RollerGirl is an inline-skating story built on the idea that music can revive a faded world. You take the role of Naomi, skating around her suburban neighborhood, meeting its residents, and using an MP3 player to turn dull gray streets into vivid color. It combines skating with a story guided by your vibe. Pushing Vertices developed the game with backing from Ontario Creates and the Canada Media Fund.
Quick answer: RollerGirl is a story-driven rollerblading game from Pushing Vertices. A playtest and a wishlist option are live on Steam ahead of its PC launch.
How the music mechanic changes the world
The core hook is music that literally repaints the environment. When Naomi puts on an upbeat track from her yellow music player, the desaturated town fills with color as she skates, marked by the on-screen line “MUSIC CHANGES THE WORLD.” The effect follows her movement, so skating and listening are tied together rather than separate systems.
Skating itself carries across a range of settings and conditions, from rainy night streets to a park at sunset and a lakeside boardwalk. The trailer shows the world reacting to time of day and weather while Naomi rolls through it, framed by the tagline “FIND YOUR VIBE.”
Naomi and the neighborhood characters
Naomi is the sole playable character: a young woman with short locks pulled back, dressed in a light yellow hoodie and purple-grey trousers, with red-and-white inline skates. The HUD places her in Nerima, where she spends much of the game speaking with local people.
Conversations use branching dialogue, so you pick how Naomi responds. When a neighbor named Amber says she wishes she could travel into the city to find music, you choose between replies like “Yeah me too.” and “Keep wishing.” The town is populated with distinct residents, each pulling Naomi’s story in a different direction.
- Joann — In the rain, Joann and Naomi talk over a fence about her low mood and sense of isolation.
- Carol — warns Naomi to be careful about who she spends time with, citing troublemakers.
- Amber — pushes back on the “trouble” label and wants to reach the city for music.
- Mick — the neighborhood mechanic who handles Naomi’s car repairs.
- Flynn — offers reflective advice, at one point comparing life to a playlist.
Fixing the car and earning money through errands
Naomi’s goal drives the loop. She wants to reach the city to find music, but her car needs repairs first. Mick, the local mechanic, explains the work will cost money even with a neighbor’s discount, so Naomi has to raise the funds herself.
That’s where odd jobs come in. Naomi takes on errands around the neighborhood to earn cash, tracked by a currency display and a task list in the HUD. One job shown is a newspaper delivery run, where she skates past homes tossing papers onto front walkways toward a set quota, with a popup reading “News paper delivered! 16 more to go!”
Playtest, wishlist, and who’s making RollerGirl
RollerGirl comes from Pushing Vertices and was featured during the Game Devs of Color Expo, with backing credited to Ontario Creates and the Canada Media Fund. It’s headed to PC.
Ahead of that launch, a playtest is available on Steam, and the game can be wishlisted there. No official release date has been confirmed yet, so there’s no set launch time to plan around.
The pitch is compact and clear: grab a music player and a pair of rollerblades, skate through a nostalgic small town, chat with neighbors, run errands, and let the soundtrack decide the mood of the world around you.
