Red Dead Redemption 2 is the ideal western game. Sprawling, beautiful, and full of little details that make the cowboy lifestyle feel tactile and real, Rockstar’s open-world opus proved a shot in the arm for the entire genre. On the surface, RDR2 and Stalker, the apocalyptic PC classic from 2007, might seem like a strange mix, but a new Steam FPS game, already boasting a ‘very positive’ rating as it leaves early access, offers the perfect blend of Stetsons, stealth, and scares. If you’re psyched for Stalker 2 and want a superb shooter to play in the meantime, the answer is Blood West.
Part FPS game, part open-ended western, and part gothic horror, Blood West by Hyperstrange originally launched back in 2022. Throughout its early access period, it’s picked up hugely favorable player reviews, and now the full release is finally upon us.
As a grizzled cowboy voiced by Thief’s own Stephen Russell (this is, in spirit, an immersive sim after all), you explore a semi-sandbox western frontier stealthily killing monsters and completing quests. Aesthetically, Blood West resembles some of the all-time great boomer shooters. But it’s smart, modern, and brimming with personality.
It’s also, at its best, a brutal game of survival. Between managing your gear and using stealth rather than all-out offense, Blood West occasionally starts to feel like the high-stakes moments of Fallout 4, a genre-blending hybrid reminiscent of dozens of PC classics, but still distinctive in its own right. With character progression, a substantive perks and skill system, and a gothic-horror narrative spanning more than 20 hours, if you want to try Blood West, it’s available right now.
Alternatively, get some of the other best western games, or maybe the greatest indie games available right now on PC.
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