West of Loathing

West of Loathing is a comedy adventure role-playing video game developed by Asymmetric Publications and released on 10 August 2017.

West of Loathing
Developer(s)Asymmetric Publications
Publisher(s)Asymmetric Publications
Director(s)Zack Johnson
Designer(s)Riff Connor
Programmer(s)Victor Thompson
Chris Moyer
Artist(s)Wes Cleveland
Composer(s)Ryan Ike
EngineUnity
Platform(s)Linux, macOS, Windows, Nintendo Switch, Stadia, iOS
Release
  • Linux, macOS, Windows
  • 10 August 2017
  • Nintendo Switch
  • 31 May 2018[1]
  • Stadia
  • 1 July 2020
  • iOS
  • TBA
Genre(s)Role-playing
Mode(s)Single-player

The game takes place in the universe of Asymmetric's Kingdom of Loathing, in a Weird Western themed frontier setting. The player character leaves the family farm and heads west to seek their fortune on a trek to the city of Frisco. The game was well received by critics, with Rolling Stone describing it as "one of the year's best games."[2]

Gameplay

West of Loathing is a single-player role-playing video game with turn-based combat. The game's art is made up of stick figure drawings.[3]

Development and release

West of Loathing was developed by Asymmetric Publications.[4] The game was announced in May 2016 as a follow-up to the browser-based multiplayer online role-playing game Kingdom of Loathing (2003).[3][5] West of Loathing was submitted to the Greenlight community voting system on digital distribution service Steam.[5]

West of Loathing was released for Linux, macOS, and Windows on 10 August 2017.[6] An iOS version once was scheduled for a 2017 release.[4] A Nintendo Switch version was released for download 31 May 2018. It was released for Stadia on 1 July 2020.[7]

A DLC expansion pack called Reckonin’ at Gun Manor was released 8 February 2019 for the PC version of the game.[8]

Reception

West of Loathing received "generally favourable" reviews from professional critics according to review aggregator website Metacritic.[9]

Writing for Polygon Noah Caldwell-Gervais lauded West of Loathing's humorous writing, music, and its underlying "surprising intricacy of design," while PC Gamer reviewer Christopher Livingston called the game a "delightfully written RPG absolutely packed with humor,"[14] but criticized its relatively simple combat system. In a review for Rock, Paper, Shotgun, Alec Meer recommended the game and praised its warm and welcoming tone.[16]

West of Loathing was awarded Best Comedy Game and nominated for Best Open World Game in PC Gamer's 2017 Game of the Year Awards,[17][18] and was ranked #16 on Polygon's "50 Best Games of 2017."[19] It was also nominated for "PC Game of the Year" at the Golden Joystick Awards,[20] for "Gamer's Voice (Video Game)" at the SXSW Gaming Gamer's Voice Awards,[21][22] and for the Seumas McNally Grand Prize at the Independent Games Festival Competition Awards.[23][24]

Soundtrack

The music of West of Loathing was composed by Ryan Ike and gained praise as a "pitch-perfect Spaghetti Western soundtrack."[25] The 20-track soundtrack was licensed and released by video game music label Materia Collective.[26]

References
  1. "West of Loathing for Nintendo Switch - Nintendo Game Details". Nintendo of America. Retrieved 29 May 2018.
  2. Wright, Steven T. (8 September 2017). "How Stick Figures and Absurdism Power One of the Year's Best Games". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 16 September 2017.
  3. Livingston, Christopher (26 July 2017). "West of Loathing preview: the RPG adventure is a six-shooter loaded with comedy bullets". PC Gamer. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  4. Nelson, Jared (10 August 2017). "'West of Loathing' Launches on Steam Today, iOS Version "2 or 3 Months" Away (Hopefully)". TouchArcade. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  5. Donnelly, Joe (21 May 2016). "Stick 'Em Up: Kingdom Of Loathing Goes West". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  6. O'Connor, Alice (10 August 2017). "Cowboys and clowns ride out with West of Loathing". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 13 August 2017.
  7. Li, Abner (1 July 2020). "Google adds four Stadia Pro games for July 2020". 9 to 5 Google. Retrieved 8 September 2020.
  8. Moran, Miguel. "West of Loathing gets new Reckonin' at Gun Manor DLC". Nintendo Enthusiast. Retrieved 25 October 2020.
  9. "West of Loathing for PC Reviews". Metacritic. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  10. Merser, Kevin (20 September 2017). "Review: West of Loathing". Destructoid. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  11. Tran, Edmond (8 June 2018). "West Of Loathing Review: Wild, Wild West". GameSpot. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  12. Olney, Alex (19 July 2018). "West of Loathing Review (Switch eShop)". Nintendo Life. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  13. Ronaghan, Neal (31 May 2018). "West of Loathing Review - Review". Nintendo World Report. Retrieved 3 September 2018.
  14. Livingston, Christopher (10 August 2017). "West of Loathing review". PC Gamer. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  15. Caldwell-Gervais, Noah (10 August 2017). "West of Loathing review". Polygon. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  16. Meer, Alec (11 August 2017). "Wot I Think: West of Loathing". Rock, Paper, Shotgun. Retrieved 24 August 2017.
  17. PC Gamer staff (20 December 2017). "Best Comedy Game 2017: West of Loathing". PC Gamer. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  18. PC Gamer staff (8 December 2017). "Games of the Year 2017: The nominees". PC Gamer. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  19. Polygon Staff (18 December 2017). "The 50 best games of 2017". Polygon. Retrieved 23 December 2017.
  20. Gaito, Eri (13 November 2017). "Golden Joystick Awards 2017 Nominees". Best in Slot. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
  21. McNeill, Andrew (23 January 2018). "Announcing the 2018 SXSW Gaming Gamer's Voice Award Nominees". SXSW. Retrieved 31 January 2018.
  22. Harrison, Will (17 March 2018). "'PUBG' and 'Legend of Zelda' take top prizes at 2018 SXSW Gaming Awards". Austin American-Statesman. Retrieved 18 March 2018.
  23. Faller, Patrick (5 January 2018). "Independent Games Festival Awards Nominees Announced". GameSpot. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  24. Whitney, Kayla (22 March 2018). "Complete list of 2018 Independent Games Festival Awards Winners". AXS. Retrieved 22 March 2018.
  25. Trand, Edmond (10 August 2017). "West Of Loathing Review: Wild, Wild West". GameSpot. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
  26. Farrell, Reilly (7 June 2018). "West of Loathing (Original Game Soundtrack)". Video Game Music Online. Retrieved 7 September 2020.
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