A Ship-Shape Experience
When reviewing games, I often find myself going down some interesting rabbit holes. This week, I have been learning about shipping containers.
Did you know that the ones we see today on ships were invented in 1955, changing the way ports work forever? And, at any given time, there are around 20 million shipping containers travelling around the globe. The weird thing is that between 2,000 and 10,000 containers are lost at sea each year and when you consider they can last for up to 30 years, it’s obvious why they often get repurposed into pop-up coffee shops or storage units.
Why the sudden interest in these containers? Well, I’ve been playing Docked, a game all about port and shipping container management. Sound boring? Think again.
Beyond the Crane
Just when I think I’ve played every possible job simulator in the world, a completely new one pops up. You see, the only other video game I can think of where you have to move shipping containers around is GTA V, when Trevor gets to operate a crane and move some stuff for a reason I can’t quite remember. But what really surprised me about Docked is that there is actually a compelling story attached to this dock-working sim.
The game starts in the aftermath of a hurricane that has wrecked Port Wake, a fictional American coastal town. You play as Tommy, the son of the port’s owner, who previously left the family business to become a musician. He returns after the storm to help his dad get the facility back up and running. As you progress through the game, more of the story and the relationships between Tommy, his family, and his colleagues come to light. It is really well crafted and smartly written. I found myself eagerly anticipating the next titbit of the story between missions. It adds immensely to the experience too, because, when it comes to the gameplay, you are going to need some patience and a willingness to slow your brain down to cope.
Ship to Shore
The gameplay places Tommy in a first-person perspective, allowing you to move around the dock to access the various machines you need to operate. The first machine you get to use is the STS (Ship to Shore) crane; one of those massive structures situated right next to the docked ship. You climb up the structure and take a lift into the cabin. From there, it is a matter of aligning the crane with a cargo shipping container, picking it up, and precisely moving it to its designated spot.
And precision is key in Docked; you definitely don’t want to damage the goods or the vehicles. If you are someone who dislikes slow-moving mechanics or craves fast-paced action, this might not be the right game for you. However, fans of games like SnowRunner (another Saber game) will have a great time mastering the precision required for these mechanics.
Expanding the Business
You unlock and operate other vehicles as you progress through the campaign, each with its own set of instructions and difficulty curves. Completing your list of jobs earns you money, which feeds directly into the business side of running the port. From there, you can spend your earnings to clear up parts of the ruined facility and upgrade them. As your profits grow, you unlock more vehicles and hire staff to operate the machines, thereby generating even more income. It is a great little distraction from the core mechanical gameplay without being overwhelmingly deep like some other business management titles.
I liked this sim game a lot, though Docked can feel a bit repetitive after a few hours. Thankfully, the storyline and world-building kept me invested. I enjoyed mastering the different machines, and the business mechanics added a nice layer of intrigue.
Docked is pretty good visually too. The weather effects are great, and there is a wide range of different camera angles available when operating the machinery. Of course, if you don’t like ports or containers, there isn’t much else to look at, but what is there is well crafted.
The soundscore is okay, featuring generic country rock that blasts out while you complete your daily tasks. And, as far as I can tell, the mechanical sound effects are authentic. What brings it all together though is the voicer work; it is genuinely excellent, with the actors successfully selling the solid story from start to finish.
A Pleasantly Surprising Port Simulation
You will be pleasantly surprised by how enjoyable moving containers around a port can be. A big part of that enjoyment stems from the story of Docked, closely followed by the precision of the gameplay. It won’t be for everyone, and I definitely had times when the repetitive nature of the tasks became frustrating, but there are many more highlights than lowlights in Docked.
One thing is for sure – I will never take a shipping container for granted again.
Important Links
Docked Brings Realistic Port Management To Xbox, PlayStation And PC – https://www.thexboxhub.com/docked-brings-realistic-port-management-to-xbox-playstation-and-pc/
Docked – a Realistic Port Management Sim Hauling onto Xbox, PlayStation and PC – https://www.thexboxhub.com/docked-a-realistic-port-management-sim-hauling-onto-xbox-playstation-and-pc/
Buy Docked from the Xbox Store – https://www.xbox.com/en-gb/games/store/docked/9n74lnkwvfsq
There’s a Deluxe Edition too – https://www.xbox.com/en-GB/games/store/docked-deluxe-edition/9N4BT5WWMH44/0010
