Hard West – An Xcom Inspired Wild West Game

Hard West, a PC turn based game that apparently takes combat inspiration from the likes of Xcom, as well as an over world map reminiscent of Heroes of Might and Magic, has reached the half-way point in its Kickstarter campaign, and already achieved nearly all of its $70,000 target.

Developed by CreativeForge Games – a Polish company with members that have worked on titles such as Call of Juarez, Dead Island, Hard Reset and Shadow Warrior – Hard West is a “weird west tactical (game) with world map exploration, a hint of adventure and a drop of RPG”.

The combat is touted as being “short, bloody, and decisive” – only taking one or two shots to down a foe, meaning fights usually take no more than 5-10 minutes. Health Points simply represent the ability to withstand a shot or two, and as such strategy is of the utmost importance – a gif on the game’s Kickstarter page shows tables being knocked over to create cover, as well as one that exemplifies trick shots (making use of the environment to pull off fancy kills). The game also apparently features little in the way of randomisation; which, if like me you were irritated by Xcom’s occasional dick moves, is great news.

A couple of other interesting features are the sun and nightmares. The sun can impact gameplay by simply creating shadows of your foes, thus giving away their positions; but it can also directly affect characters by impacting their sight. And nightmares, about which there isn’t a great deal of information, appears to add some kind of alien or scary element to the game.

Continuing with the more fantastical theme, the Kickstarter teases wacky weapons, such as a “Half-a-pound bullet rifle” (to be honest with you, I have no idea what that is) and a “four-barrelled shotgun”.

It not entirely clear how the game pans out in terms of story or core drive, however a myths and legends of the west theme is how the developers describe the game. This Heroes of Might and Magic influence also seems fairly distinct – travel, explore, trade, obtain treasure, gather resources, and complete quests are all listed as features.

At the time of writing, the Kickstarter is half way done, and it seems pretty certain that it will hit its target; which is a damn good thing, because this game looks very interesting. A weird, Wild West theme, combined with some of the best parts of Xcom and Heroes of Might and Magic – if they manage to pull this off, it could be stunning.