As I drifted my massive Desert Raptor MKII mech by an expansive desert canyon, crowded filled with rocket-wielding hover bots and gun-toting bandits, I bought the sense that Bounty Star could be onto one thing particular right here. My mech, assembled from quite a lot of components wanting prefer it was in-built somebody’s storage (as a result of it was), dispatched these difficult foes with quite a lot of heavy melee assaults and cannon fireplace. It took me just a few tries to return out on prime, however as I neared the top of my temporary hands-on time, Bounty Star left me keen to return again to its world later this yr when it launches for Xbox Collection X|S.
In Bounty Star you play as Clem, a gifted fighter and mech pilot who’s managing some private trauma as a conflict veteran trying to make up for a few of her previous actions – and hopefully turn into a power of fine. Her journey takes place in an space referred to as the Pink Expanse, harking back to what can greatest be described as a post-apocalyptic American Southwest.
“I used to be in Sedona, Arizona, surrounded by landscapes very like these within the recreation, and I couldn’t assist however suppose how good they might be for an immersive motion recreation setting,” explains Artistic Director & Designer Benjamin Ruiz. “The will to create one thing visually gorgeous and set in a stupendous desert was actually the spark for Bounty Star. Every thing began to fall into place from there. I started outlining the idea that very morning, impressed by these breathtaking views. That was about 5 years in the past. It took a yr or two earlier than manufacturing formally started, however the thought was simmering for some time earlier than we actually bought began.”
Ruiz defined to me that he at all times dreamed of making a Western, and Bounty Star may be very a lot rooted in that style, however mixing a lighter tackle the Armored Core fashion of mech gameplay that his inventive crew loves.
“We actually needed to give attention to the on a regular basis lifetime of a bounty hunter,” Ruiz provides. “There’s a base-building facet the place you’re making ready meals, managing assets like clear water, and even elevating chickens — actually digging into the expertise of survival within the desert. We aimed to seek out an thrilling intersection between these parts: the enjoyable of a Western, the detailed lifetime of a bounty hunter, and the fun of piloting a mech within the open desert. That’s how Bounty Star got here collectively.”
As I explored Clem’s run-down storage that serves as her base of operations and residential, with energy strains strewn about, a make-shift kitchen within the nook to prepare dinner meals (which may give her stat bonuses in fight), and barrels filled with munitions hiding in plain sight, the world of Bounty Star is mixing a few of my favourite issues about what it will be prefer to reside out this life in a sci-fi Western, giving me sturdy “Firefly” and “Serenity” vibes the place you don’t have a lot, however what you do have you may name house; it has potential.
Customization is without doubt one of the different key parts of Bounty Star and from what I may inform it appeared open-ended sufficient the place I may both play with any sort of mech that I needed to assemble, supplied I had the assets to place all of it collectively. Ruiz strengthened that assumption for me.
“There are a few completely different approaches you may take,” Ruiz elaborates. “You’re at all times going to wish each a melee weapon and a firearm, however you may lean into one or the opposite, relying in your most well-liked play fashion. For example, some gamers would possibly give attention to heavy armor and cost straight into fight, turning into a gradual however practically unstoppable power. Others would possibly want lighter builds, prioritizing pace and agility over sheer toughness.”
As Ruiz defined to me additional, the customization system allows you to tweak round seven core properties and select from quite a lot of firearms, melee weapons, and assist techniques. He talked about that even among the QA testers have been creating builds that may skip therapeutic altogether, blasting by encounters at excessive pace. So, it appears you’ll have loads of flexibility to create distinctive mech builds and experiment with completely different fight methods when going up towards quite a lot of enemies.
Enemies aren’t the one factor you’ll encounter in Bounty Star. There may also be a handful of key NPCs you’ll work together with. One in every of them is the Marshall, who’s not solely chargeable for assigning your bounties but in addition occurs to be an outdated good friend. There’s additionally a service provider who gives you among the greatest gear accessible within the recreation, working on the shadier facet of issues and brings a distinct power in comparison with the Marshall in line with Ruiz. He talked about that general, whereas the solid of different characters isn’t big, those you meet are designed to have significant and memorable interactions with you within the recreation.
And one can’t be a bounty hunter with out some bounties, and it seems like there’s going to be all kinds of mission designs to maintain you engaged. Bounties typically work the identical method all through the sport in line with Ruiz. With Bounty Star working on a day-night cycle, there shall be days the place you’ll discover story bounties on the board, alongside a few facet bounties. Every one in all these will ship you to a particular a part of the world, which shall be distinct fight arenas of varied styles and sizes.
“Generally your objective is to seize a specific goal as a result of they’re a needed prison; different occasions, you’re tasked with clearing out all adversaries within the space,” Ruiz provides. “Some bounties require you to be extra cautious and apprehend somebody, whereas others are simple fight challenges. There are additionally optionally available goals for gamers who get pleasure from replayability, comparable to finishing a bounty inside a sure time or utilizing a particular loadout. In the end, Bounty Star may be very a lot a third-person area expertise, however we’re targeted on offering quite a lot of methods for gamers to have enjoyable and method every mission uniquely.”
Very like Clem’s makeshift house, Bounty Star appears filled with potential, and we’re wanting ahead to seeing the way it all comes collectively later this yr when it launches on Xbox Collection X|S.
