I’m not typically a fan of hard games. After a long day of work, I want to unwind and turn my brain off, so I’m averse to the idea of enduring more struggle. This was unavoidable for me when I was roped into the trailer for Blood West, a horror/thriller FPS that doesn’t let you go in guns-blazing, but instead forces you to make each shot count. Blood West entered Early Access a few years back and just got its release in December of 2023, making a third act playable with 20+ hours of content at the time of release. Is this tough-as-nails title worth your time?

Blood West sees you as an undead cowboy who must remove corruption from a western canyon, a bayou, and a mountainside. These maps are expansive open worlds with tons of points of interest, but not everything is marked on your map and exploration is as risky as it is rewarding. Working your way through each area gets you much-needed ammo, trinkets, and sellable items to give you an edge that you’ll need to survive. Everything is in short supply, but those who scour every nook and cranny and use certain items at key points will manage just fine in the face of monstrous adversity.

To make it out alive in Blood West, you’ll have to learn the ins and outs of how its combat works. The stealthy approach is almost a must, whether it be sneaking up behind and getting a guaranteed critical hit with a melee weapon, or headshotting with a bow. If you aggro an enemy, they can take you out in 3 or 4 hits in the span of 10 seconds if you don’t dispatch them in time.

My favorite combo was headshotting with a spirit bow that used a tiny bit of health instead of ammo, and switching to a shotgun sidearm if I missed too many headshots. Which happened more than a few times thanks to the realistic weapon sway. The atmosphere and leniency in failure is what kept me hooked on Blood West. Hearing enemy footsteps and gluing my eyes to the alertness meter as I sneaked around had my heart pounding. I did die several times, and wasn’t too miffed as while death means being saddled with a debuff, you keep all of your inventory.

This softened the blow of defeat in a big way, which usually leads to me turning off other games in frustration at lost time. The only moment this was a trifle was the final boss of the canyon, which I found nigh unbeatable until I found that completing the area gives you a fighting chance.

There’s a considerable amount of gamers that will turn the other way when hearing a game is “extremely hard,” myself included. I do think that while Blood West is exceptionally tough, it’s worth your time if you can work with its high-difficulty curve. The pulse-pounding gameplay that rewards you as much as it pushes your skills is a kind of satisfaction a lot of easier games just don’t have. Tack on an aesthetic that is completely nailed and plenty of hours to sink in and dedicate to, and Blood West could very well be the hidden gem you’ve been looking for.

A PC review copy of Blood West was provided by Hyperstrange for the purposes of this review.

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Blood West

$24.99

8

Score

8.0/10

Pros

• Immersive, Challenging Gameplay
• Intense Decision-Making
• Great Sound Design

Cons

• Debilitating Difficulty Curve
• Awful Boss