‘Weird West’ Review: A Clawful of Dollars Under the High Moon
Weird West brings the hybrid genre of fantasy and horror Western to PC and consoles through the lens of an immersive sim filled with choices and possibilities.
It’s not every day that we receive an immersive sim, let alone one made by veteran developers from games such as Dishonored or Prey, but that’s exactly what WolfEye Studios’ has delivered with Weird West, a bold incursion into a setting which hasn’t received nearly as much attention as it deserves — think of the classic Western tropes and ambience mixed with fantasy and horror elements. It’s a (mostly literary and cinematic) blend that hasn’t been explored much in video games, although recent titles such as Hard West or West of Dead made a significant push for the genre.
Of course, the main selling point here is that Weird West comes from the makers of Dishonored, the 2012 hit video game that masterfully combined first-person action with non-linear levels and the high levels of interaction of immersive sims. I can happily confirm the ex-Arkane devs have successfully transferred much of that DNA into a game that has its own voice and mannerisms.
Going in blind, the most striking difference would be the top-down, isometric view that separates the player from the immediate action and instead provides an overview of large chunks of the levels, making careful planification and strategic positioning much more important than in other immersive sims. The characters in Weird West aren’t precisely tanky, even when they have a large HP bar, and the RPG elements it contains don’t translate into a classic progression system that ends with godlike powers. In fact, perks and abilities are tied to collectable items in the exact same way Dishonored handled that matter. Yes, some weapons and equipment are better than others, but they’re far less important than taking advantage of each situation through smart thinking, stealth, and exploiting the geography and hazards of the maps.
Weird West ain’t an open-world game either. It’s quite big, yes, but, thankfully, WolfEye focused on fleshing out contained areas instead of connecting them with empty nothingness and filler content. You’re free to wander off the beaten path (the game actually encourages that), but it’s all about quality over quantity; handcrafted levels, characters, and encounters are varied enough to sustain the secondary portion of the experience, and never feel pointless. There’s a degree of unpredictability though, as some NPCs will develop vendettas against you, resulting in random ambushes on top of the unplanned confrontations that plague the travels between points of interest.
Gluing together all this twin-stick shooter action and immersive sim tinkering, we find an opaque tale of intersected fates, evil forces, revenge, and camaraderie. Weird West plays out like a mystery on purpose, spouting out clear goals and meaty bits of background information at a steady pace — at no point I felt like the overarching story mas moving too slowly, and every detour I took normally paid off either with rich loot or interesting narratives. Furthermore, the main story develops across five different playable characters, each with their own set of skills and dramatic baggage. And if that isn’t enough, they can eventually group together to form a deadly posse — this system is introduced early on with hired guns, but really shines as the game progresses and our antiheroes cross paths.
One of the biggest surprises here is how “monsters” are also part of the roster of playable characters, since there’s much more to their presence in the dark setting than just “evil creatures lurk around every corner in this alternate universe.” With so many choices and alternate paths put in front of players, it’s great to see WolfEye fully taking advantage of the unnatural side of the world and its stories to shape an ever-changing adventure — no two journeys (how the game defines each character’s segment) are the same, and morality is often turned upside down.
I’ve yet to encounter any major issues with the PS4 version of the game (played on PS5). The game looks crisp (partly due to its gorgeous cel-shaded art style) and plays wonderfully smooth, with snappy menus, intuitive controls, and the overall level of polish you’d expect from a medium-sized, Devolver-published title from ex-Arkane devs. If anything, there are some rare framerate drops when visiting the larger towns; I’d say this is tied to engine limitations rather than the hardware, as the game sticks hits the 60 FPS target 99% of the time and isn’t a high-tech showcase. Of course, expect not-as-good performance and longer load times on last-gen consoles, but it shouldn’t be particularly taxing anyway.
Another small criticism I have is the absolute lack of voice lines beyond the (amazing) narrator — in a world as delicately crafted as this one (including sound design and music), you can definitely feel something is missing when folks are barely producing any sounds. Maybe the goal was to approach it like an interactive visual novel, but I’m going with the “making the most out of a limited budget” explanation. It’d have been great to at least have some key interactions voiced. Ah well, maybe next time!
I’ve been vague on purpose throughout this review, as I strongly encourage everyone to experience this game without knowing too much. If you’re into the basic synopsis of Weird West or simply want a new immersive sim that delivers on its promise of choice and free-form gameplay, this one’s a must-play. I hope it’s a sleeper hit, because it deserves serious praise.
Weird West comes out today, March 31, on PC (Steam, GOG, and Epic) as well as PlayStation and Xbox consoles. It’s also part of Microsoft’s Game Pass subscription service for an unspecified time.
Thanks to Devolver Digital (publisher) and Tinsley PR for the PlayStation review code.
Francisco J. Ruiz is that guy who has watched Jurassic Park a thousand times and loves Star Wars. His hunger for movies is only matched by his love for video games. He graduated in English Studies from the University of Malaga, in Spain. As he keeps writing about what he enjoys (and doesn’t) for websites all over, he’s continuing his studies.
