stupid. so incredibly dumb. but funny
It's a charming, western rpg full of comedy and references that made me giggle. There are a few main questlines that all connect in some way, but the main questline, involving the railroad, can be completed without doing any side content if you so choose. The combat is short, quick and simple. Unless you decide to 100% it, the game can be completed in under 10 hours (I completed it in about 7) and is only $10.99 on Steam, so I very much recommend trying out this simple yet charming game.
hehe funny
Played through this to see if I should get Shadows in the steam sale. The answer is yes. Love to play as a lowly beanwizard on the trail to find a number 3 pencil so I can sort some shipping forms and getting absolutely bollocked by a gang of clowns.
This review contains spoilers
West of Loathing is a game that honestly surprised me in many ways. Its a small and short game - especially when compared to the vast majority of RPG games - but its also loaded with side quests and even little instances of meaningful player choice, so you always feel like you're being productive. One look perusing through the wiki revealed a good amount of stuff I didn't even get to see despite how thorough I was with completing as many side quests and discovering as many locations as I could get. I'd definitely say I enjoyed my time with this one.
As far as gameplay goes, West of Loathing is a bit basic for RPG standards, but it does still have some kind of depth to it. Get ready to read a lot, since you get some text to read when you do just about anything and there's zero voice acting. Personally, I don't mind this at all, but if that doesn't sound appealing to you then you may not be a big fan of the game. You can explore the overworld, interact with or pick up stuff in the environment, talk with people...you know, typical RPG overworld things. The real unique thing with it comes from how you can interact, whether its through dialogue or objects. If you encounter a potential enemy, sometimes the game will let you handle the situation in a different way using a specific skill or item. West of Loathing has a robust XP system with a bunch of different skills you can use for different things (typically in the form of skill checks in interaction to do a specific thing). Of course, there's also the usual stats for combat. Your character doesn't level up in this game, so all the XP you get is free for you to dump into whichever skill or stat you want to level up. Some of these skills are ones you need to unlock through various methods, with some being earned through more quirky or obscure ways (like how if you flush a bunch of toilets you find in the overworld you get a skill that permanently increases your Muscle stat by 3) while others are learned through books you can find. An easy example to point to is Foraging, which I learned from a book at the very start of the game and was perhaps my most used skill since it lets you get food, alcohol, or combat items from the special plants you come across in the overworld. There's also some skills that have no real use and are just there for some extra flavor, like how Nostalgia Mode puts the game in a sepia filter and Stupid Walking makes your character's walk animation cycle through a few different goofy animations. Also, the combat is pretty basic. It's turn based and every battle is on a simple grid. Whenever a fight's more difficult or has a bunch of enemies, you'll definitely need to strategize more (I died a surprising amount of times in this game), and you do get a decent amount of skills and combat items to play around with in fights. In most fights, though, you can get away with just blitzing your foes, especially if you were focusing intently on boosting the most important stats for your class like I was. It helps that your health is fully restored before every fight. Oh yea, forgot to mention classes; I can't speak as to how the Snake Oiler or Beanslinger play (as far as I know they're pretty much just "the gun class" and "the wizard class" respectively), but I played a Cow Puncher which is basically this game's warrior or fighter focusing mostly on punch attacks. You can definitely be more flexible with your builds thanks to the wide variety of gear and items that can increase your stats by a ton, which was helpful for whenever I needed a Mysticality (stat for spell casting) or Moxie (stat for shooting) stat check, but generally you'll want to focus on what your class excels at.
