It’s been seven years, but fans of the Western-themed RTS Hard West will have their long wait rewarded. Hard West 2 has been announced today by Good Shepard Entertainment and Ice Cold Games, and it’s heading to PC later this year. Along with the announcement, we even received a reveal trailer showcasing a bit of gameplay. It’s looking like more of what RTS fans enjoyed with the 2015 original.
Hard West 2 is bringing a star-studded cast when saddles up to PC this year. Kevin Conroy, the one and true Batman, is lending his voice to the game. It also includes Darien Sills-Evans (Days Gone) and Adam Gifford (The Colony). The musical score is composed by Jason Graves, whose work includes Tomb Raider and Dead Space. Deadlands writer Matt Forbeck is co-writing the story.
There are a lot of positive elements in the game beyond the cast and creators. Much like the original, Hard West 2 mashes up classic Western tropes with a dash of the supernatural. It all starts with the rumor of a ghost train laden with gold, except this time not all the legends are legends.
“Now [protagonist, Gin Carter] must lead a posse of strange outlaws and chase down the Devil across a land touched by darkness, battling forces both living and undead,” reads the story description for the game.
Hard-shootin’, hard-fightin’
Like the first game, Hard West 2 is a strategy-focused game where tactics are key. You take turns positioning your team against enemy combatants also vying for cover and a good 98% chance to shoot but still miss. According to the press release, “combat happens in dynamically shifting environments, keeping your brain as busy as your trigger finger.”
It has certainly been a long time since Hard West has been in the headlines. Other than a 2018 Switch port, we last heard of the game back in 2015 when our own Tim McDonald reviewed it. You can check out what he said as a refresher, so long as you can get past his Spaghetti-Western flavored opener. Nice one, Tim.
Hard West 2 saddles up for a PC release later in 2022.
