Wild West Online May Be The Wild West MMORPG That We've Always Wanted

With how many fantasy MMORPGs are out there, it baffles me that we've never received a proper Wild West-themed MMORPG. I that, for some time, we pinned our hopes on Frontier 1859 back in the day, but it never panned out. Fortunately, we have a new Wild West-themed MMORPG to pin our hopes on.

Two days ago, an image of what appeared to be Red Dead Redemption 2 was leaked onto the internet. Gamers everywhere assumed that it was, in fact, Red Dead Redemption 2. It was not. It was actually an image of an unannounced open-world PvP MMORPG set in the Wild West, which is aptly named "Wild West Online."

Shortly after the image was leaked, PCGamer sat down with publisher DJ2's Creative Vice President, Steven Bugaj, to discuss the game with him. It turns out that Wild West Online is very intentionally similar to Red Dead Redemption and it is even boasted that the developers took inspiration from the first game's online multiplayer mode. The game won't feature questing, grinding, or levels; instead, it will be a seamless open world, which uses "server shards" that each hold several hundred players. The game will feature a story and "gameplay-driven motives to keep playing," but the team hasn't entirely decided what kind of progression system the game will utilize.

Players will also be able to take on any of a wide variety of roles in Wild West Online's rendition of the Wild West. In addition to simply being a bandit or a cowboy, players will have the option of taking on gathering roles like farmer and gold prospector.

Other gameplay elements will include building camps, a crafting system that requires players to find and learn recipes, and thieving. Combat is intended to only take place against other players, meaning that no NPCs will come after you if you break the law. It's up to players to take you down.

A Kickstarter is planned for later this month with a $250,000 goal. A $400,000 stretch goal will introduce women as playable characters, whereas, at $1.75 million raised, developer 612 Games will introduce train robberies in a post-launch "season one" update.

No footage is available at this time, but you can find more screenshots on the official website. More information is set to be revealed on May 26th.