A high stakes reality game show with poisonous gas, stabbing blades, trip mines and bombs. Death is a blessing in this dystopian future. 

Showgunners is an incredibly well developed and thought out take on the traditional turn-based tactical combat game. Taking the fundamental formula that we’ve seen developed in titles like XCOM, Showgunners expands upon the basic formula to develop a far more nuanced and approachable take on the genre. This is further blended with a puzzle solving, third person overworld used to explore the dangerous urban environments that the whacky game show takes place in.

Showgunners does a great job from the word go of letting you know what it is all about. All the music and sounds in the game have a synth-like techno feel, that also heavily accentuates the game show aesthetic. Everything is being played up for the ‘ratings’ and the game hides nothing in regard to the absolute mess that is a gameshow filled with Death Row inmates attempting to kill each challengers seeking money, in a chance to commute their sentences. The main menu theme has no right to be as good as it is, and I often found myself spending an extra five to ten minutes just sitting there listening to the song. This theme continues across the entirety of the game. None of the music is particularly revolutionary, and quickly fades from the mind after it is done, but during the heat of gameplay it all does exactly what it needs to. The battle theme is varied enough, and changes depending on the type of encounter. The overworld themes match the different environments, and it is clearly the highlight of the game. There is a love and care put into every sound bite, every music track and enough the dialogue.

The dialogue between characters is truly exceptional. Each character introduced plays a core role throughout the story. Some of the later characters are developed a little bit less and seem somewhat disconnected compared to the early encounters with Tybalt and Marty, but they still manage to give enough personality and development to explain their needs and desires to be on the dangerous gameshow. It is particularly the early interactions between the main protagonist Scarlet and Marty, and somewhat later on Tybalt, that add a real depth to the overarching story. They are depleted, exhausted and on their last leg. This show isn’t about the money for them, it’s about fixing wrongs of the past, but they are heavily broken. Every line is delivered with a note of pain and exhaustion, but without feeling hopeless. There is life in them, and they will fix their wrongs.

The story is solid here too. Far more in-depth than the premise of the game might seem. Scarlet Martillo has deeper reasons than money for being on the show and must fix the wrongs in her past. The bulk of the early story is told through comic panel styled cutscenes, slowly building to a bigger reveal of the real reason Scarlet is on the show in the third or fourth chapter. Each character has their own reasons, and the story culmination, their teaming up, and the finale all make sense for what they need to achieve in the end. It would have been nice to get some more of these comic style cutscenes for the other characters. Only Scarlet and Tybalt get this sort of treatment, most others just get their backstories explained through talking and their audio logs. There does seem to be space left for a future DLC, or even a potential sequel, so the other characters may in fact get this treatment in future. Currently there is a slight bit of obvious disconnect between the main three and the remaining cast.

The gameplay, or rather, the two types of gameplay is where Showgunners really attempts to make its own niche in the tactical genre. Blending a third person, puzzle based exploration aspect, with the potential for ambush encounters, lootboxes and optional arenas to be found, alongside a fame system that works alongside performing well in encounters and signing autographs. The more fame, the more sponsorship deals, which can change the amount of money you accrue, give you special weapons or implants, or even allow you to recover health naturally whilst exploring. This is then blended into the similar to XCOM-esque tactical combat, which will see you navigating a team of two to three, against slews of enemies with various weaknesses, strengths and powerful abilities. Taking the basic premise, it pushes the mould a little further to allow for the individual character’s to really excel with their unique abilities. Being able to body swap with enemies, disable robots, expose weaknesses, or guarantee ranged attacks. There is a plethora of abilities available, and choosing the correct composition to face off against the enemies that are being sent against you is incredibly important. Scaling difficulty means that there is always a way for people to challenge themselves, whilst also being able enjoy and experience the entire story if they aren’t as strong with the gameplay.

The addition of an Ironman and Twitch modes will also add longevity to the game. Around a twelve hour experience for one clear of the campaign, Ironman is likely to increase that twofold. Locked in actions, the game saving after each movement, attack or general action, as well as a perma-death aspect for characters who go down in combat. Ironman mode will allow people to challenge themselves, and the advent of a Twitch integrated mode will allow for content creators on Twitch to get their crowd involved and make the game even harder for themselves. There is methods of increasing the overall gameplay time, and this goes a long way for the longevity of the game.

Showgunners is an impressive game, that keeps the pace and enjoyment throughout the entirety of its story. The idea of a dystopian reality show with death and traps isn’t unique, but the way that Showgunners shows off and explains the idea is incredibly unique. The two styles of gameplay keeps things feeling fresh, and some of the puzzles are actually quite intense to solve. The music is always enjoyable, and sometimes stopping to just dance and bop along with the music breaks up the intensity of the game. Showgunners is a wildly fun time from start to end, with twists and turns and a unique artistic approach to the story and characters. An incredibly well thought out and designed game.