Do you even Forklift? is, well, something I never thought I would write: an Indie cosy forklift game from developer Garage 5. It is described on their Steam page as “Silly, physics-based forklift game inspired by Ghibli and Japanese car culture! Use your forklift skills in logic puzzles with many unexpected outcomes”!
Let’s jump on the forklift and see what kind of trouble we can get into from publisher Take IT Studio! And Kurki games.
Loading in, there isn’t a tutorial or any guidance; you just start hitting keys, and I eventually figured out that space picks up the object in front of you. After a few more tries, I have to lift items higher. In the settings menu, I found that the shift and control buttons raise and lower your mast; a quick little introduction would have been handy.
With that mastered, the game gives you a series of puzzles you have to complete, with no guidance or instructions.
After a few levels, you begin to figure out what needs to be completed, for example, matching green cars into green parking spots. Confetti pops up when you land the car in the right spot, and the level is complete.
If the car’s colour is wrong, a few levels have a paint shop where you can change it, so you can complete the puzzle. The number of levels is actually decent, over 65 levels you have to complete.
Don’t get me wrong, some can be done in 20-30 seconds, but most levels you complete three times, with different variations of puzzles on each. Some of the puzzles involve moving multiple cars, moving electric cars that are plugged into power, so you have to stay close and not pull the cable out. Stacking multiple cars, rearranging parking spaces to colour code, and even throwing cars into the river.
Having a forklift license myself, I found it great to see that the developers have accurately implemented the physics when you are driving. The rear steer ensures you have to time your turns close to buildings, and the forklift even feels like it will roll over and is unstable when you have the load high up or turning sharply at speed.
It would have been a nice touch if you could customise your forklift, change the colour or add some stickers.
The graphics are exactly what the developers have described them as, cozy with a Japanese theme. There isn’t much to fault with them; the variety of cars, shops, and backdrops creates a nice ambience.
The maps are small, but they are complemented by outdoor table settings, apartment blocks, trees, bike stands, and lanterns.
You will even notice flocks of birds flying overhead or dust particles in the air; it’s just pure eye candy.
Classic forklift sounds are there: the iconic reverberating beep, a dull engine when going forward and a rev when you are on the brakes; even collisions make a nice thud. The music can be described as elevator music and fits the game’s overall feel, nice and relaxing.
Overall, I must admit, I really didn’t expect much from this title, but it shocked me. It is just a wholehearted fun game. There are no time limits, no stress, but you do have to plan your next move as you progress through the puzzles; they keep becoming more intricate. That’s what keeps you coming back, the challenge.
There is no right or wrong way to complete the puzzles, as everyone may approach them from different sides and angles, etc., but we will all get the same result.
The Good
- Ambience of the levels, how they look and feel
- Levelling system and how the developer uses the same map but with different challenges
- Forklift physics modelling ensures it's a challenge to drive it if not handled correctly
- Number of different levels and variations of puzzles
The Bad
- Lack of a tutorial
- Customising your forklift would be a nice feature
SuBZeRO2K
Spotify
Anchor
iTunes