are upgraded, new equipment is unlocked, and additional non-playable characters join the expedition to assist with increasingly demanding missions.

Saber Interactive's Adventurous Pivot

Saber Interactive, the studio behind both the original MudRunner and its successor SnowRunner, returned to the franchise to craft Expeditions, with Focus Entertainment handling publishing duties. The project was officially announced in August 2023 and shipped on March 5, 2024. Creative director Oliver Hollis-Leick framed the game's identity by contrasting it with SnowRunner, describing Expeditions as carrying a "more adventurous spirit." In his view, the defining shift is that players are no longer simply hauling payloads from point A to point B; instead, they must actively employ a suite of technology to identify where objectives are and figure out how to reach them. This philosophy of discovery-driven progression runs through every layer of the design, from the drone-based scouting to the sonar-assisted water crossings. The game's positioning as a spin-off rather than a direct sequel gave the team latitude to experiment with pacing and structure while still leaning on the series' signature all-terrain vehicle mechanics and punishing wilderness terrain.

A Journey Critics Found Satisfying Yet Imperfect

Review aggregators painted a broadly positive picture: Metacritic classified the launch reception as "generally favourable," and OpenCritic reported that 79 percent of surveyed critics recommended the title. IGN's Luke Reilly called it a "worthwhile complementary experience" to SnowRunner, praising what he termed a "unique brand of slow-paced bushwhacking" and concluding that the satisfaction of hauling a truck through terrain even the toughest trailblazers would avoid makes the journey inherently more rewarding than any destination. Shacknews' Jan Ole Peek labelled it an "interesting iteration" and found it enjoyable, yet expressed disappointment that several of the new systems felt underdeveloped. Rock, Paper, Shotgun's Rick Lane acknowledged the game succeeds at its core goal of constructing a world in which "the car and the ground are at irrepressible odds," but he took issue with the user interface, the thinness of the objectives, and the absence of a central narrative thread, ultimately remarking that "doing fake science is quite dull without any characters or stakes to pin it to."

Broad Accessibility and the Promise of Co-op

One of the most notable aspects of Expeditions' launch strategy was its exceptionally wide platform footprint. On March 5, 2024, the title arrived simultaneously on Microsoft Windows, Nintendo Switch, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Xbox One, and Xbox Series X and Series S, giving players a broad range of hardware options from day one. Whether a player preferred a high-end PC rig, a current-generation console, or a handheld Switch session, the full expedition experience was available at launch. Looking beyond that initial window, the cooperative multiplayer mode is set to arrive as a free post-launch update, meaning the game's single-player exploration framework will eventually be joined by a shared, co-op adventure. This commitment to expanding the social dimension of the experience—without requiring an additional purchase—signals an intent to keep the title evolving well past its initial release and to deepen the community around the franchise's signature off-road challenges.

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