Asymmetric’s West of Loathing comedy RPG is set for a Steam release date on Aug. 10. The game will be playable on Windows, Mac and Linux.
“Inspired by the humor, whimsy, and storytelling of classic adventure/RPGs Quest for Glory and Paper Mario, West of Loathing is a single-player role-playing game set in a slapstick stick-figure rendition of the wild frontier,” says the press release. “Leave your family farm and head west to find your fortune in this huge, humorous adventure brimming with branching storylines, tactical turn-based combat, and big hats.”
Features include:
A sprawling open world: Traverse snake-infested gulches, punch skeletons wearing cowboy hats, grapple with demon cows, and investigate a wide variety of disgusting spittoons -- nearly 100 unique locations to explore!
A goofy spin on good ol' RPG gameplay: Charm your way out of trouble as a silver-tongued Snake Oiler, plumb the refried mysteries of the cosmos as a wise and subtle Beanslinger, or let your fists do the talking as a fierce Cow Puncher.
A "colorful" cast of stick-figure characters: Interact with dozens of NPCs and hundreds of enemies -- some of whom are good, many of whom are bad, and a few of whom are ugly.
A gag around every corner: Wordplay and dad jokes abound -- along with at least one drunken horse, more than 50 hats, and liberal use of the Oxford comma.
You can check out the trailer for West of Loathing , which condenses 23 minutes of gameplay into 37 seconds, above. There’s more than a few gems in the trailer, such as a drinking contest:
And more:
Towns called Boring Spring and Dirtwater
A needle in a haystack
Saying goodbye to your desk
Combing your hair for 1 XP
A pie safe to keep your pies safe
Drinking whiskey in a wizard hat… in a basement
A “sherf” instead of a “sheriff”
A mostly-empty map that directs you to “make your own damned guide”
A gang called “The Fricker Gang”
A bandit dozing in a bathtub (you can choose to “let sleeping bandits lie”)
A player character hurting themselves by busting open a barrel
A burned-down farm
A peek at combat, involving Action Points
A peek at the character and inventory screens, titled things like “YER GEAR” and “YER STUFF”
Items such as “varmint skinnin’ knife”
Asymmetric previously developed Kingdom of Loathing, a browser-based multiplayer RPG that’s been live since 2003. This takes place in the same world and is something of a spiritual successor, but hopefully stands on its own, since I don’t know jack about Kingdom of Loathing . I do love the distinctive stick figure art and goofy humor, so I’m really looking forward to this one.
West of Loathing hits PC on Aug. 10. Will you be yee-hawing along? Feel free to let us know in the comments section below.
