Canada Route Zero: Highway Of Tears Demo

Digging through the RPS archives can be rather alarming. Highway of Tears looks like the kind of game our keen eyes may have spotted so I dutifully typed the first few letters into the 'tag' search - 'h-i-g-h-way To The Reich', the form completed itself and waited for my approval. No. Bad form. Bad RPS. I'll deal with this situation right away. I wonder what other innocent words produce a single disturbing response?

Highway of Tears caught my eye because it has a strong set of influences, including Kentucky Route Zero, True Detective and 'the mythology of the Haida aboriginals'. That already makes for a more attractive point and click prospect than 'comedy anti-hero' or 'rubbish [insert job title]'. A demo is available.

The current demo is described as 'rough', having been made for submission to an event a month ago. Feedback on the GUI in particular is encouraged.

In terms of narrative, the game is based on a series of real disappearances along a remote highway in British Columbia.

You play as Sofia, an african-american documentary maker. Together with your cameraman Caleb you travel to the town of Augier’s Peak, up in the wilderness of British Columbia, to find out what the hell is going on over there. Three girls have gone missing there recently, and you will have to interview people, investigate locations and unravel secrets that could eventually lead to an explanation for this mystery, and an understanding of the cultural significance these events have on the people in that region.

But is Sofia a rubbish documentary maker? Will there be zany hijinks? I'm guessing not and I'm glad to see a few adventure games with a serious tone emerging from the development mines. Very much looking forward to seeing more of this one.

Oh, and I've fixed the Highway to the Reich issue, or at least counterbalanced it.