Deliver At All Costs Review – Delivering Comical Mayhem, 1950s Style

Deliver At All Costs Review

The warm air of a summer night can make a man restless. Almost as restless as dwelling on the past. The guilt of a man who cannot make amends for his mistakes. There sits a lone figure, a genius, unable to sleep. A thousand ideas rush through his mind and flow into his journal like the rushing waters of the creek nearby. Ideas that could mean redemption… or ruin. Deliver At All Costs is an action-adventure game set in the late 1950s. It promises a chaotic driving adventure in a nearly noir setting, but does it deliver?

The debut title from Far Out Games Studio, Deliver At All Costs, is a charming experience of wild humor and chaotic vehicular mayhem. It’s a refreshing style we haven’t seen in a while, but the charm of its gameplay doesn’t quite blend with its story. You play as Winston Green, a brilliant man trying to run from his past. He finds work as a courier for We Deliver, a family-run courier service. The threads of Winston’s story begin to unravel as we learn more about him and the past he is trying to flee. Dark secrets, betrayal, and characters from a good noir film abound in this sordid tale from the 1950s. It’s an intriguing story that makes you want to keep playing. You want to learn the truth. While the story of Deliver At All Costs isn’t a gritty thriller, it still sets the expectations of a serious tone.

Delivering Delicious Pulpy Narrative

Even as a 1950s satire, the narrative of Deliver At All Costs is compelling. The player wants to know what will happen next. It carries the intrigue and mystery of the game like any good story should. The actual gameplay is outlandish, with mishaps akin to Saturday morning cartoons. It’s funny and wild and full of wit. These two most important aspects of Deliver At All Costs are very well done, especially for a debut title, but they don’t complement one another.

When it comes to the gameplay of Deliver At All Costs, however, it’s something entirely different. Each delivery has a comical twist. The jobs are light-hearted and whimsical, if not a little crazy. Transporting a massive, active bomb, helium balloons accidentally making your work truck fly, or leaking napalm all over town. Deliver At All Costs is a riot. The controls can be tricky to get used to, yet that somehow adds to the charm of the bombastic experience. Environments are almost entirely destructible. With enough speed, you can easily plow through nearly every structure in sight. Want to make your own shortcut? Go for it.

Comical Vehicular Mayhem

It takes a significant amount of property damage in a short period of time for the police to show up. I only managed to make them appear once during my time with the game, and even then, that was with intentional reckless mayhem. If you enjoy collecting items, Deliver At All Costs also has boxes of cash strewn about the map. I found myself hunting boxes and casually driving to learn the map between each mission, but that wasn’t without its own issues.

Occasional Unnecessary Overtime

There are a small number of side jobs to pick up in Deliver At All Costs. Sometimes it is as simple as finding a missing friend. Other times, you need to drive a possessed vehicle into an active volcano. Many of these jobs require you to go to a specific location, however, I found no way in the menu to activate a side job. There is no option to set custom waypoints or tag locations. The directional arrows on the road will always point to the next story mission objective. I found this frustrating at times when trying to complete a time-sensitive job only to be led astray. This isn’t a game-breaking issue, but it is unexpected. It is in your best interest to learn the maps of Deliver At All Costs fairly well on your own.

I appreciate the isometric camera, which can be rotated 90 degrees with the right stick. My only issue with it is that it moves only between its starting position and 90 degrees to the right. Deliver At All Costs has a lush environment with a lot going on. It intentionally hides collectibles and other objects out of sight. When I’m speeding through the streets, there are times when neither camera angle is helpful. If Deliver At All Costs offered even one extra span of 90-degree viewing it would make a world of difference in the overall experience.

Delivering Memorable Moments

There is a lot to love about Deliver At All Costs. It trumpets an exuberant charm with its clever writing, wacky missions, and chaotic gameplay. Each area of the map is beautifully crafted and a delight to explore. Whether working on the story, completing odd jobs, or just cruising around town, it is always a satisfying adventure. The story of Deliver At All Costs has enough hooks to make you keep wanting to learn more, but the overall tone of the story juxtaposes against the comical nature of the gameplay. A few QOL missteps, like not being able to set waypoints and the restrictive camera, are minor annoyances to an otherwise very enjoyable experience. Deliver At All Costs simply delivers.

***PS5 code provided by the publisher***