Broken Roads

Broken Roads is a story-driven PC CRPG set in a post-apocalyptic Western Australia, combining exploration, philosophical decision-making, classless character development, and turn-based tactical combat. Current PC storefront listings still use the name Broken Roads; no verified rebrand or replacement edition has superseded it. Developed by Drop Bear Bytes and published by Versus Evil with tinyBuild also listed on Steam, it is aimed at players who want a compact, choice-focused party RPG rather than a sprawling action sandbox.

A post-apocalyptic CRPG built around choices

Broken Roads uses an isometric 2.5D perspective to present a hand-drawn version of the Australian Outback after civilisation has fractured. The setting moves between decaying settlements, isolated communities, desert routes, and urban remnants, giving the game a distinctly Australian identity instead of treating the wasteland as a generic American ruin.

The main loop combines exploration, dialogue, quest investigation, trading, character progression, and turn-based combat. You move between locations, meet competing groups, gather information, and decide how to approach problems before fights or skill checks determine the immediate outcome. The campaign is single-player and party-based, with a maximum group size of five characters.

Broken Roads is more interested in conversations and consequences than constant combat. Its quests frequently present conflicting priorities rather than simple heroic objectives, so the most important decision is often whether to protect an individual, support a community, exploit an opportunity, or refuse to participate.

The Moral Compass and philosophical role-playing

The signature system is the Moral Compass, a worldview model that replaces a straightforward good-versus-evil alignment scale. Player decisions are associated with four philosophical positions: Utilitarianism, Nihilism, Machiavellianism, and Humanism.

Your choices can shift the protagonist's philosophical leaning and influence which moral responses are available later. The system is designed around consistency: a character who repeatedly acts from one worldview may gain access to related choices, while a broader outlook can leave room for more varied responses. That makes dialogue selection part of character development rather than a separate conversation layer.

Moral alignment also connects to traits and gameplay bonuses. Depending on the character's position and worldview, traits can unlock dialogue options, modify attributes, affect combat, or provide access to particular abilities. Some benefits come with drawbacks, so committing to a philosophy is not simply a way to collect passive bonuses.

The result is a role-playing system built for players who enjoy examining why a decision was made, not only whether it produced the most profitable outcome. Broken Roads does not present every dilemma as a clear moral test, and that ambiguity is central to its identity.

Classless builds and tactical combat

Character development follows a classless progression model. Instead of selecting a fixed archetype and following a locked skill tree, you shape characters through attributes, abilities, equipment, and available traits. This allows a protagonist to develop toward different combat or dialogue roles without being permanently defined by a starting class.

Combat is turn-based and uses a tactical battlefield where movement, cover, weapon choice, action points, and abilities determine how each encounter unfolds. Firearms, melee attacks, healing items, grenades, and special skills give the party several basic tools, while positioning remains important when enemies control narrow routes or protected areas.

The combat system is deliberately more restrained than the dialogue and worldview mechanics. Players looking for highly elaborate enemy behaviours, deep buildcraft, or a large catalogue of specialised abilities may find the tactical layer simpler than the surrounding role-playing systems. Its strength is as a support structure for the story, party management, and resource decisions.

That contrast is useful to understand before buying. Wasteland 2 Director's Cut offers a more traditional squad-focused post-apocalyptic tactics experience, while Broken Roads places greater emphasis on philosophical identity, Australian world-building, and conversational consequences.

Content, campaign structure, and paid extras

Broken Roads is sold as a premium single-player game. The base package contains the main campaign, exploration areas, party progression, moral choices, trading, and tactical encounters. It is not a free-to-play title and does not use an in-game season-pass structure for its core role-playing content.

Current Steam listings show optional Artbook and Soundtrack products, as well as a Deluxe Edition bundle that packages those extras with the base game. These are supplementary digital items rather than story expansions, new companions, or additional campaign chapters.

The campaign is structured around branching quests, local factions, personal relationships, and multiple outcomes. Replay value comes from trying different origins, party approaches, moral positions, and quest decisions rather than from an endless procedural world or a repeatable endgame.

