We’re checking out three new DLC releases today. From Chasing Carrots’ Halls of Torment, which deepens its gothic survival loop with The Boglands’ swampy decay mechanics, to Kalypso’s Railway Empire 2, which heads east with the culturally rich Steel Dragons expansion, each pack builds on solid foundations with focused tweaks and regional flavour. Autobahn Police Simulator 3 joins the wave with its Speed Trap and Police Motorcycle add-ons, extending the life of its motorway patrols through a mix of methodical enforcement and high-speed pursuit. None of these releases rewrite their respective formulas, but together they highlight how well-judged content drops can refine, vary, and reenergise established games without losing sight of what made them work in the first place.
Halls of Torment – The Boglands review (PS5)
Halls of Torment wears its influences on its sleeve: it plays like a compact, wave-based survival RPG dressed in late-90s pre-rendered textures, and it leans into short, looped runs that reward experimentation more than marathon mastery. The premise is tidy – pick a hero, descend, and reforge each run with new traits, blessings and items – and that elegant loop is the game’s strongest narrative device because it turns the act of repetition into discovery rather than punishment. The retro visuals can feel like a deliberate mood choice rather than a limitation, giving the world a grubby, uncanny edge that suits the roster of grotesques and Lords the player faces.
Under that skin the combat and build systems are where the game mostly succeeds: item synergies, a deep trait pool and a broad ability list mean runs can diverge wildly, and the satisfaction of a workmanlike build coalescing mid-run is very real. That said, the loop sometimes trips over its own systems – a handful of quests and progression gates can feel grind-adjacent, and a late-game difficulty cliff makes some runs feel punishingly binary rather than skillful. Controls and responsiveness are generally solid on console, but UI clarity and pacing can struggle when fights become dense; players who like careful resource management will find much to enjoy, while those after seamless flow may be irritated by occasional stops for menu fiddling and repetitive quest chores.
Visually the pre-rendered aesthetic gives each chamber character, and the sound design leans into crunchy hits and terse musical cues that fit the dark, cramped caverns. These choices reinforce the game’s identity, though they also make clarity an occasional casualty – small enemies and effect clutter sometimes read poorly at a glance, which can complicate fast decision making. Performance is solid, but players who prize pixel-perfect readability should expect to tweak settings or play at a steadier pace rather than blazing through every encounter.
The Boglands DLC builds on the base loop with meaningful toys: a swamp stage that shifts the tempo toward survival by attrition, and two new heroes – the Crone and the Alchemist – who add decay mechanics and elemental chaos that slot neatly into existing synergies without overturning them. The expansion both deepens build variety and introduces new ways to deaden defenses or chain elements, though it also raises the bar for those who already felt the main game leaned on repetition; the added quests, artifacts and mechanics are welcome, but they’ll mostly appeal to players who loved the core loop and want more knobs to turn rather than those who found the base runs too samey. Overall, Chasing Carrots have delivered a compact, stylish horde RPG with clear highs and a few pacing lumps – excellent for quick, inventive runs and less ideal if you were expecting a more narrative or finely tuned difficulty curve.
Railway Empire 2 – Steel Dragons review (PS5)
Steel Dragons shifts Railway Empire 2 eastward, dressing the game’s familiar systems in distinctly Chinese trappings – from sweeping Great Wall and Temple of Heaven vistas to a roster of regional goods such as silk, gunpowder and fireworks. The pack’s headline additions – a large “China” regional map (also split into five playable sections), three voiced historical scenarios set across different decades, and eight new authentic locomotives – give the expansion a clear identity and a string of short, purposeful objectives to pursue.
Mechanically the DLC leans into the series’ strengths rather than attempting to overturn them: new commodities and locomotive types add useful trade routes and freight variety, and the scenario structure offers clear, bite-sized campaigns that help focus play sessions. That familiarity is both a merit and a mild complaint – the systems feel polished and plug straight into existing campaigns, but players hoping for big new mechanics or a dramatic reworking of freight and economy systems may find the changes incremental rather than transformative.
On PlayStation 5 the controls and presentation remain serviceable: the UI and controller navigation retain the main game’s approach, which is broadly approachable but still carries the occasional menu-heavy moment that slows down setting up complex routes. Minor rough edges like that rarely break the game, but they temper what is otherwise an enjoyable management loop for players who enjoy fiddly optimisation and long supply chains.
Visually and aurally the pack leans on atmosphere: period instruments and short, themed jingles lend scenes an evocative local colour, and the map regions provide pleasing variety across plains, river valleys and mountain passes. Yet the underlying engine is the familiar Railway Empire 2 one – the palette and tilework are attractive but not revolutionary – so the DLC’s greatest wins are mood and content breadth rather than eye-watering technical leaps. For fans of the series this is a welcome, well-crafted expansion that offers new toys and scenarios worth the price; for more casual players the novelty may run out once the core campaign goals are completed.
Autobahn Police Simulator 3 – Speed Trap & Police Motorcycle review (PS5)
Autobahn Police Simulator 3’s new Speed Trap and Police Motorcycle DLCs lean into what the base game did best – giving players discrete, procedural tasks that let them feel useful on the motorway – while also exposing the same rough edges that tempered earlier enjoyment. The Speed Trap neatly expands the station’s toolkit: placing a radar-equipped van and later processing photographic evidence fits cleanly with the game’s forensic, paperwork-led rhythms and rewards methodical play. The motorcycle, by contrast, aims for immediacy, throwing players into high-speed, two-wheeled chases and tighter traffic navigation; it injects a welcome adrenaline hit and fresh mission permutations into otherwise routine patrols.
Mechanically, both add clear variety, but neither fully disguises the core game’s handling and camera headaches. The Speed Trap is satisfying in concept – staking out lanes, catching offenders on film and filing penalties gives a tangible sense of policing – yet the activity can loop into repetition unless scenarios are varied, and its usefulness is limited if driving and AI traffic remain inconsistent. The motorcycle brings more precise, nimble controls and a different perspective that makes pursuits feel more immediate, but that immediacy also highlights awkward steering physics and occasional jittery camera work that sometimes make high-speed moments more frustrating than thrilling.
Visually and sonically, the DLCs largely ride on the base game’s presentation: models and environments are serviceable, and the new motorcycle model is a neat, detailed addition that sells the promise of faster response times. However, persistent performance stutters, texture pop-in and an often-unsteady frame pacing in the PS5 build keep the additions from feeling polished. Audio design does its job – sirens, engines and radio chatter add atmosphere – but they can’t fully hide the technical roughness beneath. For players who prize immersion and clean visuals, these shortcomings will be noticeable; for those after new mission types and a more varied shift, the DLCs deliver worthwhile content.
All told, Aerosoft and Z-Software have produced two sensible expansions that broaden the ways a player can approach Autobahn policing on PS5: Speed Trap deepens the station’s investigative toolkit, and the Police Motorcycle injects a streak of velocity and variety into missions. They are not transformational – the base game’s noted technical and control issues remain the limiting factor – but they are pragmatic, purpose-built additions that will extend playtime for fans who enjoy methodical traffic enforcement and want a different driving flavour. For readers who remembered the base game’s charm undercut by rough performance, these DLCs will be welcome if approached as incremental upgrades rather than fixes.
Press Play Media 