Road 96: Mile 0 – Review
Road 96: Mile 0 is the prologue to DigixArt and Ravenscourt’s 2021 narrative-driven adventure video game Road 96. Through the eyes of one of the game’s characters, Zoe, Mile 0 delves into the events preceding the first game. A touching story about politics, ethics, and devotion will unfold as players get to know the locals of White Sands.
Taking place in the fictional authoritarian country of Petria in 1996, Road 96: Mile 0 follows the lives of two teenagers named Zoe and Kaito. You take control of Zoe, a wealthy teenager whose father is a government official and who happens to be Tyrak’s next-door neighbour. Kaito, who made his appearance alongside Zoe in DigixArt’s debut game, Lost in Harmony, is a close friend of Zoe’s. Kaito, a native of Petria’s dirty capital city of Colton City, can give Zoe some much-needed perspective on life because he comes from a completely different background. When Kaito starts behaving suspicious, the unlikely pair’s friendship is put to the test, leading Zoe to investigate Kaito’s past and Petria’s history. In doing so, she learns something about herself and her values.
While both characters are playable, Zoe takes up the bulk of your time in Mile 0. She is from White Sands’ upper class, so she is used to being called “Madam Zoe” and watching the president’s eccentric son, Colton. On the other hand, Kaito and his family struggle to get by in the less affluent part of town, and he helps out by working alongside his parents. If Zoe is open to having her preconceived notions challenged, he can show her a fresh way of thinking about the government, her family, and even her past.
Wandering around White Sands, Zoe meets a colourful cast of characters, some of whom will be recognisable to players of Road 96. Unlike Kaito, who during his short time as the playable protagonist was often met with little more than glares and snide comments when meeting people in the same areas of town, nearly everyone you approach will recognise Zoe or try to start up a conversation with her.
Interacting with NPCs and rummaging through trash cans for collectibles make up the bulk of the gameplay in the first-person exploration sections, with the odd minigame tossed in for good measure. In the second part of the game, you’ll have to solve a few puzzles, which range from putting together a torn note to unlocking a door.
Most of your time in White Sands will be spent at Zoe and Kaito’s Hideout, an abandoned construction site where you can look at stickers and listen to cassette recordings you’ve found. You and Kaito are tasked with creating a piece of wall art, and you will use any spray paint cans you discover to complete the project. Although the Hideout is equipped with an arcade cabinet and some other minor activities, I rarely felt compelled to spend significant amounts of time there when given the chance, particularly considering that Zoe spends most of her time there by herself.
Rides, a novel skill-based gameplay mechanic introduced in the prequel, permeate the narrative parts of Mile 0. These bizarre musically-driven skating sequences occur at pivotal moments in the friendship between Zoe and Kaito. The rides are accompanied by a jumbled mix of original music and licenced songs, such as “No Brakes” by The Offspring.
For the most part across the game’s ten Rides, players will take on the roles of both Zoe and Kaito, gliding along each course on roller skates and a skateboard, respectively. The goal of the rides is to rack up the highest possible combo score by avoiding hazards, jumping between rails, and completing quick time events. At the conclusion of each Ride, a total rating is displayed, and riders can choose to take the Ride again to try to improve their score. Players who don’t enjoy the game’s fast-paced musical segments can skip them completely if they die several times in a succession during a Ride, which is a nice touch.
A ride is a visually appealing and contextually relevant method to move the story along to the next exciting beat. While I can understand why some fans of Road 96 might be put off by the addition of Rides to Mile 0, I found them to be a welcome addition that made some of the formative experiences shared by Zoe and Kaito that much more memorable.
Like the original Road 96, Mile 0 focuses on a story in which the player’s decisions affect the course of events. Conversations and Rides present players with pivotal decision points. The political leanings of Zoe and Kaito, represented by a gauge in the screen’s top right area, will change depending on the paths you take. The needle can be swayed in either direction by public actions like removing or replacing propaganda displays.
You won’t really experience the repercussions of your choices until near the end of the game, even though the game makes it clear whether an option has an impact or not. After each Ride or other significant occurrence, the game automatically saves your progress. After the second act, I had a number of failures that reset my progress.
Rides in Mile 0 have a lot of repeat value, but this cannot be said for the rest of the game. When I finished the game, I was a little bummed to discover that nothing extra was unlocked. There is no way to experience the narrative with a variety of results without restarting from the beginning, including no chapter select. I wondered what would have happened if Zoe and Kaito had met under different circumstances, but I didn’t care enough to restart the game to find out. With the option to skip Rides, a second playthrough of Mile 0 shouldn’t take too long, as I rolled credits at just under six hours. The good news for those interested in collecting everything is that your work will persist across game sessions.
The story of the teenagers in Road 96: Mile 0 who are driven to the edge by a repressive system is familiar and yet still engaging. The story’s heavier themes and darker undertones are balanced by the upbeat score, excellent voice acting, and comedic moments. The addition of Rides expands upon the game’s catchy soundtrack and provides a new way to engage with the story beyond branching conversation and minigames. Despite its flaws, the prequel does a respectable job of setting up the story of Road 96 and introducing gameplay elements that appeal to a fresh set of players.
