Vigilantes By Timeslip Softworks

After releasing Deadstone, one of the most enjoyable top down shooters of 2014, Timeslip Softworks is back with a Kickstarter for their latest title, Vigilantes. This time they have turned their attention to the turn-based strategy genre and have set their sights quite high. Vigilantes is influenced by genre classics from the 90s, such as Jagged Alliance, X-Com and Fallout, but breaks out of the mold with a unique theme and setting.

Vigilantes invites players to step into the boots of Sam Contino, a man who witness a violent mugging while wandering the mean streets of Reiker. Unable to turn a blind eye, Sam takes the law into his own hands by confronting the thugs, an act which sets him on a path to vigilantism. Reiker is a city that is overrun by paramilitary survivalists, the mafia and a religious cult calling themselves the Church of the Final Exodus, so there is no shortage of skulls for Sam to crack. With the odds already stacked against him, Sam will be able to locate and enlist the aid of other people, who for their own reasons, have a bone to pick with the criminal elements crawling all over Reiker. Even with party members to watch your back, the gangs in control of Reiker should not be underestimated.

Vigilantes has an expected release date of May 2017, but thanks to the free demo we had an opportunity to take a quick tour of Reiker. Although still in Alpha, the demo contains a number of preset missions from the final game that serve as a good demonstration of what players can expect. With its crime theme and neo noir setting Vigilantes already stands out from the crowd and the preset missions quickly sucked us in. There is a lot we like about Vigilantes, from the slick looking choreographed melee combat to the way that dialogue choices can give you an advantage before even beginning a battle. Although combat plays a big role in the game we are glad to see that Timeslip Softworks haven’t lost their fondness for a good story either. The demo is available for free and can be tried out by anybody, so we’ll save our thoughts on the visuals and audio for the full review, but suffice to say the game looks like it is shaping up nicely.

Thanks to almost two years of self-funded development, Vigilantes has quite a modest Kickstarter goal and is very much a labor of love. Timeslip Softworks have also pledged to invest 5% of all profits from Vigilantes into other crowdfunding projects, which is a great gesture. Check out the Kickstarter page for Vigilantes to make a pledge and ensure you get your copy of the game at a significant reduction. There is also a wealth of information about why fans of the genre should be very excited about Vigilantes will offer. Don’t forget to grab a copy of the demo too to see what all the fuss is about. Finally, Vigilantes is also on Steam Greenlight, so go and give it a vote.