Platform(s): PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch, PC
Genre: FPS, Strategy, Roguelike

There used to be more Western-themed games years ago when I was younger, but it seems like the cowboy shtick has probably gone out of style. Space cowboys (or space westerns) are even rarer, but you have stuff like Firefly and even Guardians Of The Galaxy (to a certain extent). Finally, Wild Bastards is here to fill that vacant space, and it’s a fun time.

Gunfight At The O.K. Corral

Wild Bastards is a first-person shooter/strategy game hybrid with a roguelike campaign. You travel from planet to planet, recruit, manage and fight with a team of up to 13 outlaws. Each of them has their own unique weapons and special techniques. On each planet, you collect loot and start skirmishes that are then played out in intense, bite-sized FPS shootouts. The strategy elements come from selecting which planets to visit. Before selecting a planet to visit, you can see the enemy types and what the best loot will be on that planet. Certain outlaws perform better against specific enemies, so you’ll have to take advantage of each of their unique playstyles, weapons and techniques.

On planets, you move your outlaws around like a board game. There is a limit on how many outlaws you can beam down on the planet, some only allow two at most, while the maximum is usually four. This means that your choice of outlaws will be important in determining how you tackle each planet, which is why the game lets you see what enemy types lie in wait on each planet. The in-game money currency can be spent in shops found on planets to purchase mods, health, and upgrades. There are a set number of moves per turn, and a certain number of moves before a tougher enemy tracks you down.

When outlaws die, they get ‘injured’ status, which means you won’t be able to play as them until you use tonic items to heal them. However, both money and items like tonics are rare, so you’ll have to properly manage your resources. Sometimes, by chance, an outlaw will be scattered when they beam down on a planet, so you will need to rescue them before being able to use them. If you don’t rescue them, they will end up injured after beaming off the planet. This can get annoying because it doesn’t make the gameplay better or more challenging. It just happens at random and arbitrarily makes the game harder for no reason. Another major gameplay mechanic are mods, which is a way to modify and upgrade your outlaws. Aces are permanent mods, but there are also mods that will be thrown out when you visit a new system of planets.

It only took me around 10 hours to finish the story for the game, but if you play on harder difficulties, it will likely be a lot longer. I fluctuated between easy and normal because even at normal, this game is pretty challenging due to the outlaws dying easily during shootouts. Wild Bastards does have a certain level of replayability because you only get access to all 13 outlaws at the end of the game. Once you finish the story, you’ll unlock a challenge mode in which a sequence of challenge sectors with increasingly difficult levels and mutators modify the play experience.

The story in the game goes like this, the Wild Bastards were the most deadly gang in the galaxy until a posse from the puritanical magnate Jebediah Chaste eliminated one outlaw after another. Faced with their own mortality, the two remaining members have teamed up with the Drifter, a mysterious sentient spacecraft, to find and resurrect the dead gang members as they flee to the mythical Homestead. If you like space westerns or sci-fi stories where the cast of characters is mostly aliens instead of just humans (which is rare in this genre, where the main characters are usually just boring old humans), you’ll enjoy this cast of 13 outlaws. Each of them is memorable and has its own special traits and characteristics, which make them fun to get to know and play with. The vibe and atmosphere of the game is just like a classic Western but it’s in space, which reminds me a bit of Joss Whedon’s severely underrated Firefly TV series.

One of the biggest highlights of Wild Bastards is its cel-shaded visuals, which look like a hybrid of a 2.5D stylized animated art style. It’s vibrant and striking, as well as what makes the game stand out amongst the sea of other FPS games out there. I also appreciate how during combat, the enemies look like paper cutouts come to life, which just adds to the aesthetic charm of the game even more. Unique visuals and art styles ultimately always end up to be more timeless and future-proof compared to cutting-edge realistic graphics.

What was frustrating about the game’s story mode is that due to plot and narrative reasons, the game will sometimes take away random outlaws and make them unavailable to play as, or force you to play as certain outlaws. This kind of trope where the game takes away your choice is bizarre to implement in a roguelike strategy FPS game like this, where the game mechanics work best when you’re given the freedom to play with them as you see fit. I hope that the developers add an option in future updates to be able to choose which outlaws you can play as in subsequent playthroughs.

Like A Can Of Beans

If you’re looking for a fun space western cowboy game or if you’re a fan of anything with a spaghetti western vibe, Wild Bastards will satisfy your hunger, just like a good can of beans.

PROS

• Each of the 13 playable outlaws in the game has its own unique and distinct design, characteristics, weapons, techniques and playstyles (and they’re all aliens, not boring humans).
• The whole vibe and atmosphere feels like a Western in space, sort of like the Firefly TV series.
• The cel-shaded visuals of the game are striking and vibrant, making it stand out amongst other FPS games.

CONS

• There are some annoying features and mechanics that make the game less enjoyable, such as outlaws becoming scattered at random for no reason and the game removing unlocked outlaws from being playable due to narrative reasons.

FINAL SCORE: 80/100

Review copy provided by the publisher. Wild Bastards launches for PS5, Xbox Series X/S, Nintendo Switch and PC on 12 September 2024.