No Straight Roads (2020)

No Straight Roads has fantastic visuals, a phenomenal soundtrack, and lovable characters. It's a shame that the rest of the game doesn't hold up as well but I didn't regret my time with the game and will be replaying the boss fights many more times thanks to the fantastic music.

No Straight Roads often has a frustrating difficulty that stems more from developer choices and less from player skill, making for flawed fun. This rhythm brawler is best played as an in-sync duo or trio. But a slicker, more stylish toe-tapping passion product, you're not likely to find. I hope to see more of Bunk Bed Junction.

In the roughly 15 hours I spent with No Straight Roads, I got to experience a fun ride with a lot of things to say about the music industry, fan entitlement, the ways artists deal with both the positive and negative aspects of fame and creativity, and the messiness of trying to fix a broken system. In their quest to overthrow NSR and bring back rock, Mayday and Zuke also trod on those who genuinely enjoyed the EDM they were hearing, and were on their way to instating rock as the law of the land. Would that make them better than NSR, or just as bad? How much room do we allow for differing voices? When does one voice become so overwhelmingly strong – either through popularity, force, or a combination – that it silences others? And how do artists deal with balancing their personal creative wants with appeasing those who love their creations? When do the fans dictate the creativity rather than the artist? NSR has something to say about each of these – some more coherently than others – and even if I don’t agree with its conclusions in all cases, it sure made a for a fun argument along the way.

No Straight Roads is unquestionably original, full of heart and voice — even if that voice is somewhat disjointed at times — and yet, it still misses the beat in some sections.

No Straight Roads doesn't nail everything it attempts; its combat doesn't hold up against other musically-inspired games in recent years. However, this rock odyssey's bold and vibrant visual aesthetic in addition to a brilliantly dynamic soundtrack will make you want to stick it to the man.