Annapurna Interactive is a pretty prolific video game publisher, even though it’s relatively young as a company. It’s already worked on several significant titles such asJourneyandOuter Wilds, and it’s going strong overall. One studio that Annapurna has partnered with before isThe Fullbright Company, which produced the first person adventure gameGone Home.
Now, Annapurna and Fullbright are working together onOpen Roads,a mystery game focused on a mother and daughter exploring their family’s complicated past. Details onOpen Roadsare pretty scarce right now, but it sounds like it’ll be exploring family ties and what happens when unfamiliar ancestors leave behind baggage for descendants to unpack.
Open Roadsdoes sound a little bit like a completely different game involving family ties.God of Warfans probably remember the franchise’s most recent entry, in which Kratos has aged up significantly and has a son to raise.The relationship between Kratos and Atreuswas a huge focal point ofGod of War,and the game got a lot of praise for exploring the father-son relationship.Open Roadsclearly wants to do the same thing through a different lens of gameplay. The relationship between Tess and Opal Devine will be at the core of everything that happens inOpen Roads.
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Family From a New Angle
God of War’s Norse settingwas full of treachery and danger. It was imperative that Kratos and Atreus work together to survive, even though they didn’t always see eye to eye. Although players see their relationship through Kratos' eyes the entire time, that means they have more intimate insight on Kratos' struggle to adapt to the responsibilities of fatherhood.Open Roadswill probably play on some of the same themes ofGod of War: only by pushing past their differences and learning to work together can the parent-child pair accomplish their goals.
Open Roadswill take a shot at this type of story in a very different way. It’s a mystery game, so it probably won’t be focused on teamwork in battle. Even if there’s no combat, there’s probably still going to be danger to over come, though. A thieves' treasure won’t be found easily. Additionally, the player character is Tess Devine, the daughter inOpen Roads' mother-daughter relationship.Open Roadsmight be tonallydifferent fromGod of Warin some wayssince the perspective is flipped, compared to Kratos inGod of War. Even so, the teased tension between Tess and Opal means that the game may share a lot of the same themes asGod of Warat heart.
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Family Trees
There’s not a slew of games that focus on the relationships within families. However, Fullbright has the necessary experience to get it right. Its previous project,Gone Home, received critical acclaim for its nuanced and sensitive exploration of familial relationships, and what can make or break a family.Open Roadsis probably being designedwith a lot of the same spirit. Over the course of the game, Tess and Opal’s quest to visit family landmarks and unearth treasures will become the stage where they hash out issues plaguing them, long before they ever started diving into Opal’s past.
God of War: Ragnarokis bound to find new ways to explore Kratos and Atreus' relationship. With a name like “Ragnarok,” it sounds like they’ll need each other more than ever.Open Roadsdoesn’t set up huge stakes quite likeGod of Wardoes, but that doesn’t make the small, local stakes of a family in turmoil any less important or moving. Fullbright has a great opportunity to tell a moving story about when two normal people setting their differences aside to achieve something important to both of them.God of WarandOpen Roadsmight seem like an unlikely pair on the surface, but anyone who enjoyedthe narrative ofGod of Warshould consider givingOpen Roadsa try.
Open Roadswill release in 2021 for PC, PS4, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
