In all 11 levels of Rollerdrome, there is a moment when everything clicks. The latest game from Roll7, developer of OlliOlli World, is all about getting good grades that aren’t worthy of a college degree, but practice makes perfect. This futuristic Tony Hawk Pro Skater game knows how to be the best. Birdman makes it look easy. Rollerdrome is a game all about movement, speed and style. The feeling when you master it is exceptional.
But what sets this game apart from the old Activision classics is that your life is at stake. Rollerdrome shares its name with bloodsport for the paying masses that combines cool tricks with modern carnage, and you’ve entered the qualifying rounds of the tournament. Winning the final is the only option to walk away breathless.
So the structure of the game is set. Go through each stage and in the end he wins 1st place. A few first-person scenes break up the action and introduce a bit of story outside of the contest itself, but they’re forgettable, and Roll7 lets you skip them briefly.
With rollerblades strapped to your feet and weapons clenched in your fists, the action does most of the talking anyway. It does so by combining tricks and bullets. Each system helps each other. Your limited pool of ammo is replenished by performing flips and grinds, and eliminating bad guys makes it easier to pull them off well. is the trick. Wipe out a few challengers by depleting your shotgun shells, then retreat to the halfpipe to retrieve your ammo and return with a fully loaded grenade launcher to cause mayhem.
This creates a very fast-paced gameplay loop where you think about your next target on the fly and decide what the right gun is and whether you have enough rounds in the chamber to take them down. Different enemies require different approaches. The sniper is always on your case as they follow your line of sight around the skatepark. Larger Brutes, on the other hand, launch mines and projectiles, making field movement much more difficult. , then beat it.
But the rush when you get out on the other side unscathed is exhilarating. It feels like replaying a level just for fun and going through a list of optional challenges to improve your score. A more approachable game than Tony Hawk’s Pro Skater. If you didn’t line up your landings correctly and the timer counts up instead of down, don’t worry bail. Taking too long will negatively affect your score, but since core progression is purely related to killing enemies, completing the objective within the set time limit is not a problem. It turns the title into something that’s not only fun but also relatable.
And boys have fun. Rollerdrome is one of those games that’s hard to convey because so many of its qualities are wrapped up in the feel of the game. To understand what’s special, you have to play it yourself. The rush of excitement as you soar through the air, slow down time, and land on an enemy, landing safely and lining up another target feels epic. It’s fed, it boosts the firepower, and it sends the swagger barometer into overdrive.
Three hours of play is enough to roll back credits in the main campaign, but with bonus objectives associated with every level, there’s a reason to return beyond the leaderboards where you compare your score against friends and the rest of the world. There is. Additionally, completing the base experience named Out for Blood unlocks a second game mode that lets you play the tournament again with increased enemy density and overall difficulty. Maybe for the masochist in you, this mode is another way to extend your playtime and put your skills to the ultimate test.
That’s if the base campaign’s difficulty spike hasn’t beaten you yet. So there is a point where the general difficulty seems insurmountable.
One example is par time, which almost doubles between stages as you progress from the quarter-finals to the semi-finals. Beating the clock improves your score. While you don’t have to do that to advance the competition, this shows how the game suddenly goes into overdrive. After breaking through, you may be shocked.
However, if you hit a brick wall, you can turn on some accessibility options (invincibility, infinite ammo, etc.) in the pause menu. Your score won’t be uploaded to the leaderboards, but you can win all the way to the end of Rollerdrome tournaments.
Playing through these later levels at least gives you another chance to appreciate the gorgeous art style featuring vibrant colors, bold tones that highlight locations, and detailed brushstrokes on each skatepark slope. Especially when you have a guaranteed speeding ticket and you’re racing with a rocket on your tail. Said to be inspired by 1970s comics, it looks a bit like the SEGA Dreamcast heavyweight jet set radio.
The only problem is that there aren’t enough environments to add variety to the game and really justify the art style. Stages usually fall into one of his three categories: standard skate parks, shopping centers, or outdoor areas that are frigid or grill in the heat. It’s pretty disappointing to reach the final stage of the competition only to encounter essentially the exact same spot as a few levels ago. , the time it takes to take in the surroundings is very long.
Even without a graphical mode to speak of, the game locks into a smooth, blistering 60 frames per second without even a hint of a drop. Roll7 has done a great job keeping the Rollerdrome up to speed in high-octane combat. It feels great no matter what speed you’re running. If anything, not having to fiddle with visual settings is actually refreshing. The frame rate is fixed at 60 no matter what. It’s wonderful.
The PS5’s DualSense controller is also supported, but this is a very basic implementation. You can feel a slight difference in the feel of each weapon through the triggers on the pads, and haptic feedback signals itself when near bombs and missiles. It feels like the support is there just to tick a box instead of actually going above and beyond to make the PS5 version stand out.
Conclusion
If there is a prize for gaming sensation, Rollerdrome doesn’t win a mile. Roll7 has created a short but highly engaging experience. Whether you’re doing tricks or blowing up your enemies, it’s an addictive loop that will keep you coming back again and again. Complemented by a stunning and colorful art style and a realistic sense of speed, flow and motion, Rollerdrome rivals Tony Hawk’s best of his Pro Skater games.
