Hard West Reviews
As much as the comparisons to XCOM don't tell the whole story of Hard West, it's probably fair to say that if you enjoy that brand of cautious run and gun, turn-based action, you'll probably be able to forgive Hard West its sins.
Hard West has a strong concept and is fun for a while, but because the core gameplay soon becomes monotonous, along with having some awful overworld segments, the game is difficult to recommend.
This is a world worth exploring, and I have a feeling we'll be seeing more of it. Maybe that'll be in the form of a huge patch that puts this broken machine back together, or a sequel that brings the best of Hard West to the forefront. What I'd really like to see is a tabletop game in this setting, because it honestly feels like it might be better suited in that realm. Either way, I hope there'll be a reason to come back.
A decent enough turn-based tactical game with a genuinely excellent atmosphere, let down by limited tactical options, poor mechanic explanations, and a number of issues that make it seem as though the lofty ambitions outstripped either time, money, or ability.
The presentation is aced, but Hard West's turn-based combat is too rote to be engrossing.
Despite dragging its spurs, Hard West successfully captures that Old West feel. Just know what you're getting into.
It's hard to deny the charm and wonderful atmosphere which so warmly embraces this unique subgenre title. There are some good moments in Hard West, but the overworld struggles with lifeless text-based action and the gunfights lean more toward frustrating than tension-filled.
Hard West shows us how well XCOM would do in the Wild West, but it also knows how to stamp a stamp of its own with some mechanics such as luck and special abilities, and a powerful plot weight with decisions of negligible effects. All seasoned with gore, death, arcane rites, devil worship, and other paraphernalia that we did not expect to see in this setting but that in the end it looks good. It can fall into repeatability due to an AI with a lot of resources, and the management parts end up getting in the way, but it is still a highly recommended game if you like strategy and English is not a problem.
Review in Spanish | Read full review
Hard West is a great example of a turn-based tactical strategy game that blends both the Old West and the supernatural together seamlessly. Though it's fairly derivative of games that we've already played, the intriguing way that the narrative plays itself out makes it worth a look, even for veterans.
The game is solid. It's not going to be legendary in any aspect, and has a few problems such as broken abilities, but is enjoyable all-around and nice to play. Effort was put in and it pays off in the form of actually feeling like its own unique title instead of just another rip-off even if the occasional flashback to fighting aliens happens.
If you're hankering for a million ways to die in the west, I'd say this is worth a look.
Nintendo Switch is enjoying a growing number of turn-based tactical games, and Hard West is another welcome addition to that strategic throng.
So, like the Wild, Weird West it's set in, Hard West is a little off-centre and rough around the edges. What's admirable, however, is its evident that the developers who created it have a clear love for what they're doing and that the Kickstarter budget that funded this game made every cent count.
With a little bit more cohesion and fewer drastic system changes over the course of the campaigns, Hard West could have been amazing. Instead, it's merely quite good.
Hard West delivers a new setting for turn-based strategy fans, bringing X-COM style combat to the Wild West with fun (and difficult) firefights but little replayability.
Hard West gets a lot of things right, with a number of clever ideas that help to broaden the scope of the standard turn-based formula it draws upon, but a lack of checkpointing and other game design faux pas can spoil the fun.
Hard West is a satisfyingly creepy mash-up of six-gun horror and tactical combat.
Hard West is a solid tactical game. It lacks in story and character aspects but more than makes up for it when you go into battle.
Hard West isn't the deepest game of its kind, but it does a good job of walking the line between cold, hard tactics, and Weird West-style personality. Its mystically-inspired abilities add a fun twist to the X-Com formula, even if they do remove some of the need for tactical forsight. A richer world outside of combat would have been nice, but as is, Hard West still presents a fun, unique take on turn-based tactics.
It may not excel in anything, but the combination of atmosphere, tactical combat and character customization were enough to help with overlooking the unimpressive, muddy visuals, the unfairness which, at times, made me feel helpless and its limited save system.