Get in the Car, Loser!

Overview

Get in the Car, Loser! is a 2D RPG developed by Love Conquers All Games. It was released for PC and Mac on September 21, 2021.

Story

The game takes place in a world that is under threat by the awakening of the Machine Devil, which takes place every thousand years, and cultists that worship it. To prevent the Machine Devils awakening, Grace Morningstar steals the Sword of Fate, the weapon used to fight the Machine Devil in the past, and gathers her boyfriend Valentin, and her friend Sam, the game's protagonist. They are later joined by an angel of the Divine Order named Angela, who is unsatisfied with the Divine Order's lack of action against the Machine Devil, and the four set off on a road trip to ensure the evil stays sealed for another thousand years.

Gameplay

Gameplay consists of two key parts. Narrative scenes that take place in the party's car, and an active time RPG battle system.

While in the car, narrative scenes occur in the form of text-based dialogue, which sometimes feature responses from the protagonist that can be chosen by the player. Each time a line of dialogue is advanced, a turn passes, and once a number of turns pass, an event in the game will occur. These events consist of enemy encounters, a stop a shrine to heal the party, or a stop at a gas station, where items can be bought, side quest can be taken, and the car can be refueled with gas. While driving, the player can swap between three different lanes, which have their own separate events, allowing the player to avoid battles or prioritize needed rest stops.

Battles consist of an active time system, where each character's attack corresponds to one of four buttons. The attacks run on a cooldown, and the type of attack performed is dependent on what items are equipped to each character. Up to three items can be equipped to each character, creating three distinct loadouts that can be swapped during battle in order for each character to perform a variety of attacks. Enemies consist of a typical health bar, and a stagger bar. Executing certain types of attacks will increase the stagger bar, and once full, will cause enemies to take more damage from all attacks.

Soundtrack

The soundtrack for the game was composed by Christa Lee, with vocals provided by Jamie Lynn, and was released for sale digitally.