Drop Bear Bytes, the studio behind post-apocalypticRPGBroken Roads, are named after Australias deadliest creature.
Really, the story is a wind-up the aussies liketo blag touristswith.
If it looks like a koala, its just a koala.
I say best bits, but I should probably say the only bits that I actually enjoyed, unfortunately.
This is primarily a dialogue-em-up, so reading is what youll be doing most.
Id say my notes were an even split between writing choices I liked and didnt.
Its not all gags, either.
I dont like it.
I think it fundamentally misses whats actually interesting about making choices in RPGs.
From this singular choice-bean sprouts problems both ticklishly minor to choking vine major.
First, minor: Loading screen quotes are all from Trivial Pursuit-tier philosophers.
Its very dry, often irrelevant, and feels at odds with the otherwise salty-earthy Aussiness found elsewhere.
Why not use songs?
Itd fit the tone better.
Im sure theres a Phoebe Bridgers or Nick Cave line for basically any philosophical epithet you could want.
Was Bertrand Russellreallymore cognisant of what makes us human than King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard?
Did De Beauvoirtrulysay anything about femininity that Kylie Minogue did not also say, but catchier?
I team up with others when they suit my purposes was the Machievallean response to one question.
What Machiavellian worth their Florins talks like that?
That is a textbook answer,literally.
But you look outside this stuff, and Broken Roads is brimming with character.
Sometimes the only responses to a question are either yeah, nah or nah, yeah.
Its not just this sort of part self-depreciating, part celebratory Australian humour, either.
So theres my bias transparency for this one.
Classic Fallout is the easiest comparison here.
You already know what youre getting here I reckon.
Now make it a little more boring.
Just ateensybit more, and were on the same page.
Someone asked: “Can we do the opposite of this universally fun thing?”
And someone else said: “Brilliant”.
Broken Roads throws a few more of its unique RP systems into the pot.
Theres your usual bits like testing perception, science, and the like to interact with certain things.
Theres also some inventive twists like the Punt system, which lets you tinker with certain outcomes.
If youve been following Broken Roads for a bit, youre likely aware of thedelays to fix performance.
So how is it now?
Ive got bad and good news.
So, yeah, its much better.
I did have a few freezes, but it autosaves often.
Bugs were also scant, which is a commendable feat in this genre especially.
Bugs or no bugs, though, I still cant recommend Broken Roads.
Theres nothing driving me forward.
Im not completing quests to progress through a story, Im knocking off journal entries until something happens.
Im batting the air for a thread to grasp and I just cant find one.
Not the bigger picture story.
I never felt that here.
Broken Roads isnt bland.
If the setting and themes appeal to you enough to overlook the rest, then sure.
Otherwise, keep your dollarydoos.
