David Spafford

I love the concept of the game, told in vignettes of interactions with persons and environment -- of being young and free, going it alone and finding your community, willingness to engage and take a stand in face of fear, or avoiding conflict. The music that you find in casette tapes along the way are beyond fantastic. The vignettes are stylized, setting different mood for fear, rebirth, hope, fear, warmth, vitality and dark, brooding. It is engaging. The game was released within five years of Donald Trump's America and rise in autocracies. The game takes a stance for democracy and liberal values. Some may be upset over the strong political message in the game. This game reminds me of Spiritfarer, where the creators try and dance around real issues, but runs into issues of having to game-ify to maintain player engagement while you are taken from storybeat to storybeat of their narrative driven game. This game-fication and the left wing politics may put off some. Having said this, personally, I loved the story of Zoe, this young, carefree spirit, cutting it out on her own, charting out her own future on the Road, not knowing where she will end up, having to have the courage to do so, and overcoming her fears. I see it more of a metaphor than advocacy for hippification - the turn on, tune in, drop out of yesteryear. The message advocating a charting of your own life course, accompanies the major music number, Coccoon's "The Road", a song which will stay with me long after I finished the game, Road 96 ...