American Truck Simulator News

Every road has its beginning and end, and this historic route is no exception. Today, we are happy to share with you a teaser of what roads lay ahead for American Truck Simulator...

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We know some of you are very excited about the Iowa map expansion, which is one of our upcoming map DLCs for American Truck Simulator. Now, we can finally reveal more on how the development of this map is going. In this blog, we would like to show you a glimpse of the Hawkeye State's nature!


Located in the upper Midwestern region of the USA, Iowa forms a bridge between the forests of the east and the grasslands of the prairie plains to the west. Saimon, the DLC's map lead, shared his thoughts on the state's nature from the research trip he and his team took in 2023. "The first thing that caught our attention were the expansive hills with terraced fields, picturesque farms with round silos, and countless wind turbines on the horizon."

Iowa also takes special care to protect native flowers and grasses as part of its environmental program. That is why our teams have created a lot of new flower assets that will brighten the countryside of this map.


Iowa's terrain comprising of rolling hills and flat plains was greatly influenced by continental ice sheets that covered it and melted just around 13,000 years ago. Its elevation gradually increases from the southeast to the northwest, though it remains modest, with the highest spot, Hawkeye Point, reaching only 511 meters above sea level.


An important part of the landscape is the Mississippi River which creates the entire eastern border of the Hawkeye State. The vegetation in Iowa is mostly tallgrass prairie and savanna. Actually, over 90 % of its land is used for agriculture, mainly for corn, soy, and hay. This is why Iowa is also called the Corn State, and ranks as number one among the US states in corn and soybean production. So you can look forward to playing an important role in the region's agricultural industry, transporting local produce.


Only 8 % of Iowa's land is covered by forests which can be divided into three categories - upland hardwoods, found in elevated areas with well-drained soils; oak savannah, which is a transition between upland and bottomland forests; and the bottomland hardwoods often found near water bodies with wet soils.


As always, truckers can look forward to encountering some natural landmarks which will be incorporated into the map. One example is the famous Tree in the Road located near I-80 between Omaha and Des Moines.


If you are excited to be trucking in Iowa, don't forget to support us by adding this map expansion to your Steam Wishlist! Until then, make sure to stay up to date on any other news by following us on our social media (Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, and YouTube).

https://store.steampowered.com/app/3025440/American_Truck_Simulator__Iowa/

Today, we're excited to bring you a unique and special blog for our #BestCommunityEver. This post marks the beginning of what we hope will become a new blog series. We'd like to introduce you to Connor, also known as CaptainC0N - a long-time member of our American Truck Simulator community and a passionate truck enthusiast. Connor's incredible journey, closely tied to ATS, has led him to experiences beyond his dreams. We sat down with him to learn more about his story, and now, we're thrilled to share it with you. Let's dive in!


Connor has been playing our games for a couple of years now and shares the story of how he fell in love with them. "I grew up playing the original Euro Truck Simulator on my family computer in our office room. I remember playing on a standard keyboard and mouse and enjoying every bit. Once ATS came out I bought it. Although my laptop sounded like a spaceship taking off whenever I ran the game, I loved every bit of it. I took a break for a few years but around the Covid pandemic I got back into it and invested in a wheel and pedal setup and that was a game changer. I've since obtained an eye tracker and shifter to add to my current setup."


We also asked Connor about his favorite truck and DLC within our games. "My favorite truck would be a red Western Star 57X. My favorite DLC so far would have to be the Texas DLC and I will be very eager to wait for future DLCs as my home state is Illinois!"

After spending hundreds of hours enjoying both American Truck Simulator and Euro Truck Simulator 2, Connor wanted to try out a real-life trucking experience. This was possible thanks to Western Star and their unique Star Nation Experience 2024 event, in which they also decided to invite two members of our ATS community last year, and Connor was one of them.


"I found out about the Star Nation Experience on a loading screen in the game and it looked like a fun and adventurous experience. I've always wanted to drive a real truck or at least sit in one and I knew that this could be my opportunity. I was blown away by this opportunity and was super excited to be selected. It was a truly remarkable experience. I cannot thank everyone enough from SCS to Western Star and all the people behind the scenes to make it happen. The opportunity to sit in a truck let alone drive a powerful truck like Western Star was crazy and thrilling!"

If you want to see more from the Start Nation Experience, you can check out the SCS On The Road that Nemiro and Mark recorded as they also participated in this amazing event!

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While it was Connor's first time sitting in a real truck, he managed to win one of the driving challenges beating all the others including Mark. "One of the challenges included backing up a hill on a steep grade. One of the newer features on the truck was a crawl mode which allowed you to slowly back up a hill without using the accelerator! It slowly went back and we had to stop at a certain spot without hitting anything. I ended up being closest to the line while not going over which meant I was the winner of that competition!"

