Hi everyone, I’m Tomasz from Flying Wild Hog, Lead Producer on Bad West, our crazy third-person action-battle-adventure game is now available on Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S. Today I want to dive into the unique world we created for Bad Westand tell you what inspired the mood, setting and art in our goth horror spaghetti western ride.
Weird West is quite a niche genre in games, so we were really excited about all the uncharted territory here. We were inspired by works that take established tropes and give them very interesting twists. Take Mike Mignola’s “Hellboy” comic, for example, which takes gothic elements and lightens them with a laid-back main character.
Brian Azzarello’s Moonshine comic does a similar thing, mixing vampire tropes with real history to great effect. Another great example is Netflix’s Castlevania series, which casts a different light on the profession of monster hunter through very human and vulnerable characters.
in the Bad West, we uproot European vampires and plant them in the old American West. Once we did that, so much of the world grew naturally, and all we had to do was follow the weeds of our creative guts that took us to beautiful, dark, and unexpected places. The vampires in Bad West
The gauntlet was a perfect fit both in terms of setting and gameplay. The vampire hunters got something new against the growing threat and now we had an awesome lightning powered melee weapon to create combo-based, fast-paced combat with a spectacular, gory presentation. Plus all the guns, of course, can’t forget the guns! Shotgun, Rifle and Flamethrower just to name a few.
However, the Wild West means more than just the traditional rock deserts and canyons. In our stranger Wild West, the sunset paints the landscape crimson and expanding shadows mingle with creeping monstrosities. Skinny figures perform dark rituals in abandoned huts, while creatures from folklore stalk the twilight.
We have a wide range of iconic Wild West-inspired locations twisted with dark horror: from trains to banks, from desert cities to snow-capped mountains, and beyond gaping underground tombs, smoky industrial factories and more.
It was also important to us to up the stakes and scope of locations as you progress, with some truly mind-blowing stages for the grand finale. The dusty frontier town in the desert is a great starting point for us, but even that location has been twisted to a degree.
To achieve the mood we wanted in terms of artistic direction, we twisted reality a lot. We want it to be familiar enough to recognize, but with something that still feels different. For example, to create a more gothic, twisted vibe for our Wild West towns, we’ve added an extra floor or two to most buildings, along with more balconies and stairways. This makes the buildings appear to tower above you while still resembling the traditional western frontier towns you’ve seen in your favorite films.
We hope you enjoyed this immersion into the world of Bad West, and what inspired it. The entire team has worked super hard to nail the feel and style of the game. I can’t wait for you all to smash your first vampire in half. It’s going to be one hell of a ride!
Bad West is developed by Flying Wild Hog and published by Focus Entertainment. It’s available now on Xbox Series X|S and Xbox One.
Bad West
focus entertainment
$59.99
Evil never sleeps…but it bleeds. A dark menace engulfs the American frontier. As one of the last agents in a top-secret vampire-hunting institute, you are the last line between humanity and a deep-seated terror that is now emerging from the shadows. Become a wild west superhero, destroy the vampire menace and save the United States! Unleash hell with your firearms, lightning-powered gauntlets, and gadgets in visceral, explosive combat. Slay bloodthirsty monstrosities in style as a solo hunter or in co-op with a friend. Explore and fight in a narrative campaign while upgrading your weapons and hunting tools. Unlock new perks to advance your monster-slaying mastery and develop your own playstyle to defeat the supernatural hordes. • Fight alone or with a friend in stylish, bloody action combat • Myths and legends retold in a stylized, strange Wild West universe • Evolve with perks, upgradable weapons, and tools • Explore and battle your way through a story-driven campaign to save America
