Blood West

The Wild West FPS with stealth and Lovecraftian horrors, Blood West, is currently free, for Windows—100% free to keep—during a limited-time Epic Store’s giveaway offer! Don’t miss it, as Blood West normally costs US$24.99.

Blood West is a dark, independent Weird West first-person shooter that combines stealth, perk-based progression, RPG elements, non-linear maps in an open world, and H. P. Lovecraft–style horrors. It was developed by Hyperstrange and initially released on February 10, 2022.

In the game — which draws inspiration from Thief, S.T.A.L.K.E.R., and Hunt: Showdown — you play as an undead gunslinger condemned to wander a completely insane Wild West. In your quest to break the curse plaguing the land, you’ll have access to a system of collectible and storable items, as well as a wide variety of weapons to fight against many kinds of abominations.

Published by New Blood Interactive and available for Windows, Blood West was generally well received by critics and, so far, players. In 2024, the game received an add-on, Blood West: Dead Man’s Promise, and was later included in the Blood West: Dead Man’s Edition.

You can get the game here!

Trailer

Gameplay

Blood West is a first-person shooter set in a supernatural Wild West, where the player controls an undead gunslinger who explores the world, completes missions, and faces macabre creatures while attempting to lift the curse afflicting the land.

The game combines stealth and direct combat, allowing players to choose different approaches for encounters. Progression is based on experience, perks, and items: by completing missions and defeating enemies, the character earns skill points that can be invested in perks that modify attributes, inventory capacity, economy, damage, and combat efficiency. Some weapons and items have special effects, and certain perks interact with specific mechanics, such as increasing damage when health is low or providing bonuses when intoxicated.

The world is divided into three distinct chapters (desert, swamp, and forest), each with specific enemies, varied equipment, and secrets to uncover. Maps are non-linear and include explorable areas, collectibles, and side quests. Enemies have specific weaknesses, requiring the use of appropriate ammunition types or strategies to deal maximum damage. Enemies can respawn, and the player is penalized through curses if they die repeatedly, affecting health, stamina, and experience gain.

Inventory and resource management are important, as players must balance weapons, ammunition, and consumables for different encounters. The game is compatible with Steam Deck, offering controller support and cloud saves, although some sensitivity adjustments and menu navigation may require manual configuration.

The estimated time to complete a playthrough is 20 to 30 hours, depending on playstyle and how carefully enemies are approached using stealth.

About the game

Weird West legends meet eldritch horror in BLOOD WEST, an immersive stealth FPS. Become the Undead Gunslinger, doomed to roam the barren lands until he finds the means to purge their curse and free his soul. No, this isn’t your typical Wild West desperado redemption arc. This is a damnation arc.

Three episodes offering 20+ hours of play

The Canyons, the Swamp, and the Mountains. Each swarming with abominable monsters and unholy demons, these are open-ended worlds for you to explore freely at your own pace. It will take the player over 20 hours on average to complete all three scenarios, and over 35 if they want to see everything the barren lands have to offer.

Rewarding classic stealth FPS gameplay

Blood West is a stealth FPS inspired by the genre classics such as the Thief series (whose fans will be happy to hear the voice of Stephen Russell, the actor voicing the master-thief Garrett, returning here as the protagonist), S.T.A.L.K.E.R. games, or – from the contemporary catalog – Hunt: Showdown. The gameplay rewards the careful approach: scouting the area, stalking your enemies, and striking from the shadows. Can you figure out a way to clear a fort full of ghouls and monsters without raising an alarm?

Weird west legends meet eldritch horror

The Barren Lands present the player with a nightmarish, twisted vision of the Wild West legends. The curse that has befallen the realm has corrupted every living thing, defiled the land itself, while summoning restless spirits and dark entities. In this mixture of gunslinger pulp and Lovecraftian horror, dark occult magick presents just as much of a threat as sudden lead poisoning.

Unusual characters and their questlines

In Blood West you will meet many colorful, yet strangely twisted, fully-voiced NPCs. Just as much prisoners of the Barren Lands as you are, they will sometimes share their unusual stories and send you on various missions. Play nice and they might reward you or become your allies. Cross them and risk their wrath.

Non-linear maps full of secrets to find

The game won’t hold your hand. You’ll have to explore the land for yourself (buying a map from a vendor might prove useful!), and figure out your own way to approach quests. As you poke around the three expansive maps, keep an eye out for hidden places and secret stashes. There’s gold in the mountains! Fair warning – it’s probably cursed.

Brutal combat against a varied cast of foes

If sneaking around isn’t exactly your thing, or you feel that you have a power advantage over your enemies, you can always take the head-on approach and meet your enemies guns blazing. Blood West comes from the creators of the fan-favorite boomer shooter POSTAL: Brain Damaged, so much gratuitous fantasy violence and pixelated blood splatter is to be expected!

Scavenging and resource management

One man’s hell might be another hoarder’s paradise! From simple one-use items like bandages, through medical tinctures, explosives and incendiaries, straight to arcane artifacts that – once slotted – can change the way you play the game, the Barren Lands are just filled with STUFF. There are tons of useful items to discover, and there’s a special player’s stash crate for all those super-rare potions that you’ll hoard and never use.

Great variety of impactful weapons

A gunslinger without a gun would be just a regular slinger. Where’s the fun in that? Blood West makes sure you’ll have plenty of weapons to choose from. Revolvers, rifles, shotguns, carabines – a great variety of firearms, from standard army-issue to those infused with powerful magic, or straight-up possessed. And if you prefer not to cause a ruckus, there’s a wide selection of hand-to-hand combat weapons and archery weapons to pick your favorites from.

Perk and skill-based character progression

The RPG-like perk-based progression system in Blood West will allow you to highly customize the gameplay experience to your liking. Become a stealthy hunter, a revolver-fanning gunman or a relentless berserker. You will gain experience and progress through the skill tree, while discovering new artifacts in each of the scenarios that will bestow on you additional abilities. Combining skills and load-out creates more possible playstyles than you’d normally be able to explore in one playthrough.

Are you ready to take back the frontier from the dark forces of demonic corruption and earn the right to move on to a better world? The Barren Lands call you, Gunslinger!

Developers’ description of the content

Blood West is a dark and gritty horror/western game. Scenes of gore and brutal violence are to be expected, presented in glorious low-res, low-poly 3D. The game also contains depiction of alcohol consumption.