Despite having so much dialogue, the game doesn't really have much of a main plot. Basically, you've been living out in the boonies for forever, so now you're looking to head out and start an adventure. You look to head far west, so eventually you do that. That's...kinda it for the main story. The game's final boss, if you can even call him that, is some random guy named Norton who proclaims himself an emperor and throws some dust in your eyes when you don't have a crown to give him. You beat him up because he did that to you and then the game gives a sort of "ending" that isn't really an ending since you can just continue playing the game. Maybe there's some kind of true ending I missed, I dunno. The real meat to the story comes from all the lore about this world that you learn as you make your journey throughout West of Loathing's surprisingly large amount of areas. Apparently, the wild west is a very strange and sad place overrun by hell cows, the undead, goblins, and clowns. The flavor text of food and potion items often comment on how terrible the living conditions are, with good sanitary food or medicine being nigh impossible to come across. Of course, you come across tons of different people that give quests, which give a bit more context to just how strange this world is. This is a world where you can literally snap a bowlegged man's legs into place, take shrooms to open your third eye, fight the goofiest criminal gangs that commit the dumbest crimes, and come across a drunk horse that's walking around on two legs. The grossest spittoons always have equipment lodged inside them to fish out, flushing a toilet gives you experience, using a pickaxe on a pile of rocks activates a teleporter that takes you to a room built with ancient alien tech...yea, this place is weird. There's absolutely a sense of comedic absurdity to the world at all times, with many moments using ridiculous or dark (or both) humor and a decent mix of satire. One of the most amusing examples of satire in this game in my opinion is in the ghost town of Ghostwood. It sort of makes fun of how ineffective, incompetent, and overly complicated government services like getting an ID or trying to get signings on a ledger can be. It wasn't really laugh-out-loud funny but it's still pretty funny how the game keeps sending you from building to building, which all have such similar names that it can be very easy to lose track of which one you're supposed to go to (especially when their main advice is "next door" which can mean to the direct left or right). Lots of signing and back-and-forths with fetching items, like when you lend your pencil to the mayor to sign the paper, but then need to go back to the mayor's office to get the pencil back so you can sign the paper again. Nonetheless, there are some more serious side stories in the midst of this crazy world, like the ghost of Granny Smith that needs your help to remember the name of her last daughter. One side quest story involves a surprisingly tragic tale of a daughter receiving a haunted doll which the game implies killed her and her entire family. You get a cursed blood goblet with the blood of the massacred family that you can use for a "tea party" with the doll. You get the option to shatter the goblet, but I assumed that'd start a combat encounter, so I didn't do that.
To wrap things up: I think West of Loathing is a good example of a short game that uses its time wisely. There's a bunch of side content, differing outcomes depending on your actions in-game, and customization that spice the game up. If you don't bother with any side stuff, you could probably complete this game in like 5 hours, but if you're looking to see everything the game has to offer, you may spend more time than I did (for reference, I took 15 hours)...especially if you're trying to get all the Achievements, since that's impossible to do without having multiple playthroughs. Overall, I was surprised by how much I liked my time with it. Solid 4 stars from me.
As far as gameplay goes, West of Loathing is a bit basic for RPG standards, but it does still have some kind of depth to it. Get ready to read a lot, since you get some text to read when you do just about anything and there's zero voice acting. Personally, I don't mind this at all, but if that doesn't sound appealing to you then you may not be a big fan of the game. You can explore the overworld, interact with or pick up stuff in the environment, talk with people...you know, typical RPG overworld things. The real unique thing with it comes from how you can interact, whether its through dialogue or objects. If you encounter a potential enemy, sometimes the game will let you handle the situation in a different way using a specific skill or item. West of Loathing has a robust XP system with a bunch of different skills you can use for different things (typically in the form of skill checks in interaction to do a specific thing). Of course, there's also the usual stats for combat. Your character doesn't level up in this game, so all the XP you get is free for you to dump into whichever skill or stat you want to level up. Some of these skills are ones you need to unlock through various methods, with some being earned through more quirky or obscure ways (like how if you flush a bunch of toilets you find in the overworld you get a skill that permanently increases your Muscle stat by 3) while others are learned through books you can find. An easy example to point to is Foraging, which I learned from a book at the very start of the game and was perhaps my most used skill since it lets you get food, alcohol, or combat items from the special plants you come across in the overworld. There's also some skills that have no real use and are just there for some extra flavor, like how Nostalgia Mode puts the game in a sepia filter and Stupid Walking makes your character's walk animation cycle through a few different goofy animations. Also, the combat is pretty basic. It's turn based and every battle is on a simple grid. Whenever a fight's more difficult or has a bunch of enemies, you'll definitely need to strategize more (I died a surprising amount of times in this game), and you do get a decent amount of skills and combat items to play around with in fights. In most fights, though, you can get away with just blitzing your foes, especially if you were focusing intently on boosting the most important stats for your class like I was. It helps that your health is fully restored before every fight. Oh yea, forgot to mention classes; I can't speak as to how the Snake Oiler or Beanslinger play (as far as I know they're pretty much just "the gun class" and "the wizard class" respectively), but I played a Cow Puncher which is basically this game's warrior or fighter focusing mostly on punch attacks. You can definitely be more flexible with your builds thanks to the wide variety of gear and items that can increase your stats by a ton, which was helpful for whenever I needed a Mysticality (stat for spell casting) or Moxie (stat for shooting) stat check, but generally you'll want to focus on what your class excels at.
