- Publisher: Merge Games , Ravenscourt
- Release Date: Apr 14, 2022
- Also On: PC, PlayStation 4, PlayStation 5, Switch, Xbox One
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Apr 26, 2022Road 96 is a masterpiece in storytelling and depending on your own experience, you may even be moved by its through line of hope, loss, and the ultimate goal of personal freedom. Many of the game's themes haven't directly applied to my life, but Road 96 is an education in empathy and it really makes you feel for the folks out there who are scrambling to get their lives in order because of other people's actions. It's not a perfect game — mechanically things could be improved at times — but its story is about as close to perfect as you could ask for, and for that, we recommend it without a shadow of a doubt.
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Apr 29, 2022The team of around 15 developers created a 15-20 hour game that is heavily influenced by the works of Tarantino, the Coen Brothers and Bong Joon-Ho and inspired by many stories, including The Goonies. Although unlikely, I would very much like some extra content featuring the loveable bumbling team of Stan and Mitch. While the game fell a bit short of it’s promises of your outcomes drastically being different because of your choices, it really doesn’t matter. You could strip away all the decision making, and you’d still have a gripping and intense story that you struggle to put down.
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May 26, 2022Road 96 is fun to play, a challenge, and also makes you question your political beliefs. Play this game, help others and always vote against fascism.
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Apr 14, 2022Road 96 is a very good game, with side characters that become the main characters. The way the story is told through a character who is a "spectator" but whose decisions influence the world and those around him is a wise move.
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Apr 19, 2022Road 96 takes us to a country ruled by a totalitarian dictator. While you run looking for a better life, you will try to change Petria’s fate with your decisions. A title that is definitely worth playing.
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May 4, 2022I wasn’t expecting to enjoy Road 96 as much as I did. I thought it would be slower and more disconnected. Instead, I experienced a rewarding and deep title where my choices mattered.
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Apr 14, 2022Apart from being an excellent first-person adventure, Road 96 is an overwhelming experience and an emotional dive into the '90s, with their music and style. As you stand on the side of the road, fantasizing about a better future, you'll wish that journey never ends.
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Apr 14, 2022We didn’t realise how much we’d missed the episodic story framework of a Telltale game, and Road 96 – while not being from Telltale – is a long-lost cousin to it.
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Apr 13, 2022Road 96’s narrative may not reach the heights of the best the modern adventure genre has to offer, but it cleverly distracts with a cast of intriguing characters and the promise of procedurally generated road-trips. The novel concept doesn’t always work, but when it does, it offers a very personal and gripping journey through a country on the verge of dictatorship.
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Apr 13, 2022While many of your actions are said to have an impact on the game, in practice, that impact is fairly minimal. It all comes together in an ending that also feels far too convenient, not seriously reckoning with much of the themes the Road 96 brings up. In the end, it feels like Road 96 doesn’t have nearly as much to say about these topics as it thinks it does. It sticks the landing when it comes to its individual characters, but much less so regarding the overarching plot. Still, those character stories are engaging, the mini-games you’re thrown into are consistently fun, and Road 96 looks and sounds great. It all makes for a trip that’s worth taking, as long as you know what to expect.
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Apr 19, 2022It's a shame that Road 96's great character writing is stuck within such restrictive framing, even if many of its most memorable dialogue sequences only work given that the premise has allowed for this assortment of personalities to intertwine. It doesn't mean that there's no reward for seeing some of them through, but if you're hoping for an introspective look at the complexities of revolting against an oppressive regime, then Road 96 doesn't deliver on that front. It is, however, an enjoyable point-and-click adventure outside of that, with a neat procedural twist that keeps each of your escape attempts entertaining, with dialogue choices that feel purposeful and entertaining minigames to keep things varied.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 32 out of 51
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Mixed: 11 out of 51
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Negative: 8 out of 51
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Jul 11, 2022
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Jul 12, 2022
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Apr 15, 2022This review contains spoilers, click full review link to view.