The vacant Western(Old West) genre

I don't get why there are so few Western games. It seems like a genre that developers just don't care about.

Theres a list of Western games on Wikipedia, it has like 50 titles total: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...rn_video_games

I'm definitely fascinated by the genre, as I live in Western Canada where a lot of the Old West culture rubbed off on us.

Here are some Western games I've played:

obviously
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FfbGEP087HM

obviously x2
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bRTAX-dn1Tk

this game is kinda a guilty pleasure. I think its designed for seniors, a tycoon game:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jKYiH5shiMc

haven't played yet, plan on acquiring this fall
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgZHZY1oyUA

also plan on acquiring
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=PLYWlY2KeZE

May have to do with the film/TV genre kind of dying off. A lot of the time it's amazing that they even think to use the setting at all. Though, if you're already going to make a game about shooting, why not?

Outlaws. (LucasArts)

Best Western themed game I've ever played.

A western shooter, quasi celshaded, animated cutscenes, killer score, and an amazing multiplayer that is still played to this day.

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Originally Posted by azonicrider

Theres a list of Western games on Wikipedia, it has like 50 titles total: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_o...rn_video_games

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I see Blood is on the list, though I never would have thought of that one if I'd been asked to think of a western themed game.

I used to enjoy playing Desperados, though I doubt I'd have the patience for it now.

But I still can't wait to play Streets of Laredo:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=NBBU5nxgJhM#t=20

Does Buckaroo counts as a western themed game? J/K Gotta say though, I did wonder the same thing recently about why there seems to be so few western themed games

A year or two I enjoyed beating Gunfighter: The Legend of Jesse James on PlayStation. It's superficial but reasonably pleasant to play.

There's also Gun.Smoke, one of the first NES games I ever beat.

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Originally Posted by midnightrider

May have to do with the film/TV genre kind of dying off. A lot of the time it's amazing that they even think to use the setting at all. Though, if you're already going to make a game about shooting, why not?

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But thats TV, uninteractive media.

A lot of developers witnessed how successful Red Dead was, yet they still aren't tempted to dive into the Western genre.

I really hope a developer is cooking up something, awaiting to surprise us.

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Originally Posted by Thierry Henry

Outlaws. (LucasArts)

Best Western themed game I've ever played.

A western shooter, quasi celshaded, animated cutscenes, killer score, and an amazing multiplayer that is still played to this day.

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If only they had a PS1 or Saturn port. I prefer to be a console peasant.

FPS games can take place in so many different periods. Civil War, Western, WW2, 60's, 70's, modern, futuristic.

P.S. appreciate the rep

Gun

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qzPRLyZlU9w

Systems: PC, PS2, GameCube, 360, Xbox Original, PSP

Quite a good game from the makers of the original Tony Hawks games, Neversoft. Sequel was hinted at for years, but nothing has come of it. Shame, as the first game was great fun.

I only recall playing three western video games: Outlaws, some old Lucky Luke game, and Red Dead Redemption. The latter, despite being a recent game, provided me one of the most memorable moments in a video game: the arrival at Mexico. Calmly horse riding towards the sunset with some great track playing in the background.

Outlaws was my shit back in the day. Damn that was a fun game, and i love the old west atmosphere!

one of the better old school western games is "the lost dutchman mine" for amiga

I like the Railroad Tycoon games.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xK36ayCSW8Y

Sunset Riders is a really fantastic game, I've always loved it. The Oregon Trail is pretty good too, of course, but Sunset Riders might be my favorite wild west-themed game...

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Originally Posted by Alexrd

I only recall playing three western video games: Outlaws, some old Lucky Luke game, and Red Dead Redemption. The latter, despite being a recent game, provided me one of the most memorable moments in a video game: the arrival at Mexico. Calmly horse riding towards the sunset with some great track playing in the background.

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Yea people go apeshit over that Mexico scene.

I bet John was stoked too, gonna get some spicy black bean tortillas.

