Road Redemption takes a swipe at Road Rash with its combat-heavy Kickstarter

While Criterion have made some vague noises about the possibility of a modern Road Rash reboot, developers DarkSeas are already speeding into the distance, brandishing a lead pipe. Their Kickstarter project, Road Redemption , leans heavily into the Road Rash theme with two-wheeled tussles aplenty. I'm not entirely sure what's so redemptive about smacking a biker in the face with a metal chain. Maybe the pitch video can fill us in.

Nope! Still, while the footage shows a game clearly in the early stages of development, the combat already has an appropriately brutal look. I even gave a sympathetic wince at the mid-air katana neck slice. The inclusion of firearms does cause a raised eyebrow, but the developers say that aiming at speed will be tricky and ammunition scarce.

DarkSeas are promising a selection of melee weapons, firearms, multiple mission types and a biker gang-based story that has you climbing the ranks, taking territory and setting up drug distribution routes. On top of this, they also plan to make the game open-source soon after release - letting people play with the code and assets to make mods or create entirely new games of their own.

Road Redemption has raised over $36,000 with 27 days left to achieve the $160,000 target. DarkSeas have also revealed that the iconic Road Rash cattle prod will be a backer exclusive to those who pledge $115 or more. Which seems a shame, although doubtless this version won't come with hilarious cartoon shock effects.

Phil Savage
Editor-in-Chief

Phil has been writing for PC Gamer for nearly a decade, starting out as a freelance writer covering everything from free games to MMOs. He eventually joined full-time as a news writer, before moving to the magazine to review immersive sims, RPGs and Hitman games. Now he leads PC Gamer's UK team, but still sometimes finds the time to write about his ongoing obsessions with Destiny 2, GTA Online and Apex Legends. When he's not levelling up battle passes, he's checking out the latest tactics game or dipping back into Guild Wars 2. He's largely responsible for the whole Tub Geralt thing, but still isn't sorry.