Despite having so much dialogue, the game doesn't really have much of a main plot. Basically, you've been living out in the boonies for forever, so now you're looking to head out and start an adventure. You look to head far west, so eventually you do that. That's...kinda it for the main story. The game's final boss, if you can even call him that, is some random guy named Norton who proclaims himself an emperor and throws some dust in your eyes when you don't have a crown to give him. You beat him up because he did that to you and then the game gives a sort of "ending" that isn't really an ending since you can just continue playing the game. Maybe there's some kind of true ending I missed, I dunno. The real meat to the story comes from all the lore about this world that you learn as you make your journey throughout West of Loathing's surprisingly large amount of areas. Apparently, the wild west is a very strange and sad place overrun by hell cows, the undead, goblins, and clowns. The flavor text of food and potion items often comment on how terrible the living conditions are, with good sanitary food or medicine being nigh impossible to come across. Of course, you come across tons of different people that give quests, which give a bit more context to just how strange this world is. This is a world where you can literally snap a bowlegged man's legs into place, take shrooms to open your third eye, fight the goofiest criminal gangs that commit the dumbest crimes, and come across a drunk horse that's walking around on two legs. The grossest spittoons always have equipment lodged inside them to fish out, flushing a toilet gives you experience, using a pickaxe on a pile of rocks activates a teleporter that takes you to a room built with ancient alien tech...yea, this place is weird. There's absolutely a sense of comedic absurdity to the world at all times, with many moments using ridiculous or dark (or both) humor and a decent mix of satire. One of the most amusing examples of satire in this game in my opinion is in the ghost town of Ghostwood. It sort of makes fun of how ineffective, incompetent, and overly complicated government services like getting an ID or trying to get signings on a ledger can be. It wasn't really laugh-out-loud funny but it's still pretty funny how the game keeps sending you from building to building, which all have such similar names that it can be very easy to lose track of which one you're supposed to go to (especially when their main advice is "next door" which can mean to the direct left or right). Lots of signing and back-and-forths with fetching items, like when you lend your pencil to the mayor to sign the paper, but then need to go back to the mayor's office to get the pencil back so you can sign the paper again. Nonetheless, there are some more serious side stories in the midst of this crazy world, like the ghost of Granny Smith that needs your help to remember the name of her last daughter. One side quest story involves a surprisingly tragic tale of a daughter receiving a haunted doll which the game implies killed her and her entire family. You get a cursed blood goblet with the blood of the massacred family that you can use for a "tea party" with the doll. You get the option to shatter the goblet, but I assumed that'd start a combat encounter, so I didn't do that.
To wrap things up: I think West of Loathing is a good example of a short game that uses its time wisely. There's a bunch of side content, differing outcomes depending on your actions in-game, and customization that spice the game up. If you don't bother with any side stuff, you could probably complete this game in like 5 hours, but if you're looking to see everything the game has to offer, you may spend more time than I did (for reference, I took 15 hours)...especially if you're trying to get all the Achievements, since that's impossible to do without having multiple playthroughs. Overall, I was surprised by how much I liked my time with it. Solid 4 stars from me.
Funny af. More games should be like this. But battles are okay
one of the only games ive ever played that succeeds in being funny. but outside of the writing and visual gags, theres not a whole lot here. the rpg mechanics are only really there to put some meat on the game, and thus are pretty shallow.
I enjoy:))
Your mileage may very but this is one of the funniest games I’ve played. That’s the main selling point of the game, the combat is not well balanced and the art style is intentionally limited.
