Rishabh Borde
The rebooted ‘Wasteland’ franchise is basically wish-fulfillment for long time fans of the Fallout series who are somewhat disappointed in the direction Bethesda has taken the franchise over the last decade or so. While the original 1988 game basically spawned the Fallout franchise, those games took a different approach by opting for first/third person action oriented gameplay in favor of the turn based flavor of the original ‘Fallout’ and its sequel ‘Fallout 2’.
After 26 years in purgatory, the ‘Wasteland’ franchise was finally reborn in 2014 thanks to a successful crowd funded campaign through Kickstarter. ‘Wasteland 2’ returned to the roots of its post apocalyptic party based isometric gameplay.
Set 12 years after the events of the original ‘Wasteland’, ‘Wasteland 2’ was a critical and commercial success and played a crucial part in the resurgence of the Western cRPG genre of video games in recent years. It reintroduced the isometric top down tactical view, along with XCOM style turn based combat. Party size was limited to 7, including up to 4 player customizable characters and 3 Non Player Characters (NPCs). You played as the Desert Rangers faction, the only semblance of lawful authority in the post nuclear wasteland. Now, with the impending launch of ‘Wasteland 3’ in the near future, read on to find out everything we know about the latest installment in storied RPG franchise.
Wasteland 3 Plot: What is it About?
While the main story line of ‘Wasteland 3’ is largely unrelated to the events of its predecessors, it is set in the same post apocalyptic world. In this alternate timeline, a nuclear war between the USA and the Soviet Union devastated the world in 1988. It is now over a century after the destruction of the world and the creation of a new one, which is decidedly worse. Power mad warlords rule the lawless, fruitless land, with the only sense of law and order coming from the esteemed Desert Rangers, of which you are a member.
The Steam page for ‘Wasteland 3’ describes the game as follows: “You are a Desert Ranger, fighting a losing battle to keep your beloved Arizona alive, when the self-proclaimed Patriarch of Colorado radios, promising aid if you’ll do a job he can only entrust to an outsider—rescue his land from the ambitions of his three bloodthirsty children.”
This time around the game is set in the frigid wasteland of post nuclear Colorado, as you take control of the last surviving member of the Team November Ranger squad from the previous game. You are completely cut off from civilization and are initially tasked with surviving the below freezing temperatures of the region. Ultimately though, your goal is to establish a permanent power base for the Rangers in the Colorado region.
Quite early in the game, you are contacted by the mysterious figure known simply as “The Patriarch” (also known as Saul Buchanan), the de facto leader of Colorado who seeks your help in stopping his warring children from tearing apart his family and his empire. In return for your aid, he promises you a great prize – control of the Colorado base as the center of operations for the Rangers.
As you go about unraveling the fascinating world of ‘Wasteland 3’, your actions and choices will have an indelible impact on the fate of the region, its factions and settlements. The presence of branching story paths would suggest that the main storyline itself could be non linear.
Wasteland 3 Gameplay
‘Wasteland 3’ is a squad based Role Playing Game presented from a top down isometric point of view in the vein of the original ‘Fallout’ and ‘Baldur’s Gate’, also known as the classic Western RPG. Exploration forms a key part of the gameplay experience, and combat is a turn based affair with unique characters possessing unique skill sets. While the fundamentals remain the same, the combat system has undergone a revamp with all new environmental hazards and armored vehicles. The Precision Targeting System returns from the previous game, but this time it has been reworked to function much like VATS in the Fallout franchise. You can use this mechanic to target individual limbs of the enemy for specific critical debuffs and satisfying headshots.
As deep as the combat system is though, it is also entirely optional. Instead, you may choose to opt for a more stealthy approach if you wish, or even sweet talk your way out of a fight through smart dialogue choices or special character skills which unlock alternate pathways.
The dialogue trees have also been overhauled completely, with all new fully voiced interactions instead of static character portraits and extensive paragraphs of written text typical of the previous games in the franchise.
‘Wasteland 3’ also features robust multiplayer integration, with both synchronous and asynchronous gameplay modes. The Cooperative campaign allows you to jump in a campaign run with another player, with both progressing independently of each other. This means that you can continue your shared campaign without your friend, and your actions will have a profound effect on his game as well.
Wasteland 3 Developers: Who Are The People Behind It?
‘Wasteland 3’ is being developed by American video game developer inXile Entertainment and published by Deep Silver. InXile is best known for games like ‘Wasteland 2’ and ‘The Mage’s Tale’ and is made up of many of the same people who created the original Fallout games. Development for the game kicked off with a crowdfunding campaign on the platform Fig, which raised over $3 million.
Wasteland 3 Release Date: When And Where Can I Play It?
‘Wasteland 3’ is set to launch on 19 May 2020. It will be available to play on PC, Linux, macOS, PlayStation 4 and Xbox One.
Wasteland 3 Trailer
You can watch the official story reveal trailer for ‘Wasteland 3’ showcasing the post apocalyptic landscape of Colorado right here:
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