‘Open Roads’ explores a different kind of nostalgia

Tess, left, and Opal ride in a car in “Open Roads”. The road trip adventure game features voice work by Caitlin Dever who plays Tess and Keri Russell who plays Opal. (Annapurna Interactive)

When gamers talk about nostalgia, sprite-heavy graphics, chiptune music and enormous square televisions often come to mind, but for the developers of “Open Roads” it means creating a world from their collective past. They recreate their memories and put them into a video game.

The project is a mother-daughter road trip adventure, starring Keri Russell as mother Opal and Caitlin Dever as daughter Tess. It happens two decades ago in 2003. The era becomes clear as players explore the world from the girl’s first-person perspective. They see a crimson-colored iMac sitting on the desk. A hulking CRT television sits atop the dresser. Everyone still reads newspapers.

In a hands-off demo, the developers showed the early parts of the campaign, which takes place in a house that is about to be sold. It is full of family drama when Opal and her daughter are forced to leave the place after it is sold. The introduction provides a way for players to explore the environment and is an intricately designed setting.

The house seems populated with furniture from different eras and childhood scribbles hidden in the closet walls. A developer said it was done by one of his children. Wandering around, players will notice that the music is also era-appropriate.

As players in the world like Tess, they find out more about the situation. Opal can’t get along with her sister and Grandma Helen has a hidden past that will have some significance later on. It sets up the story’s beats and mysteries that are discovered later.

“Open Roads” has a different vibe, a slower pace than other adventure games. It feels like an experience that rewards players for exploring and discovering the details of the story. One of the most notable elements is that the campaign takes place in first person, although there are moments when the camera switches to third person and players see Tess and Opal.

They look like characters from a Don Bluth project. It enhances the sense of nostalgia. Don’t expect animation of that caliber though but players can appreciate the character designs.

Along with a stellar cast, the voice acting is good, and it makes players want to interact with everything. When Tess (Kaitlin Dever) picks something up, her mother (Keri Russell), who follows her around, will provide commentary or insight into the object. At first, it might sound interesting, but having a game where one’s mother is constantly looking over their shoulder can be troublesome.

Russell’s acting and charm and the rapport between the two characters will be what drives the campaign. Some of them appear in the player’s dialog choices. Remember to choose any response related to ska.

With its grounded vibe, “Open Roads” has the potential to offer a different kind of story and experience for gamers. A few titles explore mother-daughter relationships and a few are personally nostalgic.

“Open Roads” is scheduled for release in February. 22 on PC, PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X and Series S and Nintendo Switch.