If you like over-the-top action, Evil West is for you. Playing as Jesse Rentier, you are a member of the Rentier Institute, an organization created to fight monsters that plague innocent civilians in remote areas.
But as you do your job, you are angered by an enemy more powerful than you expected. The organization collapses, but you don’t intend to end up without a fight, do you?
Evil West” feels like a work of the past but in a good way. With no open world or live-service elements, this is a game where you don’t have to play every day to get lost or feel like you’re missing something.
Related: EVIL WEST RELEASE DATE, SYSTEM REQUIREMENTS PRE-ORDER & LATEST NEWS
And while the story may not be anything special, the gameplay more than makes up for it, with melee and long-range combat with just a few puzzles and elements of exploration.
Such as a box of TNT or an Iron Maiden full of spikes
It is easy to assume that it is a third-person shooter, and to some extent, it is. Lentier allows you to use a pistol from the start, and throughout the game, you can pick up other ranged weapons such as rifles, shotguns, and flamethrowers. All of them have unlimited ammunition, but the flamethrower, for example, requires a recharge.
However, fists are just as effective in taking down most enemies, if not more so. A multi-hit combo will do a fair amount of damage, but even better is to float the enemy in the air and then punch straight into an object, such as a box of TNT or an Iron Maiden full of spikes.
Also, you have gauntlets that conduct electricity. These gauntlets conduct electricity, so you can bring the enemy closer to you or warp them to stun you, allowing you to deliver a quick, powerful blow.
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But that is just the tip of the “Evil West” iceberg. You can upgrade your weapons, get new perks, and acquire more tools on the battlefield.
Moving seamlessly from melee to long-range
Overall, the combat system is fast-paced and creative. Moving seamlessly from melee to long-range combat, you must utilize useful objects across the battlefield to effectively dodge or block incoming attacks and avoid trouble.
This can be especially troublesome if you don’t take advantage of the critical hit system, which allows you to easily defeat certain enemies or block the use of pesky abilities. However, this is a common trick in this game, which allows you to instinctively use certain weapons and tools.
For example, a well-timed kick or shotgun can stop an enemy attack before it lands, leaving you open for a counterattack. Also, a limited number of useful objects are scattered around the battlefield, so why waste them on weak mooks?
Thankfully, button placement has been carefully considered, allowing smooth access to almost any weapon. For example, the face button fires the shotgun, the right trigger fires the pistol, but holding the left trigger fires the rifle; switching weapons on the D-pad is about as cumbersome as it gets.
PS5 version of Evil West for review
The graphics options were the only things I was less than impressed with when playing the PS5 version of Evil West for review. Quality mode offers a crisp 4K experience targeting 30fps, but the frame rate sometimes seems to dip.
On the other hand, performance mode offers a smooth 60fps experience, albeit at 1080p. The result is a soft image that does not do justice to the visuals. Still, the combat at 60 fps is stunning and is the way to go.
It helps that the combat is the core and soul of “Evil West” and, therefore, engaging and enjoyable throughout. It is a shame that the performance and visuals are not balanced, and neither mode is particularly ideal.
Nevertheless, “Evil West” is well worth playing through, and if you can get past the blurry 1080p visuals, there’s a lot of fun in this old-fashioned action-adventure that you can play with friends.