Road 96 is a Unique Road Trip Adventure Available on Consoles

Road 96 is an indie gem that came out last year developed by Digixart. This game takes place in an authoritarian country called Petria as the main protagonist takes a road trip to find a better life. Players take control of different characters who take the initiative and escape this country during the summer of 1996. Everything in this game is procedurally generated and there are no two same playthroughs. Generally, players will start out walking on the side of the road, hitchhiking. What happens next is anyone’s guess. This game is a small, intimate story that offers almost unlimited branching paths of narrative. During this journey, players will meet an assortment of eccentric characters who will ultimately shape the destiny of the player. The game expands to choosing between thousands of roads, which organically open up depending on the choices players make. This game is very much like a TellTale title with its “make your choice” motif, but deeper.

The main narrative with Road 96 is clearly inspired by many movies during the 90s. This is a major indicator that danger will always be looming along with the pressure to make moment-to-moment decisions. Players will travel from place to place, surviving crazy scenarios which will take a certain amount of wits to get through. This game is played predominately from a first-person perspective and there is a surprising amount of variety in the gameplay. The core of this title is about relationships with the characters and how their lives all somehow intertwine. This game isn’t a light-hearted trek by any means. Players can die at any given moment, depending on which choice they make. When this happens, there isn’t a checkpoint or “Game Over” screen. Instead, players will jump into the shoes of another character who is also on the run to escape Petria

Asphalt Tales

With every character introduced, new subplots are opened up which, in turn, provides new gameplay mechanics. Going to a restaurant and playing air hockey, testing out a beta computer game, pondering about the county’s future, and surviving a robbery are just a few examples. All these things aren’t there just to provide a mini-game for the sake of it, rather they’re integral to the building of the relationships of the characters. Road 96 does come with strategic RPG mechanics, surprisingly enough. Talking to certain characters will boost up certain perks which will help the protagonist pick locks among other things. Generally, players are free to explore the environment and gather supplies to help them on their journey. Of course, depending on the choices made, only certain skills will be obtained during any given playthrough. Money is also an important element in this game. It will be needed to make progress for a number of reasons, especially toward the end.

Besides hitchhiking, players will also be able to take the bus. Naturally, money will be needed in order to reach the required destination, but doing this has advantages. Riding the bus will also replenish the health meter. Yes, there is a health meter on Road 96 which is a little strange for a ‘point and click’ adventure. However, it can be maintained by the consumption of nourishment in a standard first-person fashion. These can be found in either vending machines or in strategic places. On top of this, players will also be able to drive themselves to the border by stealing a car for themselves. Hence, players can freely drive down the highway at their own leisure. The thing is that dangerous events can happen when driving solo. Events like car wrecks and even dealing with cops are a factor, especially when the car is stolen.

Risking the Ride

Therefore, there is a risk and reward element to Road 96. There is no easy way to complete this journey. There is a time limit associated with this game, as well. The main goal is to escape Petria before the Presidental Election is completed. If not, then the characters are pretty much trapped in Petria. Each playthrough takes about an hour or two to complete. However, with the procedurally generated events that happen every time, this game warrants multiple playthroughs which can add up to dozens of hours. Every journey feels like a totally fresh adventure, despite the fact that many of the same characters will be encountered time and again. Given the fact that this is an indie title that had limited resources, there is a lot to offer here. This game is generally not well known, but it has garnered favorable reviews and even some rewards, to boot.

Lastly, Road 96 comes with a solid soundtrack by bands of the 90s. This is something that older gamers will certainly get a kick from. This game was an experimental project that generally paid off, in the end. It was released last August for the PC and Nintendo Switch. Now, it’s shifting over to other consoles. This is nice to see considering the originality this game has. It deserves to be played by a wider gaming community and hopefully, it will spark more interest in other games of this type. The potential is there. The technology is now available to make games more like interactive movies in terms of making decisions and dealing with their consequences. Not to mention the satisfaction of bonding with other characters and seeing how their story plays out. Games are becoming a more soulful and cerebral experience, which will only get more interesting in time.

Escaping Petria

The accolades that were given to Road 96 warrant its acknowledgment. Its original release kind hindered its popularity due to it being only available to a niche group of gamers. Now, it has been released for the PlayStation and Xbox demographic back on April 14th of this year. So, if any gamer may have missed Road 96 due to the fact that they didn’t have a PC, then now is the time to check it out. A game like this doesn’t come along too often and it is a breath of fresh air from all the other first-person adventures out there.