Bus Simulator 27: More Than Just Driving a Bus

The video featured above is a VOD from the CheckpointVibes YouTube channel and is provided as a companion to this article. The footage comes from my gameplay session of Bus Simulator 27 and allows you to see the game in action alongside the impressions discussed above.

Please keep in mind that this is gameplay footage from a specific play session and is not intended to represent every aspect of the game or every possible experience a player may have.

The written impressions in this article are based on my personal experience while playing the game.

Bus Simulator 27 is probably not the game you expected to see me playing.

When I first mentioned that I was going to check it out, I could practically hear the question: “Wait… you’re playing a bus simulator?”

The answer is yes—and honestly, I was pretty excited about it.

I had previously played the Bus Simulator 27 demo and came away really enjoying the experience. That demo was actually what made me interested in checking out the full release in the first place. So, while this isn’t my first time behind the wheel, this article focuses on my first impressions of the full game and what I found after moving beyond the demo.

Before getting into my impressions, I also want to take a moment to thank the developers and publisher of Bus Simulator 27 for providing TheDailyGamepad.net with a free copy of the full game, along with DLC for us to experience and cover. They previously provided us with a copy of the demo as well, which was what initially got me interested in checking out the full release. We genuinely appreciate the opportunity to spend some time behind the wheel and share our experience with our readers.

Bus Simulator 27 puts you behind the wheel as you help establish a new public transportation company in the fictional city of Mequina.

The story kicks off with public transportation returning to the city after the previous transit authority was brought down by scandal, corruption allegations, and mismanagement. Now, a new private operator has been given the opportunity to restore bus service—and you’re going to be one of the people responsible for making that happen.

The opening does a good job of establishing the premise before throwing you into the driver’s seat.

Rather than simply dropping you into an empty city and saying, “Here’s a bus, have fun,” the game walks you through the basics. You’re introduced to your bus, learn how to operate its systems, check the lights and doors, get familiar with the controls, and eventually take your first passengers out onto the road.

It gives the experience a bit more purpose than simply driving from point A to point B.

One of the things I immediately appreciated about Bus Simulator 27 was how much control it gives you over the experience.

The game offers multiple gameplay settings that let you decide how realistic or relaxed you want your bus-driving career to be. You can play with a relaxed experience, a standard/medium setting, a more demanding mode, or customize the individual settings yourself.

That flexibility is particularly nice for players who enjoy simulation games but don’t necessarily want to spend their entire evening worrying about every little traffic violation.

Want a laid-back driving experience?

You can do that.

Want stricter traffic rules and a greater emphasis on realistic driving?

You can do that too.

There’s even a sandbox option for players who would rather skip the story and management progression altogether and simply create bus lines, drive whatever buses they want, and experiment with the game.

For someone who enjoys being able to play a game the way I want to play it, this is a welcome addition.

I ultimately spent my time with the story mode while using the more relaxed settings, which felt like the right fit for the kind of experience I wanted from the game.

Once you get beyond the introductory missions, Bus Simulator 27 starts showing off some of its management elements.

You’re not simply driving buses forever.

You’re building a transportation company.

You can create bus lines, manage different aspects of your operation, purchase buses, and expand your fleet as your company grows.

The bus dealership system is particularly interesting. Instead of simply opening a menu and buying every bus immediately, you first have to establish relationships with manufacturers by signing agreements with them. Once you’ve signed a deal, you gain access to the buses offered by that manufacturer.

There are multiple manufacturers and several different bus models to choose from, giving you plenty of options as your company develops.

And thankfully, the game lets you test-drive buses before committing to purchasing them.

That might sound like a small feature, but I actually really liked it.

You can head into a dedicated test-drive area and try out available buses without worrying about traffic violations or collision penalties. That gives you the opportunity to get a feel for a vehicle before spending your company’s money on it.

For a game centered around operating buses, that makes a lot of sense.

The actual driving is where Bus Simulator 27 really started to click for me.

The city looks great, and there is something surprisingly relaxing about simply getting behind the wheel and following your route.

Of course, the game does expect you to actually drive like a bus driver.

Traffic lights matter.

Traffic rules matter.

Passengers matter.

You need to pay attention to your surroundings, use your mirrors, signal properly, approach stops carefully, and avoid throwing your passengers around like you’re auditioning for Grand Theft Auto: Public Transportation Edition.

And yes, I may or may not have accidentally run a red light during my first official route.

It’s not GTA, y’all.

The game also introduces accessibility-focused situations where you’ll need to kneel the bus and extend the ramp to allow passengers with disabilities to board. These moments aren’t simply presented as decorative details; they’re incorporated into the actual process of operating your route.

