The first few levels are easy enough to pass without much thought, but the lack of any meaningful tutorial for some building components or design concepts leads to serious progression issues rather quickly.Īn early hydraulic-powered drawbridge scenario simply shows the player where to place hydraulic pistons and specific interaction points where they must be stretched to pass the level, yet never takes the time to describe what it is that the player is doing to the components or why they are placed in that particular slot.Ī Rolodex of flashcard tips is available at all times that offer next to no helpful information, including a card with four picture examples of hydraulic bridge designs. Using triangles to provide strength is encouraged early and often, though it is never explained why this is the case through text or visuals. The opening sequences of the game guide newcomers through lying down pavement and the most basic concepts behind bridge design. The stress on building components such as wood, steel beams, or cabling is relayed to the player with changing colors, where green denotes a lack of stress and red indicates imminent failure.

Poly Bridge 2 uses a physics engine to determine the structural integrity of player designs, including their ability to stand under their own weight, assist cars in reaching arbitrary points on a 2D plane, and transforming to allow through traffic from the skies or water. As the levels progress, the scenarios grow in absurdity, up to and including launching people in cars over giant chasms. The game is divided into separate levels that present gaps that must be crossed using a predetermined allotment of cash and construction materials. You must erect a structure capable of withstanding the Newtonian stresses of passing vehicles while avoiding obstacles such as boats, planes, and criminally negligent budgets. The setup for Poly Bridge 2 could not be simpler.

While it retains the playful appeal of its predecessor, it does not feel like a proper evolution of the original idea and is often hampered by frustrating controls, an unhelpful UI, and little appeal for enthusiasts of actual bridges. Poly Bridge 2 now arrives during the weirdest summer in recent memory, aiming to take our minds off global uncertainty. That said, the game won favor with a sizable audience that was attracted to its visual presentation and the ease of jumping in and out of play. Bridge-building games are not a particularly new concept, even back when Poly Bridge first launched in the summer of 2016.

Poly bridge