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This roller drama is pretty to look at and confusing to play - Roller Drama Quick Review

2K View2023-02-01

PLAY IT OR SKIP IT?

Play it if you want to experience a unique take on roller derby, but skip it if you’re hoping for a mechanically sound sports experience. I’ve personally never played a game of roller derby. So of course, I wanted to take my shot at managing an all-female team of angsty athletes. Roller Drama is part-visual novel and part-real-time strategy. Seeing as most sports games don’t have the strongest narrative. It’s quite an ambitious undertaking. Although that narrative pulled me in, the confusing and clunky game mechanics took me out of the experience.

TIME PLAYED

I clocked around three hours on Roller Drama playing the iOS version.

WHAT’S AWESOME

• The narrative. You won’t find much of a story in most sports games, so I was interested in seeing what Roller Drama had to offer. Each skater has a unique personality, and the game’s oddly dark tone kept me hooked. There’s even a zombie Shakespeare head that serves as your in-game therapist! Furthermore, I thought it was pretty cool how the game linkst mental health with a player’s sports performance.

• The artwork. Roller Drama looks great. The hand-drawn aesthetic adds to the individual look of each skater. Each of the girls has their own quirks, and you get the sense of that from the visuals alone. The color scheme also adds to the game’s darker and more satirical elements.

WHAT SUCKS

• Controls. The controls weren’t made for iOS, which was very apparent to me. I mean, the in-game tutorial shows a PlayStation controller, for crying out loud! The roller derby parts are the ones I hated the most, from the confusing and clunky control settings. Sure, roller derby is chaotic, but that doesn’t mean the developers should try and emulate that in the game controls!

💬 So will you play or skip Roller Drama? Share in a comment below, and we can chat more.

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