2019-06-01_PC_Gamer

Bring rock to the people by
hijacking concerts.

PREVIEW

No Straight Roads

RELEASE

2019

DEVELoPER

Metronomik

PubLIShER

In-house

LINK

http://www.metronomik.net

need to know

I’venosoonershakenWanHazmer’shand

than we start exchanging our favourite

rhythm games. Yet as much as he loves

them, the Metronomik co-founder

reckons that we too often conflate games

about music with rhythm games – a genre

players who don’t think themselves

musical tend to shy away from.

No Straight Roads is an action

game first and foremost. You take

control of Mayday and Zuk who

together form a rock band – a clear

declaration of resistance in a world lead by

an EDM empire. To reinstate rock’s

influence, they have a number of battles

with characters representing different

musical genres, from EDM to pop and

even classical.

Each battle has a distinct look and feel.

In my standoff against DJ Subatomic

Supernova, the stage spins like a vinyl

record while I’m transforming planets into

ammo. Later on in the battle I’m trying to

avoid said planets while the DJ tries to

suck me into a black hole. No Straight

Roads plays like an action-adventure. I can

either hit things with my characters’

instruments or play music really fast to

transform items into weapons.

“These are two of the ways we express

the power of music,” Metronomik

co-founder and creative director Daim

Dziazuddin tells me. “Music in No Straight

Roads will affect the world in three ways

• morally, aurally and physically.” In
  practice this means that as your influence
  grows, you not only become stronger, but
  the people become aware of the spell
  EDM has put them under.
  You can hear the interplay between
  rock and the other musical genres
  through No Straight Roads’ sound design.
  Three different musical channels react
  dynamically to how well you’re doing in
  battle and to your overall progress.

Beat ’em up

The music isn’t the only dynamic aspect of

No Straight Roads. From the vibrantly

coloured stages full of dancing notes to

the eye-catching design of each enemy,

the game makes an impression long

before you focus on its tunes. “We think

about how to represent music through

character design,” Dziazuddin says. “We

decide what musical style would be fun to

battle and then we go from there.”

Meanwhile the EDM influence is

always there, because Metronomik

enjoy both EDM and rock and want to

represent the discussions between

fans of each genre.

Metronomik doesn’t see No Straight

Roads as a way to establish the superiority

of rock, however. “We really want to teach

players that they’re more musical than

they think they are. We’ve designed

battles that follow the beat, so if you can

see the pattern you’ll do better. Battles in

No Straight Roads also use our innate

awareness of when the chorus in a song

happens or when the speed changes,”

Hazmer explains. “Everyone can enjoy the

game regardless of musical ability, but I

think you’re going to be surprised at how

easily it comes to you.” He stresses that in

order to make a game that appeals to a

broad audience, everyone at Metronomik

gets a say in the design process.

This explains No Straight Roads’

chaotic charm. I quickly got caught up in

the ambitious concept – eager to see

more thanks to Metronomik’s genuine

enthusiasm for music, and the creativity

on display.

Malindy Hetfeld

M

usic is an essential part of any game, and

its role has grown from mere

background accompaniment thanks to

advances in adaptive music and the

popularity of rhythm games. With No Straight

Roads, Metronomik wants to deepen the

relationship between games and music further.

Metronomik lives up to its

name with this debut

No Straight

roadS

“WereallyWant to teach

players that they’re more

musical than they think”

played

it