Summary
- Video games often twist ordinary jobs like couriers into unique experiences, adding excitement to mundane tasks.
- Elite Dangerous and Star Trucker offer players the chance to live out space-courier fantasies, delivering cargo across immersive worlds.
- Games like Lake and Cloudpunk take players on cozy adventures as couriers, offering relaxing gameplay experiences.
A common trend in video games is twisting everyday jobs into something peculiar and out of this world. Black Salt Games' Dredge, for example, hides its dark Lovecraftian elements beneath a cozy fishing facade. Players seem to be drawn to these subversions of reality, where the familiar is combined with the unknown to create something that feels unique and entertaining.
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One job role in our normal lives that has been consistently used as the foundation for multiple video games is the courier. Many gamers delight in the simple fantasy of delivering things from A to B, all while traveling across new or unusual worlds to do so.
1 Elite Dangerous
Space Smuggler
Elite Dangerous
- Released
- December 16, 2014
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Frontier Developments
- Genre(s)
- Flight Simulator
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
Although it's not primarily built around the concept, Frontier Developments' Elite Dangerous lets players live out their space-smuggling dreams. An immersive sim set in a 1:1 recreation of our galaxy, Elite Dangerous is an epic space-faring adventure that gives players the freedom to forge their own paths. Bounty hunting, exploration, mining and, of course, delivering cargo - there are many playstyles gamers can adopt.
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Should players choose to take the path of the courier, they'll enjoy one of Elite Dangerous's easier career paths. With lower risk than other mission types, it makes for a relaxing gameplay experience.
2 Star Trucker
Big Rigs In Space
Star Trucker
- Released
- September 3, 2024
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Monster and Monster
- Genre(s)
- Simulation, Sci-Fi, Driving
- OpenCritic Rating
- Fair
Star Trucker, developed by the two-person indie team Monster and Monster, takes the big rigs of Euro Truck Simulator and rockets them into space. Players man their own interstellar truck as they travel the galaxy delivering a variety of goods. Space is mapped by a network of highways the players can choose to follow or ignore, "off-roading" to find their own shortcuts to destinations.
As is par for the course with immersive sims, Star Trucker's gameplay features management mechanics that require the player to maintain their rig and their cargo.
3 Lake
Courier Getaway
Lake
- Released
- September 1, 2021
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Gamious
- Genre(s)
- Adventure
- OpenCritic Rating
- Fair
Delivering mail doesn't usually come to mind when people think of vacations, but in Gaminous's Lake, that's exactly what Meredith Weiss - a busy city woman - needs. Taking control of Meredith, players will deliver mail across the sleepy town of Providence Oaks. Gameplay consists of driving around in a mail truck and interacting with the town's residents before choosing how to end the day with several after-work activities.
Lake is a cozy slice of life experience that gamers who have experienced burn-out or who need to get away somewhere quiet will immediately click with.
4 Cloudpunk
Cyberpunk Vibes
Cloudpunk
- Released
- April 23, 2020
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- ION Lands
- Genre(s)
- Adventure, Indie
- OpenCritic Rating
- Fair
ION LANDS' Cloudpunk is all vibes. Set in the voxel-based cyberpunk city of Nivalis, players assume the role of Rania, a new hire at the dubious delivery service, Cloudpunk. As is customary for cyberpunk settings, Nivalis is drenched in neon lighting and rain. Simply flying through the city's skyscrapers with Rania's hover car is enough for players to lose themselves in Cloudpunk's world.
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The game is no mere delivery sim, however. Between jobs, players will gradually uncover corporate conspiracies by discovering secrets and interacting with a variety of characters.
5 Mika And The Witch's Mountain
Ghibli Fantasy
Mika and The Witch's Mountain
- Released
- January 22, 2025
WHERE TO PLAY
Chibig and Nukefist's Mika and The Witch's Mountain is - as the name implies - a delightful game where fans play as a witch delivering packages. With its cute art style, Mika and The Witch's Moutain's Studio Ghibli inspirations - specifically Kiki's Delivery Service - are apparent.
The game lives up to its cozy influences, telling a low-stakes story that follows Mika as she tries to improve her broom enough that it will carry her to the top of the titular mountain. She does this by earning money from the deliveries she'll make across the island, a small open world the players can explore to discover secrets or relax.
6 Death Stranding
Hardcore Walking Sim
Death Stranding
- Released
- November 8, 2019
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Kojima Productions
- Genre(s)
- Action
- OpenCritic Rating
- Strong
Hideo Kojima's Death Stranding acquired the reputation of being a glorified walking sim upon release. While the game does feature a lot of walking, it is so much more than that. Players assume the role of Sam Bridges who, after a supernatural event called the Death Stranding, nearly destroyed America, is tasked with connecting the country with packages and hope.
The gameplay consists of managing the weight of Sam's cargo so that he can travel from point A to B. Eventually, players will unlock vehicles and the ability to build structures to aid them in their mission. With an expertly designed UI and the traditional complexity of a Kojima story, players are in for a cinematic courier experience.
7 Fallout: New Vegas
Wasteland Express
Fallout: New Vegas
- Released
- October 19, 2010
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Obsidian Entertainment
- Genre(s)
- RPG
Putting Obsidian's Fallout: New Vegas on this list does feel like cheating, as players will spend their time navigating the intricate factions of the post-apocalyptic Mojave Desert rather than delivering mail. However, players do assume the role of a nameless wanderer referred to by NPCs as the Courier - so it counts!
Being a courier in the Fallout world is more revered than its real-life counterpart, as it requires people to brave the dangers of the wasteland to deliver messages. Players can live out this role by traveling from place to place across the Mojave, carving out a legend of the ultimate wanderer. Instead of delivering mail, players can deliver justice or destruction!
8 Euro Truck Simulator 2
Traveling The Open Road Proves Addictive
Euro Truck Simulator 2
- Released
- October 18, 2012
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- SCS Software
- Genre(s)
- Simulation
Euro Truck Simulator 2 is the ultimate courier experience. Rather than taking the occupation of delivery driver and spinning it with some supernatural twist, SCS Software focuses on translating the role into a video game as accurately as possible.
Players will travel across recreations of the cities of Europe, delivering cargo and eventually building their big rig empire. The game is one of the most relaxing immersive sims out there, with its gameplay seeming to possess the ability to enchant players into a serene trance, where all they can focus on is the long drive to their next destination. Gamers who aren't interested in trucks or are turned off by the game's realism will be surpised by how quickly Euro Trick Simulator 2 can suck players in.
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