From their massive open worlds, unfathomably large download sizes, and seemingly endless checklists of collectibles, missions, and side quests, games are so much nowadays. It’s really no fault of the titles themselves that this formula works–it’s tried, it’s true, and it sells. But it does mean that I appreciate the occasional break from this exact mold of game. And Roger, a narrative game that can be completed within an hour and manages to do so much with so little, offers exactly that kind of break, and I’d love it if it became the standard rather than the exception.
I’m not too interested in giving away the most explicit details of And Roger right here and now. For just about five dollars on your PC and/or Switch, you can see all it has to say over the course of a slightly long lunch break. I’ve nothing to gain from telling you what it is, but you’ve got everything to lose by not just experiencing it firsthand. It covers a lot of ground in a pretty short amount of time, and its gut punches are as hard as they are dizzying.
And Roger plays like an interactive graphic novel–think 2018’s Florence, which depicted the highs and lows of the titular character’s romance and journey of self-discovery across comic-like panels and minigames. And Roger appears to take some cues from the award-winning narrative title, communicating its story largely through brief mechanical interludes that break up its often distressing narrative. However, where Florence basked in the glow of new love and the ennui of uncertainty, And Roger drops players into the confusing perspective of its main character and leads them on what can only be described as an expertly crafted emotional rollercoaster that tightly skirts the boundaries between different genres of stories.