No Straight Roads is Sold Out’s biggest investment yet – while publisher welcomes pitches for its $500,000 Unreal Box Offer

UK-based publisher Sold Out has revealed to MCV@gamescom that No Straight Roads (NSR) is the publisher’s biggest investment to date.

The game, from Malaysia-based developer Metronomik, is a music-driven action title, which pits rock music against dance music in the colourful Vinyl City. Sold Out’s CEO Garry Williams told us why the publisher chose this particular title to invest in so heavily: “We’re publishing physical and digital versions of the game, we have a great relationship with the studio and as for the game itself, the visuals are stunning and the music-based, action-packed gameplay is so fun and unique that we hope it will be remembered by players in the same way as the games it’s inspired by, like Jet Set Radio. We have high hopes for it being Sold Out’s most successful game to date.”

Williams continued by explaining the talent behind the title: “It’s the first game from Metronomik, an exciting new indie studio co-founded by Wan Hazmer, the lead game designer on Final Fantasy XV, and Daim Dziauddin, concept artist on Street Fighter V… We’re very proud to be working with such top tier dev talent, and love the unique, original concept they’re delivering with NSR.”

The title will be on show at gamescom on the Ukie booth in Hall 3 Level 2 (C020 E039), by appointment, and is looking to pick up more plaudits having already picked up the Best Indie Project award at this year’s Unreal Open Day in May.

Speaking of Unreal, the publisher remains open to pitches for its ongoing Unreal Box Offer. The initiative, launched earlier in the year, takes Sold Out’s strong history in boxed and offers it up to Unreal developers specifically, with up to $500,000 of funding for titles using the popular engine.

“It came about because we’re still big believers that there is money to be made in boxed product and by partnering with the Unreal Development Community, it gives us the opportunity to talk to talented development teams who have yet to explore their aspirations for releasing their game in a box,” Williams explained.

We thought the offer could be related to the boom in Unreal-based games that should come from the Epic Game Store’s discounted royalty rate, but apparently not: “No, it doesn’t have anything to do with that…It’s an initiative which can directly benefit the Unreal development community to get their games into physical boxes around the world and for us an opportunity to find the next hidden gems from an extremely talented development talent pool,” Williams responds.

Williams wouldn’t disclose the size of its war chest for the initiative, but noted: “We don’t have a set number of titles or quota that we’re looking to hit.” He stressed heavily that they’re “not asking for any IP rights” as part of the deal.

“So whether you’re a one-person team or 30-person studio, if you think your game could benefit from funding, please do get in touch, or even better, come and have a chat with us at gamescom. We’re at the show to meet new partners and would love to talk about what we’re able to bring to your next game.”