Western themed Tactical RPG, Hard West, will make debut as Gamescom and PAX Prime

Published: July 30, 2015 4:16 PM /

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Hard West Logo

When it comes to settings, the Wild West is a fond one in terms of actions games as Red Dead Redemption and Luckslinger, but it's never really been a staple in the tactical RPG genre. But that landscape will change a little bit with publisher Gambitious Digitial Entertainment (publisher of such games as Magnetic: Case Closed) and developer CreativeForge games with the PC game Hard West. The game was a Kickstarter project that had more then 4000 backers pledge $94,183 Canadian dollars ($72,387.21 in American dollars).

Ah, the classic saloon fight. Sometimes a trope is a good thing.
Ah, the classic saloon fight. Sometimes a trope is a good thing.

The Polish developers behind the project had help with the writing with industry veteran Haris Orkin (known for Company of Heroes 2, Dying Light, and the Call of Juarez series) and an original score composed by Marcin Przybylowicz (known primarily for The Witcher 3: Wild Hunt contributions). It's described as compelling turn-based combat where you control 1-4 posse members against a world of cults, spirits, and basically everything that probably wants you dead. Very much like Luckslinger, one of the games mechanics has luck at the center stage, with it being a "unique guardian of engaging and challenging combat". How that specifically is used will become more clear at Gamescom and Pax Prime, where the game will be showing debut footage at. In addition, the game boasts a dynamic cover system which allows for the creation of cover within combat using the environment, and has a heavy emphasis on maneuverability and positions in combat, in particular with flanking.

Hard West UI

On top of that, ricochet shots seem to be an options as the gunslingers can use the metal objects in the environment to make a bullet travel in some interesting ways. There's also a shadow system that will use the blazing sun to locate out of sight line enemies by the shadows they cast on the ground, which is an interesting twist on the fog of war formula. Hopefully, we'll learn more about the mechanics of the game and what it has to truly offer in terms of the visuals and details of combat as news comes out of PAX Prime and Gamescom.

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Shaun Joy TechRaptor
| Former Video Lead

YouTuber Dragnix who plays way too many games, and has a degree in Software Engineering. A Focus on disclosure on Youtubers, and gaming coverage in general… More about Shaun