Bus Simulator 21 Reviews

Bus Simulator 21 is ranked in the 30th percentile of games scored on OpenCritic.
7 / 10.0
Oct 22, 2023

Bus Simulator 21 provides a relaxing and simplistic experience of being a regular bus driver with the goal of bringing passengers to their desired destination. It’s honestly one of the better Simulator games out there today even two years after its release providing hours of content to play through.

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6 / 10
May 21, 2023

While the game doesn’t look particularly pretty, it does run at 60 frames-per-second on PS5, and the developer has implemented haptic feedback and the adaptive triggers, which help communicate the feel of driving a gigantic double-decker. Post-release support is en-route, too, promising new school bus-inspired gameplay and trams, so there’s a lot of life left in this one even once you’ve mastered the extensive content available on day one.

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JVL
Jivé
Top Critic
14 / 20
Dec 2, 2021

Bus Simulator is the reference of the bus driving simulation game. Well, it is possible that he is the only one, but it must be said that even without competition, he does the job very well. The license has improved slightly in the freedom of driving and some mechanics, even if technically and aesthetically, it does not move. If management-simulation is your dada, we highly recommend.

Review in French | Read full review

6 / 10
Nov 21, 2021

Bus Simulator 21 wasted its potential at the very beginning of its existence. During the first few weeks, the game was unplayable. Eventually, though, the situation got better. Various weather and day/night cycle were done nicely. The graphics have made a major step-up and there's enough content to explore. Next time, however, it would be better for the developers to focus on the game's key principles. Less is more. At least in this case.

Review in Czech | Read full review

7 / 10.0
Oct 3, 2021

‎Bus Simulator 2021 is a game that invites us to travel, relax and enjoy the life of a driver at all times. Just buckle up, put your foot on the accelerator and conquer the routes with a wide variety of buses.‎

Review in Spanish | Read full review

6 / 10.0
Sep 29, 2021

I was still disappointed with this Bus Simulator 21 despite the addition of several new features and a diverse open world environment. The most important in this type of game is the driving, which unfortunately is not well reproduced without forgetting the many technical problems.

Review in French | Read full review

6 / 10.0
Sep 21, 2021

The driving experience is pleasant, relaxing and also entertaining, but there are many areas to improve and others that are unnecessary.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

7.7 / 10.0
Sep 21, 2021

‎Bus Simulator 21 for its innate characteristics will not be a game for everyone, of course, but if you are one of those people who like more relaxed experiences on board a vehicle, this can be a great addition to your catalog. Without a ‎‎ ‎‎doubt,‎‎ if‎‎ you played the 18 ‎‎ ‎‎Wheels‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎of‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎Steel‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎/ American‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎ ‎‎Truck‎‎ Simulator saga and you liked‎‎ them, this new installment of Bus Simulator will not disappoint you, and if you are new to this type of games, this title can be a very good start to fanaticize yourself.‎

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TheSixthAxis
Top Critic
7 / 10
Sep 17, 2021

Ultimately, Bus Simulator 21 does a good job - it gets the blend of driving simulator and management simulator pretty much spot on, even if both of those individual parts have room for improvement.

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Sep 16, 2021

Where Bus Simulator 21 excels is in providing a relaxing and strangely soothing experience, much like the Euro Truck Simulator series. Slowly driving around a city and picking up passengers can be more calming than expected, even with all the distractions and extra elements that have to be managed. Of course, that’s only when the game actually works properly and doesn’t suffer from any of the performance and technical issues. Until they are fixed with a patch, Bus Simulator 21 might be more of a headache than it is worth, but it will likely prove oddly therapeutic for some, which means even in its buggy state it still may merit a play depending on what a user is looking for.

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4 / 10.0
Sep 16, 2021

Bus Simulator 21 offers a cathartic toy box for the most dedicated of bus fanatics, with dozens of hours of gameplay hidden beneath its flaws. Unfortunately, it misses the mark too often and in too many ways to warrant a recommendation to anyone outside of its extremely niche audience.

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8 / 10.0
Sep 14, 2021

How long is a piece of string? yes, I know twice the length from the end to the middle. However, Bus Simulator 21 will give you hours and hours of gameplay. I guess you could compare the amount of game time to the amount of real-time you would be waiting for a bus replacement service in central London. Getting stuck into having multiple bus driving routes around the city is just such a success story. Thankfully you can share that fun with a friend in the coop mode. Final Thoughts Overall if you are a fan of simulation games then Bus Simulator 21 is for you. Don’t delay because you don’t want to miss the next bus. Bus Simulator 21 receives the Thumb Culture Gold Award

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69 / 100
Sep 14, 2021

Bus Simulator 21 turned out to be a lot better than I was anticipating. It has a ton of the typical shortcomings you see in simulator-type games, but it also gets a lot right. The maps are large, pretty, and varied. Busses handle well and feel weighty when making corners. And the multiplayer is genuinely fantastic. If other sims take note of what Bus Simulator 21 is doing in regards to cooperative modes, this might be a genre I start to pay much more mind to.

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7 / 10
Sep 13, 2021

Bus Simulator 21 allows you to experience the day in the life of a bus driver managing their own company. Create routes, receive pay days, scold ticket dodgers and be on time. The game comes with a clunky and overwhelming interface and little tutorial, but if you shift past this, Bus Simulator 21 could invite a satisfying ride.

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60 / 100
Sep 13, 2021

We can say that Bus Simulator 21 is allowed to play ... sometimes. When everything works correctly we are going to love it and we can spend hours in front of the screen, but the moment the errors begin to appear, our illusion suddenly vanishes and all we want is to turn off the console. In their favor, play the countless customization options and some very entertaining game modes.

Review in Spanish | Read full review

6 / 10
Sep 8, 2021

The appeal here is building up a public transport empire, and you’ll be surprised at how quickly the time passes as you begin to expand routes and increase your fleet. It’s an acquired taste, for sure, but impressive how a game designed to replicate a real-life job can be so oddly relaxing when you’re behind the wheel.

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7.5 / 10.0
Sep 7, 2021

Bus Simulator 21 certainly kicks things into high gear above its predecessor with a lot of appreciated quality-of-life improvements. But, it's brought down by an awkward driving system, UI clutter, AI clunkiness, and apparent optimization issues. Yet, it remains a solid new product in the active driving sim genre.

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82 / 100
Sep 6, 2021

stillalive studios deliver a game that is definitely better than its predecessor - but not everything runs completely smoothly.

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8.5 / 10.0
Sep 6, 2021

Bus Simulator 21 is for everyone. Being able to cater to your playstyle from the most basic of set ups to as realistic as they can make it, the game gets its hooks in you after a few hours. I always wanted to run one more route before getting up from a play session. The vehicle AI leaves something to be desired, but we can all think of a few drivers that give us road rage.

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