Wheels of Aurelia (2016)

A narrative road trip game set in the roaring Italian 70s, it tells the story of Lella, a restless woman driving on the roads of the western coast of Italy, the famous "Via Aurelia". This is an interactive fiction in the shape of an isometric driving game and with a focus on replayability: every playthrough lasts about fifteen minutes and there are sixteen different endings to discover.

Puzzle Racing Adventure Indie Visual Novel driving female protagonist steam steam achievements off-tv play narrativePlayStation 4, Linux, Android, PC (Microsoft Windows), iOS, Mac

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Character

Grave, intimate, spare and open-ended.

gravecomic
intimateepic
sparerichly built
resolvedopen-ended
cooloverwhelming

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From the critics

A few lines from each review; the whole review is on the critic's site. Not part of Tastebuds's numbers.

TheXboxHubRichard DobsonNov 20164/5 stars
For anyone looking for a refreshing change from open-world time sinks after the glut of Mafia III, Watch Dogs 2, Skyrim: SE and Final Fantasy XV, Wheels of Aurelia may be the perfect game for you. Each playthrough takes no longer than 20 minutes and it can be completed in a tenth of the time these games take. It’s also recommended to those that like getting the most out of games as by the end you will have a preferred ending and despite its short length, it’s a game people can have different experiences with and then share those stories with each other, much like the most successful AAA titles.
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Bit CulturesConnor O'MalleyOct 201684/100
But it would be remiss to end on a negative for this review of a very, very special game. Wheels of Aurelia is a narrative triumph, with dialogue that has more to say than the vast majority of games would ever dare.
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Game InformerSuriel VazquezOct 20167/10
You’ll want to play Wheels of Aurelia several times to see all the paths you can take, but practical issues make that a chore
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Nintendo LifeLiam DoolanNov 20173/10
As a visual novel, Wheels of Aurelia is a lacklustre experience. As a driving game, it's even worse. However you wish to identify it, this title lacks genuine substance; it's a solid idea executed poorly. The key themes and settings are deceptive, making the title seem like it is built on strong foundations when in reality, it's made up of a series of convoluted verbal exchanges between characters who forcefully touch on an array of dicey topics relevant but not always central to the time. The historical-links also suffer as this information is often overridden by an aggressive sense of agenda-setting that robs the exchanges of impact. Then there's the main narrative focused on a person you're likely to not even care about due to the concise nature of each road trip. It's simply not on par with the best titles this genre has to offer, and although you could argue that the esoteric nature of the game means it will illicit wildly different emotional reactions from different people, the core package just isn't compelling, challenging or appealing enough to back up that line of debate.
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Switch PlayerLiam LanganNov 20171.9/5
Wheels of Aurelia is a disappointing attempt at bringing the Visual Novel genre to the Switch, it's too short to be engaging, and at its current price tag seems a bit too steep.
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Snippets via OpenCritic, where 33% of critics recommend it.

About the game

Platforms: PlayStation 4, Linux, Android, PC (Microsoft Windows), iOS, Mac, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch
Developer: Santa Ragione
Publisher: MixedBag, Santa Ragione
Released: September 20, 2016
Modes: Single player
Perspective: Bird view / Isometric
Engine: Unity