A world of goblins and dragons, a choice of character specialities, and the threads of a mystery. If the size of the undiscovered map is anything to go by, I’m nowhere near getting to the end of Roadwarden, but I like it.
Furthermore, I’m here to tell you why you should pick it up on Nintendo Switch.
I was a big fan of text and graphical text adventures as a kid. This carried over to the point and click world, but I was soon swallowed up by strategy titles and God games… which means Roadwarden is the first classic adventure I’ve played in decades.
Retro style adventure gaming on the Switch
Offering 16-bit style graphics, with an atmospheric palette, Roadwarden mixes point and click interface with static or limited movement in the accompanying scenes of landscapes and locations.
Accompanying this is a series of punchy descriptions and wry dialogue, resulting in an engaging and immersive world — one full of mystery and endless opportunities for danger.
Unsurprisingly, the game starts slowly, as is often the case with the genre, but you’re given plenty of dialogue options. The game’s starting point, a sort of undermanned fort, is your launchpad for adventures in the surrounding area. For me, this meant avoiding an attack by wolves, stumbling upon the survivor of what seemed to be a zombie monkey attack, and finding my way to an inn.
To help you complete your mission (which starts out as a search for the previous Roadwarden, but then, well… I can’t say), the game offers an inventory, a map, and a choice of characters to start the adventure with.
It’s all pretty standard 1980s text adventure game fare, but with the advantage of selecting directions and items and dialogue with a game controller, rather than typing them.
A tiny piece of map
One thing you should note is that this game is slow-going. Despite playing for several hours, I’d only managed to cover a tiny portion of the map. This bodes well for long-term play, assuming the storylines hold up, but there is something that might put you off: controller struggles.
On several occasions, the Switch Joy-cons (in unified controller mode) seemed unresponsive to selection confirmation. So, I might select a menu option or dialogue choice, which is highlighted in yellow, but the game would either detect the focus being off-screen (and not selected) or open a different menu. Fortunately, this hasn’t yet lead to any game-ending moments, but it is worth keeping in mind. Hopefully this is addressed in an update soon.
Roadwarden (Nintendo Switch): An atmospheric world with some curious stories, Roadwarden mixes point-and-click adventure games with static graphic adventures. Some issues with the Switch control input may frustrate, but overall this is a game with a narrative that draws you in with its dialogue and worldbuilding. Graphics are evocative, but nothing to write home about, being mostly static, and they create a welcoming yet dangerous landscape. I like it, and you might too. – Christian Cawley
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Christian Cawley is the founder and editor of GamingRetro.co.uk, a website dedicated to classic and retro gaming. With over 20 years of experience writing for technology and gaming publications, he brings considerable expertise and a lifelong passion for interactive entertainment, particularly games from the 8-bit and 16-bit eras.
Christian has written for leading outlets including TechRadar, Computer Weekly, Linux Format, and MakeUseOf, where he also served as Deputy Editor.
When he’s not exploring vintage consoles or retro PCs, Christian enjoys building with LEGO, playing cigar box guitar, and experimenting in the kitchen.
