During the Kickstarter Craze a couple years back, I made mention of a game called Graywalkers in a somewhat unrelated article and unfortunately, it got lost in the shuffle, so to speak. After significant progress and a successful crowdfunding campaign, Graywalkers: Purgatory is well on its way to completion.
Graywalkers plays remarkably similar to Fallout: Tactics, sporting a GUI that even resembles Interplay’s classic spin-off. Also similar to that game are the characters, who are uniquely named and tailored to fill certain roles within the group. Gunners, Katana-wielding melee fighters, men using stop signs as makeshift shields – the art style is rooted firmly within that Mad Max aesthetic.
Having been inspired by Fallout: Tactics, X-Com, and Jagged Alliance, the plans for Graywalkers actually date back to over a decade ago. Originally intended to be a graphic novel, the world Graywalkers takes place in is about more than just human-on-demon combat. There’s actually quite a bit of non-linearity and sandbox play.
As you progress in the game, you’ll be notified of new hellgates opening up and be given the option to close them before they take root. These demonic forces, as they encroach upon your territory, will trigger procedurally generated events that affect the world around you. Choose to help defend an area from these forces and you’ll gain their support.
Choose not to and the demons will slowly build a stronghold in that area, claiming it as their own and using it as a foothold to broaden their army’s reach. Interestingly enough, you can even use that to your advantage by deliberately letting demons take over settlements you’re at odds with, effectively eliminating them without having to lift a finger.
Currently in pre-alpha, developer Dreamlords Digital estimates that it will be another 14-18 months until the game reaches completion. As it stands now, many of the core systems are in place – so most of the work being done now is on the actual in-game content. When released, Dreamlords Digital hopes to have the game available on every major distributor, including Steam, GOG, and Desura.
Until then, you can try the game yourself by downloading the combat demo on the official webpage.