"When you have to shoot, shoot. Don't talk." A nebo naopak mluvte dokud nevymluvíte protistraně díru do hlavy. West of Loathing se dá lehce odbít přirovnáním k southparkovským RPGčkům Stick of Truth/Fractured But Whole. Má s nimi společnou strukturu i mechanismy skrze adventurnější průzkum světa versus tahové JRPG like souboje, simplicitní (ovšem koncepčně absolutně dotaženou) vizuální stylizaci i to, že pod parodicko-satirickým odlehčeným hávem se skrývá regulérní RPG. Akorát tam, kde si druzí dva jmenovaní berou na paškál především fantasy/superhrdinská klišé, tak tam první jmenovaný operuje (nejen) s westernem, který je ve hrách stále spíše pole neorané; a v RPG žánru pak tuplem.
Jak již bylo naznačeno v úvodu, tak nejednu situaci můžete řešit konfliktem či disputací na ostré nože. A pro první průchod hrou, který při plnění všeho zabere cca třináct hodin, doporučím druhé jmenované. Ne snad že by to bylo lehčí či že by zdejší soubojový systém nebyl zábavný (byť je časem poněkud jednotvárný a po několika hodinách se přejí; až na několik tužších soubojů), ale proto, že si při něm ještě mnohem více užijete hlavní devizu hry. Humor. Ten je sice ve hře od úvodního menu přes popisy předmětů až po dialogy, ale nejvíce vynikne právě v dialogových přestřelkách.
Autoři se ani nesnaží o humory na sílu a za každou cenu, což nemálo zarazí s ohledem na to, že je všudypřítomný. Převážně se to drží v mantinelech chytré i hravé práce s žánrovými westernově-rpgčkovými klišé. Většina humorů však stojí čistě na textech a v tom má tento titul velkou výhru; jeho autoři umějí psát úderné dialogy i popisy (angličtina tu rozhodně není z nejtěžších, ale hodně sází na různé významy slov, řčení, slovní hrátky apod.), které jsou opravdu vtipné. Zdá se to jednoduché a samozřejmé, přesto devětadevadesát procent titulů, které by rovněž chtěly být tuze moc vtipné, toto neumí ani zpola tak dobře. Co zpola, ze třetiny. Záhy jsem se tedy přistihl, že se culím celou dobu a bezpočtukrát se i rozesmál až k slzám.
Tolik ke stylu hraní a humoru, ovšem to nejsem ani zdaleka jediné klady. Dalším nepřehlédnutelným je hravost a nápaditost jednotlivých lokací. Čekají na vás tucty a tucty lokací, z nichž většina je unikátní a s vlastním nápadem. Kupříkladu se budete snažit lapit gang v Potěmkinově vesnici, která jednak plně dostává svému "názvu" a druhak tím umožňuje jeden puzzle využívající tradiční westernově-groteskové klišé, čeká na vás také überbyrokratické městečko duchů, kde budete běhat od jednoho formuláře pro druhý, získávat razítka, povolení apod. A to nejsou ani ty nejpamátnější lokace, takových tu je přehršel.
Přesto to zápory samozřejmě má. Soubojový systém, který se díky malé výzvě časem stane čistě rutinním, jsem již zmínilh. Horší však je finální akt, kde na velké ploše je jen minimum lokací, což zarazí speciálně s ohledem na to, kolik toho na stejný/menší prostor nabídly první dvě. Ani se zde nerozjede mnoho nových questů a vesměs jde o pokračování již započatých. Ovšem zdaleka nejvíce znát je to na hlavním linii, která má tak nebývale utnuté vyvrcholení, že nad tím kroutím hlavou i po dvou dohráních. Právě kvůli utnutí a prázdné mapě finální akt působí jakoby tvůrcům došel čas, finance či prostě jen nápady, rozhodně však ne jako něco, co je hotové a dodělané.
V kostce se tedy dá říci, že "konec špatný všechno špatné aneb jak pětihvězdičkové záležitosti finálním aktem nohy nedušínovsky podkopnout". Ovšem je to v nadsázce, protože ani onen nedůstojný závěr nepřebije fakt, že tak konstantně vtipnou a hravou záležitost se vám nepoštěstí hrát každý rok.
