Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive

There aren't many games set in the Wild West, which is a bit strange when you think about the ready-made stereotypes and the rich heritage of celluloid that could be mercilessly ripped off in the name of PC gaming originality. Still, Desperadoes has appeared on the horizon and it could be the game to redress the balance.

Described as a real-time adventure strategy game, it manages to cram in more spaghetti than Leone, with colts and other classic weapons, dynamite and powder keg detonations, Mexican bandits, ghost towns, knife throwing and even a bit of old-fashioned prostitution for good measure.

As we all know, the West was won with a single, silent hero, so we think the developers are being a bit generous by providing six for you to juggle in the game. First-off comes John Cooper, the main man and crack shot. Then there's Sam, the ex-slave who's a dab hand with sticks of dynamite, the self-explanatory Doc McCoy and Kate O'Hara, who is described as a "charming poker player". Of course, no Western would be complete without a token hard Mexican, and Desperadoes provides rotten teeth in the mouth of Ingio Sanchez. The familiar list of usual suspects is finished with a curious addition, Mia Jung, who is, apparently, a diminutive Oriental with a pet monkey. Handy if you get stuck in a prison cell, with a sleeping guard, a set of keys and, etc, etc.

Set during the American civil war, your job is to find El Diablo, the leader of a gang of Mexican bandits, and the chase is spread across 24 missions and a diverse range of inside and outside locations. Along the way you'll come up against 25 different opponents, and each of these has a different profile and AI characteristics based around criteria such as intelligence, courage, sense of duty, marksmanship and even resistance to alcohol. After all, why fight when you can just get guards pissed instead? It's always worked for us.

You'll also be able to interact with most of the things you see on screen, including horses, explosives and enemy installations. One of the missions we've seen running revolves around a man about to be wrongly executed. The townsfolk are out in their Sunday best for the spectacle, so you've got to figure out a way to distract them before cutting the rope and making a dash for freedom. The game's scheduled for a first-quarter release next year and as always we'll keep you right up to date with any major developments.