Towards the end of the event, one of the participants Casey LaDelle came up with an idea to help Connor get his CDL along with us and Western Star, as it was one of his dreams for a long time. "I am currently working on earning my CDL class A license. It's going good so far but it includes a lot of studying as well as learning all the different parts and features of a truck such as the air brake system. I am currently set up to take my permit test this month and then I will begin behind-the-wheel training after passing. My goal is to finish within the next couple of months as I am still working a full-time job during the week as well as spending time with my girlfriend and family."


Connor would like to incorporate trucking into his current job. "I currently work at a steel bar manufacturer and we see trucks come and go all day long! My goal would be to do a small load or two here or there for my company and help out when I can while still having my main job. Also, I would plan on making some YouTube videos along with it to help encourage other young drivers to take the leap and get a CDL!"

You can already follow CaptainC0N on YouTube right now, as he is creating content mostly from ATS. "I started creating content just about a year ago officially. I like being able to interact with others in convoys as well as in the comments or in the chat. I've learned a lot just from talking with others about trucks and learning how to drive a manual transmission. I have even made a few videos of my girlfriend driving a truck and teaching her a bit about the game and the awesome opportunities it can create while also still making it fun!"


In the end, we would like to forward the message Connor, aka CaptainC0N, has for our #BestCommunityEver: "Keep putting in those miles whether you are in a VTC or just conveying with friends! Enjoy the time and experience on the open road. Thank you to everyone who has supported me. I can't wait to continue to carry on this awesome experience and give back to y'all in the future! Don't forget to apply for next year's Star Nation Experience when applications open!"

Before you leave, we just wanted to tell you one more thing! If you have a similar interesting life story like Connor that involves our games, we would really love to hear it and maybe present it on our blog like we did today. So get in touch with us! Follow us on our X/Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, and YouTube, so you won't miss out on upcoming news. Drive safe!

Missouri is also known as "The Show-Me State," and today, we're excited to show you some of the custom-made depots which have been created for this upcoming Map DLC for American Truck Simulator!


On your future travels in Missouri, you’ll be able to deliver to and from some of our custom-made depots, such as a livestock farm, a crop farm, grain elevators, and river ports! Many of these industries are inspired by real-life locations in Missouri, and feature dedicated loading and unloading spots for each type of cargo found there. To share more insight into their creation, we spoke with some of the team involved on how these custom depots are brought to life.


"It all begins in the pre-production phase of the DLC," says Lukas, one of our Map Designers. "The DLC lead collaborates with the research department and the custom depot team to select potential candidates for custom depots. After that, the responsible team members create guidelines for the map designers, which include details such as what the depot is, how it operates in real life, what cargo goes in and out, and what facilities, buildings, or machinery can be found there. The process culminates in a detailed prototype created on paper. With this document, the map location, and the map editor tool, the map designers are ready to bring these depots to life!"


"Many of the locations are based on real-life counterparts," Lukas continues. "We always try to strike a balance between realism and creativity. Our main goal is to make the experience engaging for players while maintaining a sense of authenticity. One of the biggest challenges is adhering to the scale of our game map. While we love the idea of vast industrial areas, endless fields of corn, and expansive forestry sites, we must respect the map’s limitations. Balancing these elements while brainstorming interesting parking spots and fitting them seamlessly into the custom depot is always a challenge."


Despite the challenges, Lukas finds the process rewarding. "It’s fun," he says. "In the end, it feels like a ‘small’ development process within the ‘big’ game development. We collaborate with other departments, such as asset creators, programmers, testers, researchers, and many others, to bring everything together. Personally, I always try to design depots the way I’d want to experience them as a player. I enjoy the uniqueness of custom depots and the realistic approach in both visuals and gameplay. Lastly, we always do our best to listen to the community."


We hope you enjoyed this insight into the custom-made depots coming to the Missouri DLC for American Truck Simulator, be sure to keep an eye on the blog, as this won't be the only post on this topic! If you’re excited about it, consider adding the Missouri DLC to your Steam Wishlist, as it really helps support our upcoming releases. Thank you for reading, and until next time, keep on truckin'!

https://store.steampowered.com/app/2730870/American_Truck_Simulator__Missouri/

You've driven the trucks; now see where they are made! Today, we're excited to release a new episode in our SCS On The Road series. Join us in Cleveland, North Carolina, USA, where we had the special opportunity to tour the Daimler Trucks North America Truck Manufacturing Plant. We're thrilled to share our experience with you, our #BestCommunityEver!


Join Nemiro, our PR & Marketing Manager and Timothy Hall from Daimler Trucks North America as they take you on an in-depth tour of the production line, where trucks are rolled out of the facility daily! From the chassis to attaching the cabin and making customisations based on the client's needs, you'll learn all about how these trucks come together in a short amount of time. It certainly is an incredible sight to see and learn about!

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We would like to thank our partners at Daimler Trucks and Western Star Trucks for inviting us and allowing us to record behind the scenes at their production plant, we learnt so much! If you enjoy this episode, subscribe, hit the like button, and leave a comment, as it really helps support our future episodes and videos. Until next time, keep on truckin'!