It has been many years since I strapped on a set of roller skates, but maybe not so many since I last shredded the streets in Jet Set Radio. Rollerdrome, developed by Roll7 and published by Private Division, looks to rekindle the magic of the manic free-flowing movements as you skate for your life. The difference between my childhood escape in Jet Set Radio and the brand new Rollerdrome comes in the form of firearms and the action-packed state of flow that comes in creatively dispatching a room full of people. I must say, they already had my interest, but they definitely had my attention from this point on.

The lead protagonist, Kara Hassan, decked out in her four-wheel roller skates, blood orange jumpsuit, and Evil Knieval retro-style bike helmet, has a fairly casual attire for such a brutal blood sport. A young go-getter that has made a name for herself in the junior leagues, has signed her life away in pursuit of the fame and glory set by her idol, Morgan Fray, the current champion of Rollerdrome. The IRF (International Rollerdrome Federation) has been funded by an influential corporation known as Matterhorn. Their reach over the media and institutions below them is seeping into greater aspirations, and the shadow they are casting is only growing with each acquisition.

Starting out in the opening stages of the campaign, Kara can explore the locker room which has a bread crumb trail of things to come. Pieces of newspapers offer snippets of the outside world as Matterhorn attempts to make this year’s Rollerdrome the most ambitious yet. It also offers a chance to snoop in other players’ stuff to see the growing concerns among the players about the severity of the game that is set to play. While only brief so as to not keep you from the action, the growing intrigue that matches the increasing intensity of the levels was a fantastic parallel.

Despite whatever is happening backstage, once Kara enters the arena there is only one thing you should be focusing on; leaving every House player for dead and leaving in one piece. Starting out with dual pistols that give a satisfying kick when making use of the DualSense, the player must set out to dispatch the array of enemies in increasingly creative ways. The genius behind the design to tie in ammo regeneration with how impressive your tricks and movements are creates a beautiful harmony between showmanship and strategic planning.

Plotting out your route to dump an entire clip into a Polybeam Solider before they teleport away, lead into an axel grind with the Triangle button to quickly escape the area, refill your entire mag, and unload into the Sniper at the end of the rail so they would drop me precious chunks of health was euphoric.

As you unlock the shotgun, grenade launcher, and the Z-11 charge rifle, the manner in which you tackle the arena becomes much more engaging. Using the grenade launcher to stagger the Riot Shields and then switching to the shotgun after performing a tail grab backflip with the Square and then R1 buttons to refill your ammo, I could then hold L2 and enter reflex mode to slow time for a short period and time my shots with the minigame to fire off slug rounds for increased damage. The reflex mode was an absolute lifesaver for me given how fast the game can get. Being able to slow things down and let the auto-target for the shotgun and pistols take over made me feel like a legitimate badass.

It should be noted that the movement, while being continuous and free-flowing, is easily managed to get out of tight spots. Once you push forward it will automatically set you in a forward momentum that you can adjust with the left thumb stick. The right thumb stick controls the camera, letting you scope what is behind you while your character continues. No matter how aggressively you throw yourself into death-defying spins, you will never fall, which keeps the momentum always going forward.

With sniper fire, mines, and even the odd baseball bat coming your way, using the Circle button to dodge became a regular part of my gameplay. The red lines indicated that I was being aimed at or an explosive was waiting for me, and if I managed to dodge as it turned white, I would be awarded a perfect dodge, and if that is combined with L2 immediately after, I could active super reflex mode for even greater damage and longer time to set up my shot.

With a spectacular cel-shaded visual display that makes this game seem as if it has burst right off the page of a comic book, I was treated to a cheerful and vivid set of levels as I gunned down dozens of house players. Seeing the puffs of smoke trailing the rockets and the static slates of colours clash in pleasing ways made the smart but simple artwork shine. Paired with an old-school sci-fi-inspired soundtrack that highlights the shady nature of Matterhorn and emphasises the fast-paced action, the visual and audio stimulations are in full effect.

Each stage was clean and simple, offering an increasingly unique set of playgrounds with ramps, rails, and breakable glass panes that lead to additional areas. From inside Matterhorn arenas, empty shopping centres in Houston and Green Bay, and outdoor areas in the Peaks Canyon or snowy mountain top summits, there is enough variety and verticality to keep things fresh. The story is set in 2030, yet the way the level and characters are designed makes it seem to be a vision of the future that came straight from the 1970s.

It was a very addictive loop that made revisiting previous levels to complete the challenges needed to unlock later levels easier as your skills and arsenal increased. The challenges themselves were either as simple as performing a certain trick as you collected the trick token, collecting all the combo tokens, or as daunting as completing the level in one combo which is only raised by gaining kills; the tricks are just used to refill your ammo to help with the continuous killing spree. Once you have managed to climb your way to the top of the mountain, the harder task of staying there by entering the ‘Out for Blood’ mode is the real end game. I was beaten to a pulp once I got here, and you will want to hope you picked up a thing or two.

Before I wrap things up, I want to highlight the completely optional addition of the assist page in the settings. Given that this game can get overwhelming quickly, and the later stages of the campaign can be locked behind completing a certain number of challenges, being able to adjust things in your favour can make the game more accessible. Options ranging from turning off the challenge requirement completely to unlock the next tier of levels, changing the amount of damage you take, all the way through to giving yourself infinite ammo or reflex time can all be adjusted to the desired levels. In doing so, you won’t be eligible for the online leader board, but this could be used for practicing for newer players, or even in aiding the players with impairments so that they can experience the fun of Rollerdrome.

Rollerdrome is the love child of chaos and style, fast-paced action with a bright and vibrant comic book art style that never felt so good. Depending on how fast you adapt to the madness, you could be in the endgame building montage-worthy gameplay and competing for ultimate bragging rights within the first day. If you wanted to take it a bit slower, the list of challenges to revisit and the assist menu let you tackle the game at your own pace. Either way, Rollerdrome is an incredibly exciting experience and a fine addition to the PlayStation library.

Written by: Shane Fletcher