Who should play Broken Roads?

Broken Roads suits players who prefer text-heavy RPGs, hand-drawn isometric presentation, morally complicated dialogue, and a setting that feels culturally specific. It is a good fit for fans of party-based CRPGs who want to read conversations carefully and accept that some choices close off other possibilities.

It is less suitable for players expecting a large open-world shooter, real-time action combat, extensive multiplayer systems, or a heavily simulated survival sandbox. The game is also not designed around cooperative play, so its party is controlled by one player rather than shared online or through split-screen modes.

Players who enjoy dialogue-led role-playing with unusual internal systems may also want to compare it with isometric narrative RPGs like Disco Elysium. The two games differ substantially in combat and setting, but both make identity, conversation, and failed decisions central to the experience.

PC features, controls, and localization

The PC version supports keyboard and mouse play as well as full controller support. Steam lists single-player functionality, Steam Cloud, achievements, trading cards, and Family Sharing. There is no verified co-op, competitive multiplayer, or split-screen campaign.

Broken Roads is also marked as Playable on Steam Deck. The default controller configuration is accessible and the game runs successfully on SteamOS, although small text remains a consideration for handheld play. A larger-font option is available, which is useful for dialogue-heavy sessions.

Steam currently lists interface and subtitle support in English, French, German, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Latin American Spanish. English is the only language listed with full audio. The game therefore has broad text localization, but players should not expect full voice acting in every supported language.

Storefront availability does not indicate a separate DRM-free edition or a launcher-independent PC build, so players should treat the Steam and Epic versions as tied to their respective storefront ecosystems. No additional anti-cheat system is relevant because the game is single-player.

Similar PC games and genre fit

Broken Roads draws from the tradition of Fallout, Wasteland, Tyranny, Pathfinder, Pillars of Eternity, and Baldur's Gate, but its closest comparisons depend on which feature matters most to you. For squad combat and post-apocalyptic decision-making, turn-based wasteland RPGs such as Wasteland 2 Director's Cut are the clearest mechanical reference.

For a more systems-heavy isometric post-apocalyptic experience, classic-inspired survival RPGs like Encased offer broader exploration and build experimentation. Broken Roads remains more focused on its Australian setting and Moral Compass, while Encased leans further into science-fiction factions, equipment, and traditional CRPG structure.

The important distinction is that Broken Roads is not simply a Fallout-style shooter with dialogue attached. Its defining appeal is the interaction between worldview, quest choices, party relationships, and a deliberately authored setting.

Broken Roads FAQ

Is Broken Roads still the current PC storefront name?

Yes. Current Steam and Epic listings use Broken Roads. No verified rebrand, renamed edition, or successor storefront title has replaced the original name.

What kind of game is Broken Roads?

It is a single-player isometric CRPG with exploration, branching quests, philosophical choices, classless character development, party management, and turn-based tactical combat.

How does the Moral Compass work?

The Moral Compass tracks philosophical leaning across Utilitarian, Nihilist, Machiavellian, and Humanist positions. Dialogue and quest decisions can shift that leaning, affecting future moral options and access to worldview-related traits.

Does Broken Roads have multiplayer or co-op?

No. It is a single-player RPG. The party can contain up to five characters, but all party members are controlled by one player.

What is included in the Broken Roads Deluxe Edition?

The Deluxe Edition bundle includes the base game together with the digital artbook and soundtrack. The listed extras are supplementary products, not additional story campaigns or gameplay expansions.

Does Broken Roads support controllers and Steam Deck?

Yes. The PC version has full controller support and is listed as Playable on Steam Deck. Small text can still be difficult to read on the handheld screen, so the large-font option may be useful.

Which languages are supported?

Steam lists English, French, German, Polish, Brazilian Portuguese, Russian, Simplified Chinese, and Latin American Spanish for interface and subtitles. English is listed with full audio, while the other supported languages are text-focused.