South Dakota: Building South Dakota with Evgeny

In today's blog, we would like you to take a look behind the scenes of how we build the upcoming South Dakota map expansion for American Truck Simulator. We interviewed one of our map designers working on this DLC, Evgeny, who told us more about his work.

If you are wondering what a map designer working on an American Truck Simulator map expansion has to do, Evgeny gave us a great summary of his job. 

"I started my work on South Dakota with a pretty wide range of responsibilities. Besides the usual map design - building roads, shaping terrain, building towns - I also focus on several more specialized areas. For example, I work on the design of big, complex industrial sites and depots. Another part of my job is managing the asset list and giving feedback on anything related to depots or more generic (non-vegetation) assets. I also get the chance to create environments and small decorative scenes for depots across all of our projects," he says.

Map designers need to cooperate a lot with other colleagues on a daily basis. They share reference materials, discuss ideas. "We keep pushing toward a common goal: creating something beautiful, meaningful, and fun at the same time," Evgeny shares with us.

Before the start of the actual map design, our departments need to do a lot of research to get the map as close to the real world as possible. "Some of my teammates went on a road trip to the state. They spent several days there, collecting as much information, atmosphere, and emotion as they could. They brought back thousands of photos and stories about the places they visited," Evgeny told us.

Meanwhile, our research department provided layers and layers of valuable information - cultural, industrial, and historical. 

"It's like putting together a giant puzzle where every piece reveals something new about the region. Then there's my personal favorite research method: digging on my own. I watch local news, read articles written by South Dakotans, and follow community discussions. It helps me understand how people there think, what they value, and what makes their environment special."

"During all this research, I became fascinated by the landscape - the calmness, the wilderness, the open horizon. It reminded me of Into the Wild by Jon Krakauer, one of my all-time favorite stories. I love how the spirit of Indigenous peoples still lives in the region, mixed with a raw, classic Western vibe. And I really appreciate how much of the farming industry is still run by small, family-owned businesses," Evgeny shared with us.

All these layers of discovery help the map design team bring color and flavor to the experience of trucking through South Dakota. "That's one of my favorite parts of the job. As an artist, I always want to capture the soul of the region - its uniqueness, its special characteristics. So we're constantly hunting for the little things that make South Dakota feel like South Dakota."

The team working on South Dakota already has experience from designing the Texas, Nebraska, and Iowa DLCs, so Evgeny believes they will be able to capture the beauty of nature and build believable, detailed environments. 

And what does Evgeny feel like is going to be the best place to visit there? "From my perspective, the Black Hills and the Badlands are going to be an outstanding experience - especially for players who love beautiful nature and the feel of Western culture. South Dakota is full of wide-open landscapes where you can see fields stretch all the way to the horizon. Some of the views here are like nothing we've ever had in ATS before. I'm personally looking forward to seeing Sioux Falls in the game, as well as some of the smaller towns around the Black Hills," Evgeny told us.

Because of the scale, not everything we wish for could make it into the map. "But I truly believe we do our best to depict the region in the most authentic and enjoyable way possible. Oh, and for players who enjoy a little adventure, there are a few hidden roads waiting to be discovered," he hints.

Apart from scale, there are also some other challenges that Evgeny describes here. "First is finding the right balance between the level of detail, the development time, and the amount of fun we want the player to have. There's always a temptation to add "just one more detail", but we also have to keep our pace. Second, I really wanted to create an immersive sense of scale - that feeling that the world extends all the way to the horizon. South Dakota is huge, and capturing that vastness inside a compressed game world is a creative challenge. But I believe every limitation is actually an opportunity for a creative solution. It pushes us to think differently, and sometimes that leads to even better results."

At the end of this blog, Evgeny has a short message for our #BestCommunityEver. "It's an honor to work on a project like this - to try to depict the beauty and uniqueness of American nature and culture. South Dakota has a special atmosphere, and we hope players will feel that same sense of wonder that inspired us during development."

If Evgeny got you excited about this map expansion, make sure to add the South Dakota DLC to your Steam wishlist! 

Also, remember to follow us on our X/Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, Bluesky, and YouTube for all the latest news from this map expansion and American Truck Simulator, or sign up for our newsletter to stay informed. Until next time, we wish you happy haulin'!