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Originally Posted by A Black Falcon

Sunset Riders is a really fantastic game, I've always loved it. The Oregon Trail is pretty good too, of course, but Sunset Riders might be my favorite wild west-themed game...

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It will probably become my favourite retro Western game. Its been demonstrated year after year, that Konami knows how to make run-and-guns.

Just watch out for those deputy's (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2XiYUYcpsT4 or the better known cover: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tRgcwT9X2J8)

This is an obscure one, since I doubt anyone else on this forum has a BBC Micro, but Repton: "Round the world in 40 screens" has an Old West themed zone. Ok so this post is pointless, but I used to enjoy that particular game when I was at school, playing in lunch break.

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Originally Posted by Mad Moham

This is an obscure one, since I doubt anyone else on this forum has a BBC Micro, but Repton: "Round the world in 40 screens" has an Old West themed zone. Ok so this post is pointless, but I used to enjoy that particular game when I was at school, playing in lunch break.

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lol I've got one of those incoming. Don't ask which version/model. I know next to nothing with regard to the BBC Micro.
A collector was cleaning out some of his older stuff and he offered me that and a Dragon 32. Didn't know what that was either, but I thought why not. :p

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Originally Posted by Thierry Henry

lol I've got one of those incoming. Don't ask which version/model. I know next to nothing with regard to the BBC Micro.
A collector was cleaning out some of his older stuff and he offered me that and a Dragon 32. Didn't know what that was either, but I thought why not. :p

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Prepare to be underwhelmed by the BBC Micro.
Only joking, it was a fun system for the time, there's actually some pretty decent games available for it, like the original Elite (believed by some to be the best game ever):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_detailpage&v=GpWoF5uVgbA

And the Dragon32 is a Welsh (hence the "dragon" name) computer that competed with the BBC Micro for a while, I know very little about that one.

The Micro also saw a game called Cowboy Shootout. So it seems that there are a fair few old west themed games out there, but many of them are obscure. Though I admit, its still a genre that doesn't seem to have had enough attention from developers yet.

These are all of the Western-themed games I can think of off the top of my head. I'm sure there are more though.

Outlaw - Atari 2600
Oregon Trail - Apple II
Gun.Smoke - NES
Lone Ranger - NES
Cowboy Kid - NES
Wanted - SMS
Dashin' Desparados - Gen
Sunset Riders - Gen/SNES
Lethal Enforcers 2 - Gen/SNES/SCD
Mad Dog McCree - SCD/PC
Mad Dog McCree 2 - SCD/PC
Gunfighter: The Legend of Jesse James - PSX
Lucky Luke - PSX
Gun - PS2 and everything else
Red Dead Revolver - PS2, xbox
Mad Dog McCree Collection - Wii
Red Dead Redemption - PS360
Call of Juarez - PS360
Call of Juarez: The Cartel - PS360

My favorite Western themed game is Tengai Makyou The Apocalypse IV.

You get to experience the gun fight at the OK Corral, build Las Vegas, kill android JFK, help a Jamaican bobsledder stop an evil Mayan god, adventure with the Texas Rangers, ride a giant buffalo through a chasm of icy stalagmites, use Native Indian powers against Satan, enjoy a homoerotic steam bath with a samurai, kill Al Copone... and all kinds of awesome stuff while making your way across America.

As for other Wild West games, as a kid I thought the DOS PC shareware action game Billy the Kid was decent. It's a top-down action/exploration game. It's nothing above average for sure, but it is obscure and a wild west game, so maybe I should mention it? Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40tfUGaAsuE

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Originally Posted by azonicrider

It will probably become my favourite retro Western game. Its been demonstrated year after year, that Konami knows how to make run-and-guns.

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The SNES version is definitely the one to get, it's a great port of a fantastic arcade classic (though the original arcade game is better). After playing it, though, the Genesis game is a fun one to try if you can somehow find it affordably. Sure, the level designs are entirely new and aren't as good (they repeat too much, within each stage), it only has half the number of bosses and level settings, only two of the four characters to play as, and it has lots of removed audio clips, but the core gameplay is still there so it's definitely a fun game despite all the issues. It's got enough of that Sunset Riders charm to make it good stuff.

