Gaming

Meet ‘Weird West,’ an RPG where you can moonlight as a werewolf

Your husband was taken by cannibals… oh well!

Wolfeye Studios

A new trailer for Wolfeye Studios’ immersive sim Weird West is finally here, revealing more about the RPG set to release March 31. Back in October, we got a glimpse into the game’s mechanics, features and characters.

But Weird West has an overarching story, one that explores what it’s like to be a gunslinging widow in a world full of cannibals, werewolves and other monsters.

Mutating a genre — Players begin as bounty hunter Jane Bell, who’s out for blood. As the story progresses, you’ll cycle through five starkly different characters, including Native American archer Across Waters, a creepy Pigman, and mystical onerist Nell Bitterleaf.

The game takes place in an alternate historical reality, where the Wild West’s stereotypical heroics and toxic colonialism has been overrun by rampant “flesh eaters” and occult magic. It’s a fresh take on an otherwise stale genre, offering plenty of opportunities for those seeking chaos and destruction in its myriad forms.

What’s it like? — Texas-based indie game publisher Devolver Digital is behind the stylized RPG, which has the aesthetic of a gritty graphic novel. For some, Weird West’s game mechanics might feel like playing a Diablo game or Red Dead Redemption. For others, it’s garnered comparisons to Fallout 2 and Borderlands.

BRB, it’s munchin’ time.Wolfeye Studios

Wolfeye Studios’ Creative Director Rafael Colantonio has said that Weird West is designed to be as interactive as possible, staying true to the immersive sim genre. Nearly every item on the map can be interacted with, creating an open-world feel where possibilities are endless.

A whole new world.Wolfeye Studios

“You’re looking at a good 40 hours of gameplay split between five characters that are tied together in ways that will be revealed at the end,” Colantonio explained in the October trailer.

Weird West costs $39.99 and is now available for preorder on Steam, Xbox and PlayStation. When it releases on March 31, it will also be available on Xbox Game Pass.