Jak již bylo naznačeno v úvodu, tak nejednu situaci můžete řešit konfliktem či disputací na ostré nože. A pro první průchod hrou, který při plnění všeho zabere cca třináct hodin, doporučím druhé jmenované. Ne snad že by to bylo lehčí či že by zdejší soubojový systém nebyl zábavný (byť je časem poněkud jednotvárný a po několika hodinách se přejí; až na několik tužších soubojů), ale proto, že si při něm ještě mnohem více užijete hlavní devizu hry. Humor. Ten je sice ve hře od úvodního menu přes popisy předmětů až po dialogy, ale nejvíce vynikne právě v dialogových přestřelkách.
Autoři se ani nesnaží o humory na sílu a za každou cenu, což nemálo zarazí s ohledem na to, že je všudypřítomný. Převážně se to drží v mantinelech chytré i hravé práce s žánrovými westernově-rpgčkovými klišé. Většina humorů však stojí čistě na textech a v tom má tento titul velkou výhru; jeho autoři umějí psát úderné dialogy i popisy (angličtina tu rozhodně není z nejtěžších, ale hodně sází na různé významy slov, řčení, slovní hrátky apod.), které jsou opravdu vtipné. Zdá se to jednoduché a samozřejmé, přesto devětadevadesát procent titulů, které by rovněž chtěly být tuze moc vtipné, toto neumí ani zpola tak dobře. Co zpola, ze třetiny. Záhy jsem se tedy přistihl, že se culím celou dobu a bezpočtukrát se i rozesmál až k slzám.
Tolik ke stylu hraní a humoru, ovšem to nejsem ani zdaleka jediné klady. Dalším nepřehlédnutelným je hravost a nápaditost jednotlivých lokací. Čekají na vás tucty a tucty lokací, z nichž většina je unikátní a s vlastním nápadem. Kupříkladu se budete snažit lapit gang v Potěmkinově vesnici, která jednak plně dostává svému "názvu" a druhak tím umožňuje jeden puzzle využívající tradiční westernově-groteskové klišé, čeká na vás také überbyrokratické městečko duchů, kde budete běhat od jednoho formuláře pro druhý, získávat razítka, povolení apod. A to nejsou ani ty nejpamátnější lokace, takových tu je přehršel.
Přesto to zápory samozřejmě má. Soubojový systém, který se díky malé výzvě časem stane čistě rutinním, jsem již zmínilh. Horší však je finální akt, kde na velké ploše je jen minimum lokací, což zarazí speciálně s ohledem na to, kolik toho na stejný/menší prostor nabídly první dvě. Ani se zde nerozjede mnoho nových questů a vesměs jde o pokračování již započatých. Ovšem zdaleka nejvíce znát je to na hlavním linii, která má tak nebývale utnuté vyvrcholení, že nad tím kroutím hlavou i po dvou dohráních. Právě kvůli utnutí a prázdné mapě finální akt působí jakoby tvůrcům došel čas, finance či prostě jen nápady, rozhodně však ne jako něco, co je hotové a dodělané.
V kostce se tedy dá říci, že "konec špatný všechno špatné aneb jak pětihvězdičkové záležitosti finálním aktem nohy nedušínovsky podkopnout". Ovšem je to v nadsázce, protože ani onen nedůstojný závěr nepřebije fakt, že tak konstantně vtipnou a hravou záležitost se vám nepoštěstí hrát každý rok.
It's bad
Got myself stuck playing hard mode where I had no way to continue.
Will probably replay it someday because I really enjoyed what I played.
Will probably replay it someday because I really enjoyed what I played.
red dead redemption if it was good
可能是惟一一款看主角走路都能让人笑抽的游戏。
Funny game, shame about the dev
So funny.
Pretty good albeit simple and easy RPG. It has a lot of puzzles and text and its main appeal is its humor. They could have made the combat a little bit deeper and the skill and item system a little bit better by providing more places where to find needles or not making the skills so expensive (which can be fixed by grinding but that's annoying).
The writing is funny but the combat is painfully dull. The permanent missables are frustrating.
i actually don't have anything to say about this game, it's short but really enjoyable, but i guess it didn't stick with me all that much after i finished it
This was a surprise hit for me, it just goes to show important writing in a video game can be. Everything is quite minimalist, from the graphics to the battle system, but the clever writing had me cracking up at every turn.
Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/episode/71sW231Nb53MVUMdnPBxee?si=fJGebKWiRgq1pt57derJtQ
Podcast: https://open.spotify.com/episode/71sW231Nb53MVUMdnPBxee?si=fJGebKWiRgq1pt57derJtQ
This review contains spoilers
My expectations were very low for this game. I saw a steam review describe it as a new Vegas sequel. And I like that take. The writing is shockingly sharp and funny. I took Doc Alice as my partner and her deep sadness and passion to kill off the necromancer really carried the game. The main plot not so much. As funny as the spitoons are, I wish more parts of the actual main plot got the level of dialogue that the demon circus and ghost bureaucrat town got.
The combat was lame. I spammed the same beanslinger moves the whole game.
Being able to watch the final cutscene early was lame. I really didn’t think the theater would actually show you the final cutscene. The game could’ve stood to have a more final way to end it.
The combat was lame. I spammed the same beanslinger moves the whole game.
Being able to watch the final cutscene early was lame. I really didn’t think the theater would actually show you the final cutscene. The game could’ve stood to have a more final way to end it.
This review contains spoilers
Such a delightful and elegant RPG about my guy ARSTON “Sneaky” MARSTON leaves his hole all the way to the West, visiting Dirtwater and Breadwood and Frisco. I ain’t gon lie, I ain’t even know I beat the game, after beating the train, I ain’t even know that was it.
The game was a fun EASY GOING RPG, easy combat, easy leveling up, goofy writing, random perks and hats you can wear. Everything is black and white and it got a color blind mode and i randomly got a book about walking stupid. The whole game was a random fun adventure that I spent way too much time riding on my crazy eyed horse and CRAZY PETE.
5h
ARSTON “SNEAKY” MARSTON the BEANSLINGER (I learned all the beancraft)
CRAZY PETE (he boosted my stats like crazy)
CRAAAZY the WEIRD EYED HORSE
MUSCLE 41 / MYSTICALITY 48 / MOXIE 21
+3 POISON, SOMETHING ABOUT SPELL DMAAGE AND I RECOVER LIKE 15 HEALTH
UHHH bunch a random other stuff
I just found out there’s a sequel…
The game was a fun EASY GOING RPG, easy combat, easy leveling up, goofy writing, random perks and hats you can wear. Everything is black and white and it got a color blind mode and i randomly got a book about walking stupid. The whole game was a random fun adventure that I spent way too much time riding on my crazy eyed horse and CRAZY PETE.
5h
ARSTON “SNEAKY” MARSTON the BEANSLINGER (I learned all the beancraft)
CRAZY PETE (he boosted my stats like crazy)
CRAAAZY the WEIRD EYED HORSE
MUSCLE 41 / MYSTICALITY 48 / MOXIE 21
+3 POISON, SOMETHING ABOUT SPELL DMAAGE AND I RECOVER LIKE 15 HEALTH
UHHH bunch a random other stuff
I just found out there’s a sequel…
Lots of laughs.
A fun little romp that came close to overstaying its welcome but ended just in time
mto bom e engraçado
Silly stick figure game with an even goofier story that I love to bits! :)
howdy
Thinking back, I don't know if I've ever played a funnier game. The first playthough genuinely made me laugh out loud a good amount. The gameplay is rock solid as well, learning to break the hell out of it is super fun too, watch a speedrun if you haven't
This game is so funny and I kind of enjoyed that it wasn't a super difficult RPG. It's easy to pick up and hard to put down.
This is one of my favorite games, mainly because it's not anything that complex. It's an RPG with silly stickfigure characters, gameplay that's good enough to keep you engaged, and most importantly, AMAZING (and I mean this, AMAZING) writing.
I've beaten this game a few times since I first played it in 2017, including getting The Really Hard Way, and it's nice to play every once in a while. There's tons of shit to discover with every subsequent playthrough: the map is much, MUCH more vast than you'd think.
Worth your money!
I've beaten this game a few times since I first played it in 2017, including getting The Really Hard Way, and it's nice to play every once in a while. There's tons of shit to discover with every subsequent playthrough: the map is much, MUCH more vast than you'd think.
Worth your money!