This article is written by Faraam_Knight
Everyone is planning a grand escape.
Maybe you are tired of the same boring life, imagining the endless mountains and hanging clouds in the distance; or maybe you have long been tired of participating in various social parties, unwilling to squeeze out a grudging smile in front of people, trapped in the cage you want to be your truest self, embark on a journey of seeking freedom alone...
The rhythm of "fast life" in modern society seems to exacerbate people's inner anxiety, making us feel that once we stop, we will lag behind this group; it also makes us feel more "unfree": a person is wrapped in the torrent of the group, becomes convergent and mediocre, and becomes inactive;
Taking enough time and energy to explore the poem and the distance has become a "luxury" for contemporary people.
The popularity of Li Ziqi's "return to the garden and rural residence" life is actually a reflection of people's inner desire to "return to nature". And the game we're going to talk about today, Route 96, echoes the beautiful ideal mentioned earlier: it's a long journey to freedom and escape from a cage.
First, banishment and the true self on the highway
People often compare life to a road, and we are the hurried passers-by on the long road of life. In the game Route 96, this metaphor is perfectly apt: the game is based on the American Interstate, and its storyline takes place entirely on the highway, or in the "motels" along the highway, petrol stations, and burger shops.
The player's character is a teenager who is tired of his own living environment; they plan to escape from this decaying place and set out for the heavily guarded "border wall" in pursuit of their own freedom. However, the journey is bound to be extraordinary: you will meet pedestrians with different personalities, you will encounter ups and downs, you may embrace long-lost freedom at the end of the road, or you may silently fall on the endless road...
However, whatever the outcome, this is a spiritual experience, a long chapter that celebrates people's courage to seek freedom.
Route 96 was inspired by the "road movie" that was born in the United States in the 60s, and the game's official English page also reads: The game is inspired by the true story, as well as the films of Quentin Tarantino, the Coen brothers and Bong Joon-ho.
(Introduction to the official website of the game)
Early road movies drew on the spiritual core of ancient adventure legends such as the Odyssey, praising the ambition of human beings to surpass themselves and conquer nature; focusing on the group of "human beings". However, in the process of the development of road movies, its exploration of people's pursuit of freedom and individuality coincides with the "Beat Generation" of American literature and their firmly believed liberal ideas, so the emerging road movies are mostly based on showing the changes in individual inner emotions and showing the process of their self-consciousness awakening.
(Interstate Highway in the United States)
Whether it is the courage to explore the unknown road ahead, or the growth process of personal pursuit of self, it has been better reflected in the game "Route 96". Authenticity, freedom, and courage are at the heart of this story-based game.
Two, a road and the story of eight people
The story of the game takes place in a country called "Petria", which is based on the real world Of America, which is beautiful and vast, but it has become decayed and decayed under the rule of its ruler "Terraco", and the people's lives are not guaranteed. So, people tired of the hypocrisy of politicians, especially the most rebellious teenagers, planned to flee to Route 96, the northernmost part of Petria, and cross the border wall there in search of true freedom.
The game's operating system is extremely simple. As a first-person role-playing game, all players need to do is head towards the border, choose a conversation with the NPCs in the game, listen to the stories behind them and complete a series of simple mini-games.
The game's graphics are warm and beautiful, and the hand-drawn cartoon style has a unique aesthetic between 2D and 3D. Wandering in the "square mountainous landform" of the western wilderness of the United States, you can feel the vigor, loneliness and magnificence of the vast land. The flowing breeze, the bright moon and the sparkling starry sky are the best companions for travelers along the way.
In the 1990s, driving a car on the interstate highway, turning on the radio, and listening to the "synthwave" that was a distinctive symbol of that era was a unique enjoyment for young people at that time. The existence of the radio in the game can not only let us feel the beautiful tranquility and peace and leisure from those lost years, but also naturally lead to a key clue in the game - the Black Brigade.
(The neon sun, the horizon, the sports car and the city in the distance represent synthwave's unique style and fond memories of those golden ages.) ）
Although the theme of the game is "Finding the Path to Freedom Under Tyranny", the tone of the game is not depressed and low, nor is it surging with blood, but like a "pillow story" full of humor and warmth. In particular, some authentic Chinese translations in the game such as "sleeping groove" and "decaying b" are really funny.
The most interesting thing is the game's character setting: the protagonist controlled by the player is blank, there is no appearance setting, no voice lines, and the main NPCs in the game have exquisite and meticulous portrayals, all have their own unique stories.
("Zoe" that players love and hate)
They are all "two-faced" characters: especially "Stan and Mickey", "Sanya" and "Jerrod", who are both good and evil characters. Although they are "negative characters" in the general sense, they also have a warm side, which makes it difficult for us to dislike them. Of course, there is also the rebellious girl "Zoe", but because every time the player encounters her, he will encounter various troubles, so the old players will give the new players a word of advice: "Don't go near Zoe, you will become unlucky.".
Reunion, parting and distant home
In the game, the player's encounter with NPCs is random, and there is no fixed order in which they appear. And that creates a sense of "chance encounter": it's as if we're really on a road trip. Some people say that embarking on a journey is not just about finding freedom, nor is it just about enjoying the scenery along the way; feeling the surprise of encountering other travelers on the road, and the reluctance to part, is also an important part of road travel.
Let's return once again to the topic of "road movies", and the connection between "Route 96" and road movies is not limited to the "road" element. First of all, the setting of the silly outlaw brothers "Stan and Mickey" in the game riding a motorcycle on the interstate highway is largely borrowed from one of the originators of road movies, "Runaway Knight".
Another character in the game, Jerrod, who makes players shudder, is a type of character that often appears in the films of Quentin Tarantino, the "master of violent aesthetic films". Scenes such as serial killers and outlaw chases form an indispensable element of the "adrenaline rush" that makes the audience "adrenaline rush" in road movies.
(Equally outlaw brothers)
Here, I would like to mention in particular the two road movies "Runaway Rider" and "The Last Wild Flower". Because the author believes that they are the most appropriate and unforgettable to the core theme of "Running to Freedom" in "Route 96". As mentioned earlier, freedom and escape in road movies are the resistance and self-liberation of the "Beat Generation" of the United States to the world.
In Route 96, we see the girl Zoe growing up and finding herself in the face of tyranny, and we also see her finally falling into the gunshots of the border wall. We see John, Sonya, and Jerrod living in the shadows because of the landslide of the border wall, but we also see that they have reached a kind of reconciliation and relief with their past selves on the journey.
In "Runaway Rider" and "Strange Flowers", we also see the same liberation and destruction: the former is the rebellion and escape of two young men against industrial civilization and the material world; the latter is the two women who rebel against male hegemonism and walk out of the brave "way home" of an unchanging life. But in the end, they all reached the end after a brief escape and a moment of quiet.
Especially in "The Last Wild Flower", when the two women faced the tight seal of the police, they resolutely stepped on the accelerator and rushed to the cliff with a blue thunderbird, with a bright smile on their faces... It seems to be rushing to a better future, but in fact it is self-destruction in helplessness. But the laughter and footprints they left on the road are always so infectious.
If it is for the sake of freedom, everything can be thrown away. Come to Route 96 and encounter the long-lost freedom!