(Oh, back in the early '90s I thought for some time that it was supposed to be spelled "Sunsetriders", not "Sunset Riders", because of the way it looks like one word on the arcade machine... http://www.arcade-museum.com/game_de...p?game_id=9861 I don't see a space there! :) )

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Originally Posted by azonicrider

Yea people go apeshit over that Mexico scene.

I bet John was stoked too, gonna get some spicy black bean tortillas.

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I only later realized how lucky I was since the weather is randomized. I could have gotten a rainy night or cloudy morning which would 'ruin' the moment.

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Originally Posted by Black_Tiger

My favorite Western themed game is Tengai Makyou The Apocalypse IV.

You get to experience the gun fight at the OK Corral, build Las Vegas, kill android JFK, help a Jamaican bobsledder stop an evil Mayan god, adventure with the Texas Rangers, ride a giant buffalo through a chasm of icy stalagmites, use Native Indian powers against Satan, enjoy a homoerotic steam bath with a samurai, kill Al Copone... and all kinds of awesome stuff while making your way across America.

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That does look awesome, is there a good technique for playing games written in moon language? using an off-screen English translation?

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Originally Posted by A Black Falcon

As for other Wild West games, as a kid I thought the DOS PC shareware action game Billy the Kid was decent. It's a top-down action/exploration game. It's nothing above average for sure, but it is obscure and a wild west game, so maybe I should mention it? Video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=40tfUGaAsuE


The SNES version is definitely the one to get, it's a great port of a fantastic arcade classic (though the original arcade game is better). After playing it, though, the Genesis game is a fun one to try if you can somehow find it affordably. Sure, the level designs are entirely new and aren't as good (they repeat too much, within each stage), it only has half the number of bosses and level settings, only two of the four characters to play as, and it has lots of removed audio clips, but the core gameplay is still there so it's definitely a fun game despite all the issues. It's got enough of that Sunset Riders charm to make it good stuff.

(Oh, back in the early '90s I thought for some time that it was supposed to be spelled "Sunsetriders", not "Sunset Riders", because of the way it looks like one word on the arcade machine... http://www.arcade-museum.com/game_de...p?game_id=9861 I don't see a space there! :) )

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ABF you don't have a good reputation for being unbiased, but I can see the Genesis is pretty butchered. But both version are still expensive as hell.

There's the Wild Arms series for a jRPG with a Old West flavor to it (some games in the series feel more like a "Western" than others).

Wild Guns! It has some sci-fi stuff in it but it a Western game anyway. Probably my favorite of them. I love the old Natsume stuff from the times they were making action games with awesome Hiroyuki Iwatsuki music and sound design.

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Originally Posted by Orchid87

Wild Guns! It has some sci-fi stuff in it but it a Western game anyway. Probably my favorite of them. I love the old Natsume stuff from the times they were making action games with awesome Hiroyuki Iwatsuki music and sound design.

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Ah finally someone mentioned this game! This was the first game that came to mind when I saw this thread.

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Originally Posted by azonicrider

ABF you don't have a good reputation for being unbiased, but I can see the Genesis is pretty butchered.

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I know, isn't it crazy that I think the SNES and Genesis(+SCD+32X) are equally great and can't choose which one I like more? Sure, I do like Nintendo more than Sega overall, that is true, and Super Mario World probably is my favorite 2d platformer, but I don't like the SNES more than the Genesis, they are equal. And Sonic 2 and Sonic 3 & Knuckles are high on the list of the best 2d platformers for sure, as well. And looking at my collection spreadsheet, despite having more games for the SNES than the Genesis alone (219 SNES, 203 Genesis), I've put scores of 9 or more on 30 Genesis games, versus 29 on the SNES. And that number gets larger if you add SCD and 32X games to that. I like Space Harrier (32X) more than Super Metroid, Landstalker more than Link to the Past (though not more than my favorite 2d Zelda game, Link's Awakening on the Game Boy), I'm not exactly a huge fan of Super Mario Kart either (Never mind Outrun 2019, even OutRunners on the Genesis might be better than SMK on my list...), etc. And because growing up I knew more people who had a Genesis than a SNES, the Genesis probably has a higher nostalgia value for me than the SNES does.

