No Straight Roads Reviews

No Straight Roads has a laundry list of inspirations and it proudly pays homage to them all in one way or another throughout the journey. Though a few of the game’s ideas end up feeling underdeveloped, the game has a lot of heart, a slapping soundtrack and the best boss encounters you’ll see in a videogame this year. Just like Bunk Bed Junction in Vinyl City, I expect Metronomik to chart well within the indie scene.

No Straight Roads takes that feeling you get of beating on a boss in time to the music and doesn't just go with it, it makes it a mechanic. Batter and blast anything in your way as you start a music revolution to take down an oppressive EDM regime with the power of rock music!

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 is a videogame first and foremost; and by videogame standards, this was a poor effort for such wasted potential.

A game all about a rock band saving the world from an evil corporation that forces everyone to only listen to EDM. Nope, this isn’t the long-awaited sequel to Brütal Legend, but actually No Straight Roads. It’s a delightful musical adventure that might have been a bit too ambitious for its own good, but still managed to make me smile with its setting and premise. Let’s take a look at this little unpolished gem.

There’s a lot to like about No Straight Roads, there really is. But ultimately, its gameplay is disappointing. It’s essentially a boss rush game that’s been stretched thin by repetitive platforming sections and a hub that’s just a mindless collectathon. The boss battles themselves are of varying quality too, and are laden with frustration. With a patch or two No Straight Roads could be a decent game, but as it stands it’s impossible to recommend to even those who are really into music-infused adventures.

You really need to play No Straight Roads. While the gameplay isn't amazing, the presentation is, and it's flawed in some truly interesting ways.

No Straight Roads looks great, sounds great, and has great characters- but it has major gameplay issues that bring down the whole experience.

I had enough fun with those, and also just rocking out to the wonderful music, that I can mostly overlook the game’s minor gameplay stumbles. No Straight Roads is an excellent experience that I encourage any lover of both music and gaming to have a look at. It’s not flawless, but it’s a darned good time.

No Straight Roads is a music-based boss rush basher with a fun cast and great soundtrack. Despite a few control issues and a rather small base game, there's obviously a lot of heart present.

After a rocky start, No Straight Roads settles into a rhythm, but its action is off-key, in spite of its edible looks and funky soundtrack. Regrettably, No Straight Roads is an action game that doesn't quite hit the high notes, with execution that falls some way short.

No Straight Roads is a moderately short experience, but upon finishing the game, I asked myself one question: Did you enjoy your time with No Straight Roads? For me, that answer was a loud yes.

A wild, rocking adventure that exemplifies everything that makes indie gaming great, eclipsing its own shortcomings with an endless torrent of unbridled creativity and energy

No Straight Roads is a loveably scrappy indie action adventure where the villains and their multi-stage musical battles are the true stars you’ll keep returning for.

No Straight Roads asks you to fight back against inequality with the power of rock in an evocative musical experience.

Turn up the volume for this one.

I love when developers switch up the norms of typical rhythm games and combine them with elements of a different genre, like The Metronomicon or Crypt of the NecroDancer. So you can imagine I was excited to hear about a new action-oriented title that would take the idea of beat matching and pair it with a satisfying ‘smash everything’ gameplay loop. And I’m happy to say, with Metronomik’s release of No Straight Roads, I experienced the zany adventure of Mayday and Zuke all the while listening to some great music and taking in the visually gorgeous art style. Though, it did come with some minor frustrations along the way.

No Straight Roads drew me in with its high octane trailer and the promise of a fun rhythm game I could play solo or with a co-op partner. In a town literally powered by EDM, Mayday and Zuke want to bring back rock and roll. But the board governing Vinyl City stands in the way of their band Bunk Bed Junction’s fame. Taking it one gig at a time, this duo plans to climb the charts and set music free.

It doesn't give me any pleasure to pen this review and air my grievances with the game, but I can't help but feel it's an amalgam of missed potential mixed with an ambitious designer's love for a genre and the games it spawned. I wish it had lived up to my expectations, and I can't say I understand the decisions the developers made between the vertical slice I played and the game's official debut. But I do know one thing: No Straight Roads needs to retire from touring, rest its vocal cords, and make a comeback tour when it's found itself as an artist. Right now, it can't carry a tune.

No Straight roads would be a fun enough music-snob rhythm-action game if it was just the cool bosses, but the wonky platforming sections let it down.

No Straight Roads feels nostalgic in a way that’s hard to describe. There’s something about it that screams ‘2002 action game’. It might be the chunky character design and over the top animations, or maybe it’s the unapologetically loud colours and jaunty music that makes the game feel like a classic from the PS1 era. Even the 2D character art feels nostalgic: a cross between Jet Set Radio and the art style of the band Gorillaz. Amongst the many ultra-realistic and gritty games of t...