There are also passenger interactions, including selling tickets and responding to different passenger needs.

Those little details help make the experience feel more like operating an actual public transportation service rather than simply driving a giant vehicle around a city.

One of the things that surprised me during my first look at the full game was just how much there is to manage outside of actually driving.

The management screens give you access to different aspects of your transportation company, and eventually you’ll be able to build out your network of bus lines and fleet.

The ability to create your own bus lines is something I particularly want to spend more time experimenting with.

There’s something appealing about being able to look at a city and essentially say, “Okay, this is how I would run public transportation here.”

You also have to think about your fleet and maintenance, including ordering spare parts and deciding which buses you want to add to your company.

The game even gives you the ability to preview buses and inspect their technical information before purchasing them.

That gives the management side of the game more weight than I initially expected.

Now, I do have to talk about something that caused me a bit of frustration during my first attempt at the full game.

My controller was fighting for its life.

When I initially tried playing Bus Simulator 27, I ran into some serious issues with controller input. The camera would behave strangely, controls weren’t responding the way I expected, and at one point it felt like the game had decided that I absolutely did not need to see where I was driving.

I tried restarting the game.

I tried changing settings.

I tried switching how the controller was connected.

I even tried different configurations in an attempt to get things working properly.

Eventually, I discovered that switching to another controller allowed me to play the game properly.

That made a huge difference.

I personally prefer playing driving games with a controller, so being able to finally sit down and drive the bus the way I wanted to was a much better experience.

That said, there were still a few odd moments during my playthrough, including some traffic behavior that seemed a little wonky. I also ran into a couple of moments where cars or traffic situations didn’t behave quite the way I expected.

Nothing that completely ruined the experience, but definitely the sort of things I’ll be keeping an eye on as I spend more time with the game.

Technically, Bus Simulator 27 can be played with keyboard and mouse, but for me, that isn’t how I want to experience a driving simulator.

There are a lot of controls to manage.

Doors.

Lights.

Turn signals.

Brakes.

Bus kneeling.

Accessibility ramps.

The ticket machine.

Driving controls.

And that’s before you even get into the actual management side of the game.

The shortcut menu does help tremendously, allowing you to quickly access many of these functions without having to hunt through menus.

But for my personal playstyle, a controller just feels much more natural.

I could also see Bus Simulator 27 being a lot of fun with a proper steering wheel setup. If you’re already someone who enjoys games like truck or driving simulators with a wheel and pedals, I can absolutely see the appeal here.

Despite all of my fumbling around during the early missions, there was something incredibly relaxing about Bus Simulator 27.

Once I finally got the controller situation sorted out, I found myself enjoying the simple act of driving around Mequina.

The game doesn’t constantly demand that you rush.

You’re following routes.

Picking up passengers.

Stopping at bus stops.

Watching traffic.

Managing your company.

And slowly building something bigger.

That’s a pretty nice change of pace from games that are constantly throwing explosions, enemies, objectives, and chaos at you.

Sometimes you just want to drive a bus.

And apparently, I am one of those people.

My first experience with the full version of Bus Simulator 27 was a little more complicated than I expected, largely because of the controller issues I initially encountered.

However, having already enjoyed the demo, I was happy to see that the full game builds on the foundation that originally caught my attention.

Once I had a controller that actually cooperated, I started to see even more of what Bus Simulator 27 has to offer.

The game combines driving, management, customization, accessibility features, fleet building, and story progression, while still giving players plenty of flexibility in how seriously they want to approach the simulation.

I especially like that you’re not forced into one particular style of play. You can make the game more relaxed, increase the difficulty, customize individual rules, or jump into sandbox mode and simply enjoy creating routes and driving buses.

There’s also a lot here that I haven’t had the opportunity to fully explore yet.

I want to spend more time building bus lines.

I want to experiment with more buses.

And, honestly, I want to see how much the transportation company can grow.

So while these are my first impressions of the full game, Bus Simulator 27 has definitely given me a reason to keep coming back to Mequina.

Now that I’ve got a controller that actually wants to cooperate, I’m looking forward to putting some more miles on these buses.

And hopefully, I’ll stop running red lights.

Probably.

Maybe.

Bus Simulator 27 is available for PC via Steam for $29.99, as well as on PlayStation 5 and Xbox Series X|S for $34.99. Additional DLC and a season pass are also available. The season pass covers planned content released during the game’s first year, including content extending into 2027.

Once again, a big thank-you to the developers and publisher for providing TheDailyGamepad.net with a free copy of Bus Simulator 27 and its accompanying DLC. We appreciate the opportunity to experience the game and share these first impressions with our readers.

For now, I’ll be taking my seat behind the wheel.