Yes, my bias towards Nintendo is strong on the N64, but for the SNES, not so.

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But both version are still expensive as hell.

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I was very lucky to get both of them very cheap... I got a loose cart of the SNES version for something like $2 back somewhere between 2005 and early '07, and a complete copy of the Genesis game for about $4 in 2008.

Was going to open a new thread, but I don't think it's really that worth it, so hell, this was the best thread I could find that's related to bump:

Red Dead Redemption just got added to the Xbox One's backwards compatibility list. You can either install it with your retail disc (which downloads the game but requires the disc in the tray at all times) or buy it digitally from the Xbox Marketplace.

Played it for a few hours and they've done a great job.It really doesn't look like it's being emulated (aside from it being upscaled, which looks great). Game is so much fun. Def the best wild west game ever made. Imo of course. Only sad thing is, the multiplayer mode is still pretty screwed up. At least the magnificent single player mode still works flawlessly.

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Originally Posted by The Jackal

Was going to open a new thread, but I don't think it's really that worth it, so hell, this was the best thread I could find that's related to bump:

Red Dead Redemption just got added to the Xbox One's backwards compatibility list. You can either install it with your retail disc (which downloads the game but requires the disc in the tray at all times) or buy it digitally from the Xbox Marketplace.

Played it for a few hours and they've done a great job.It really doesn't look like it's being emulated (aside from it being upscaled, which looks great). Game is so much fun. Def the best wild west game ever made. Imo of course. Only sad thing is, the multiplayer mode is still pretty screwed up. At least the magnificent single player mode still works flawlessly.

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It's also worth mentioning the digital version on the marketplace is currently in the summer sale for less than $10

A lot of the DLC packs are currently free, so grab them.

I might give Silverload (PSX) a whirl sometime soon. (It's a point-and-click adventure set in the Old West.)

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Originally Posted by Knuckle Duster

It's also worth mentioning the digital version on the marketplace is currently in the summer sale for less than $10

A lot of the DLC packs are currently free, so grab them.

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Nice. Even more incentive for people to pick it up. Shame most of the free DLC is for the multiplayer, which is in a fucked up state.

There was a computer game based on the Belgian comics Les Tuniques Bleues, which was reputed decent : North and South.

It had a NES port IIRC, but I think it was quite different.

gun.smoke is pretty good if you can track down an arcade port on a compilation disc. I have fond memories of red dead redemption, a beloved ex-gf of mine used to LOVE taking women hostages and blowing them away, or just finding different ways to dispose of them. It was hilarious and disturbing all at once.

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Originally Posted by The Jackal

Was going to open a new thread, but I don't think it's really that worth it, so hell, this was the best thread I could find that's related to bump:

Red Dead Redemption just got added to the Xbox One's backwards compatibility list. You can either install it with your retail disc (which downloads the game but requires the disc in the tray at all times) or buy it digitally from the Xbox Marketplace.

Played it for a few hours and they've done a great job.It really doesn't look like it's being emulated (aside from it being upscaled, which looks great). Game is so much fun. Def the best wild west game ever made. Imo of course. Only sad thing is, the multiplayer mode is still pretty screwed up. At least the magnificent single player mode still works flawlessly.

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red dead redemption was a great game with a terrible storyline and moralistic main character... until the story took a turn which made it into one of the best storylines I can remember. will never forget that

Seems like a fitting thread.
So the new trailer for Wild Guns Reloaded has dropped.
This time showing off the 2 new characters, parts of the new soundtrack and establishing that it will have the 4 original stages plus 4 new ones.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5-eZkp0D5eM