Hitchhiker

Strap in for a surreal ride across the American midwest.

I’m strapped into the passenger seat of a car somewhere in the American midwest. I don’t know how I got here, just like I don’t know how I’ll end up alongside the next four drivers I hitch a ride with in Hitchhiker. In an even vaguely real-world context, this scenario could be a little alarming, given how vulnerable I am as an amnesiac hitchhiker with no sense of direction.

But as soon my driver, a raisin farmer called Vern, starts musing about everything from relationships to philosophical raisin-based analogies, a wave of comfort washes over me and I’m all aboard for the ride – wherever it may take me. Why our protagonist is hitchhiking across America will eventually become clear. But while I’m riding shotgun with this procession of philosopher-drivers ruminating about everything from relationships to the strange world that exists beneath shopping mall escalators, the protagonist’s own story about his relationship troubles takes a backseat.

It transpires your character has a crumbling long-term relationship, which is tarnished by guilt, jealousy and the painful question of when to let go. You only get glimpses of the relationship itself through flashbacks, photos, and the testimony of the characters you meet, but really the purpose of this entire odyssey across America is to face up to deepburied truths our wayfaring hero knows about his relationship but is struggling to face up to. Even by the standards of a narrativedriven game, Hitchhiker is largely non-interactive beyond looking around, dialogue choices, and the occasional light puzzle. And that’s fine, because the writing is strong enough to carry player-passengers like me through its modest length, especially as each ride is broken up by a beautiful vignette illustrating a story that a given driver tells.

It’s a shame that such a narrative-focused game doesn’t use branching dialogue, player agency in the story, multiple endings, and other wellestablished tools that make videogames such a powerful storytelling medium.

A wonderfully written game, but one where you’re never in the driving seat.