Road Not Taken
Developer(s)Spry Fox
Publisher(s)Spry Fox
Platform(s)PlayStation 4
Microsoft Windows
OS X
iOS
Android
ReleasePlayStation 4
  • NA: August 5, 2014
  • PAL: August 6, 2014
Windows, OS X
August 5, 2014
iOS
July 28, 2016
Android
October 12, 2016
Genre(s)Roguelike, puzzle
Mode(s)

Road Not Taken is an independent video game developed by Spry Fox for PlayStation 4, Microsoft Windows, OS X, iOS, and Android. In a take on the Robert Frost poem of the same name, the game is described as being about life's surprises, both positive and negative.[1]

Gameplay

Road Not Taken combines roguelike and puzzle game elements with the hopes of exploring surprises in accordance to the game's theme. As players explore, they will come across wild animals, impassable barriers, lost children and other objects. An object's use is not explained upfront, players are encouraged to learn about each object's use as they discover them, in traditional roguelike fashion.[1]

Development

In development since at least 2013, the game was officially announced for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation Vita in August 2013. Developer David Edery cited recent games FTL: Faster Than Light and Don't Starve as inspirations for the game.[1] Writing at the PlayStation.Blog, Edery explained the formulas the team used for creating the gameplay: randomness and hand crafted puzzles were used in conjunction.[2]

Spry Fox organized a competition asking fans to submit audio of what they think a "spry fox" would say, the winner would be used for an in-game spry fox character. Spry Fox showed the game at PAX East in 2014[3] before launching on August 5.[4]

Despite the game's original announcement containing a release on PlayStation Vita, that version of the game has not been released.

Reception

The PC version received "generally favorable reviews", while the PlayStation 4 and iOS versions received above-average reviews, according to the review aggregation website Metacritic.[5][6][7]

Critics generally praised the art and themes, but were divided on the design choices. Writing for PlayStation LifeStyle, Dyani Wood felt the PlayStation 4 version "proved to be a very unique game for its genre" and concluded it's "a great game to have in your PS4 library."[22]

In an above-average review for Game Informer, Matt Miller enjoyed seeing randomized puzzles with each playthrough, but felt the "sense of repetition on similar (even if not identical) puzzles isn't worth the trade-off."[12] Some reviewers felt the PS4 version was an "acquired taste"[11] and "not for every gamer." Spry Fox responded to feedback on the PS4 version's difficulty, releasing a patch in December 2014 adding various fixes and gameplay additions.[23]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Edery, David (August 30, 2013). "Roguelike Puzzle Game, Road Not Taken, Coming to PS4, PS Vita in 2014". PlayStation Blog. Sony Interactive Entertainment. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  2. ↑ Edery, David (March 14, 2014). "Road Not Taken: Hand-crafted Randomness". PlayStation Blog. Sony Interactive Entertainment. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  3. ↑ Edery, David (April 10, 2014). "Road Not Taken Playable at PAX East". PlayStation Blog. Sony Interactive Entertainment. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  4. ↑ Edery, David (August 5, 2014). "Road Not Taken Out Today on PS4". PlayStation Blog. Sony Interactive Entertainment. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  5. 1 2 "Road Not Taken for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  6. 1 2 "Road Not Taken for iPhone/iPad Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  7. 1 2 "Road Not Taken for PlayStation 4 Reviews". Metacritic. Fandom. Archived from the original on 2023-01-19. Retrieved 2023-01-19.
  8. ↑ Carter, Chris (August 11, 2014). "Review: Road Not Taken (PS4)". Destructoid. Gamurs. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  9. ↑ Rosenberg, Adam (August 14, 2014). "Road Not Taken review (PC)". Digital Trends. Digital Trends Media Group. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  10. ↑ Edge staff (September 2014). "Road Not Taken (PC)". Edge. No. 270. Future plc. p. 115.
  11. 1 2 Parkin, Simon (August 7, 2014). "Road Not Taken review (PlayStation 4)". Eurogamer. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  12. 1 2 Miller, Matt (August 5, 2014). "Road Not Taken Review (PS4)". Game Informer. GameStop.
  13. ↑ Venter, Jason (August 5, 2014). "Road Not Taken Review (PC)". GameSpot. Fandom. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  14. ↑ Rich, Rob (August 8, 2016). "Road Not Taken Review: Lost in the Woods (iOS)". Gamezebo. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  15. ↑ Whittaker, Matt (August 5, 2014). "Review: Road Not Taken (PC)". Hardcore Gamer. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  16. ↑ Vazquez, Suriel (August 5, 2014). "Road Not Taken Review (PC)". IGN. Ziff Davis. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  17. ↑ Conditt, Jessica (August 5, 2014). "Road Not Taken review: Take it (PC)". Engadget (Joystiq). Yahoo. Archived from the original on August 6, 2014. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  18. ↑ "Road Not Taken". PlayStation Official Magazine – UK. Future plc. October 2014. p. 90.
  19. ↑ Growcott, Mat (August 5, 2014). "Road Not Taken Review". Push Square. Gamer Network. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  20. ↑ Sapieha, Chad (2014). "Road Not Taken". Common Sense Media. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  21. ↑ Nichols, Scott (August 11, 2014). "Road Not Taken review (PC): A challenging puzzle game out of poetry". Digital Spy. Hearst Communications. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  22. ↑ Wood, Dyani (August 11, 2014). "Road Not Taken Review – Berries, Littles, and Demons (PS4)". PlayStation LifeStyle. Evolve Media. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
  23. ↑ Edery, David (December 15, 2014). "Road Not Taken: Free Update Out Now". PlayStation Blog. Sony Interactive Entertainment. Archived from the original on January 19, 2023. Retrieved January 19, 2023.
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