Truck Trials is a racing game that features a monster truck theme. The player participates in 20 extremely challenging races in which they must direct a monster truck over and around a wide range of obstacles. During each race, they must collect all star-labeled bags floating on a course to complete a three-star achievement.
The terrain for each race includes grass-covered paths that lead to large rocks and boulders blocking the way, open inclines with sudden drops, and fenced areas with trees. The player must deal with semi- and extremely-serious threats to their truck. For example, they might need to knock down a plank to prevent dropping the truck into a gap between areas, destroy piles of vehicles that can act like explosives, or set off red barrels of actual explosives.
When they complete some of these tasks, they earn extra points. If they complete a race before a timer counts down near the bottom-left corner, they win bonus points. On some levels, they receive unlocked new vehicles.
Truck Trials doesn't include any fuel or parts penalties. Instead, the player must move as quickly as possible to prevent a bar at the top-center of the screen from losing its orange color. If they take too long knocking something over or their vehicle experiences too many impacts, such as from explosives or flipping forward, backward or upside down, they lose the race and all accumulated points. A white skull and crossbones then appear on the screen.
