Wheels of Aurelia

Wheels of Aurelia is an adventure game with arcade elements. The title focuses on telling a non-linear story, the course of which is determined by the player's actions. The game was developed by the independent studio Santa Ragione.

Story

The action of Wheels of Aurelia takes place in Italy, in the turbulent 1970s, when, against the background of the political unrest and waves of crime rolling through the country. During the game, we play the role of Lella, who sets off on a journey through the famous Via Aurelia and it is only up to us how her fate will unfold and in which of several ways her adventure will end.

During the game we get a chance to get to know not only the protagonist herself and various events from her past, but also more or less original people to whom she offers a ride - including a priest, a hippie, a paparazzi, and even a criminal fleeing from justice.

Mechanics

Action in Wheels of Aurelia is shown in isometric projection. We start the game by choosing the car that Lella will travel with. Our decision determines how hitchhikers will perceive it - for example, by choosing a car from the top shelf, we can be sure that someone will pay attention to the alleged abundance of our wallet.

While having fun, we have direct control over the vehicle, taking an active part in traffic or even choosing the direction in which we want to go at a given moment (at certain moments we can deviate from the route). In addition, we select the lines spoken by the protagonist during (sometimes turbulent) discussions, answer questions posed to her and finally ask some questions ourselves. In this way, we can both discover various information and get into trouble, the result of which may be, for example, an escape from a police chase.

It is worth noting that the players wishing to have a better understanding of the situation in Italy in the seventies of the last century, can browse an extensive encyclopedia explaining the cultural and political complexities characteristic for this period.

Technical aspects

Wheels of Aurelia's three-dimensional visuals look decent mainly due to the fact that they is kept in an eye-catching, cartoonish style. The game is accompanied by a soundtrack consisting of Italian music.

Last updated on April 6, 2020