Brand New Open-World RPG on Steam Takes the Best of Red Dead Redemption and Gives It a Little Touch of Valheim
Red Dead Redemption is far from the only game to be set in the Wild West, but few games come close to matching its beautiful take with fantastic features that make it feel lived in, too. However, a brand new open-world RPG on Steam seems to be following in its Western footsteps. Westlanders is an upcoming open-world game, set to release in Early Access on Steam in 2026, that takes the best of Red Dead‘s open-world/western structure and combines it with the resource gathering, base building, and survival mechanics of Valheim. It does all of this while still offering its own unique take on the world.
Westlanders promises “a wild-west open world teeming with riches and fraught with perils. Alone or with your friends, brave unforgiving landscapes and conquer the wilds from your customizable mobile base: The Wagon.” The Steam description goes on to explain that players can build outposts and settlements, recruit loyal companions, and create an economic network focused on taming the wilderness and building their legacy. In other words, Westlanders take on the tried and true storytelling approach of ‘taming the west.’
Westlanders’ Features at a Glance
- SURVIVE a dynamic open world, teeming with life and fraught with peril.
- EXPLORE vast landscapes from your customizable wagon.
- DISCOVER vital resources, hidden locations, and unique characters.
- CRAFT & INNOVATE everything from basic tools to ingenious innovations.
- PROGRESS through a deep tech tree, unlocking powerful gear and useful buildings.
- BUILD & CUSTOMIZE your own settlements, transforming the wilderness into bustling hubs.
- PRODUCE & HARNESS the land’s bounty through farming, ranching, and mining.
- OPTIMIZE your production lines through research and worker automations
- THRIVE by forging a network of settlements across the entire valley.
- FIGHT bandits, wild beasts, and anyone who dares challenge you.
Westlanders’ Open World Takes the Lived-In Approach of Red Dead Redemption 2
“Endure a dynamic, living open world teeming with bustling flora, fierce fauna, and intriguing inhabitants. Every day is a challenge; every night, a test.”
In the titular Westlands, players will uncover resources, meet fascinating characters, and stumble upon a myriad of secrets. Whether these live up to characters like Red Dead 2‘s Gavin or secrets like the Ghost Train or UFO remains to be seen, but it’s a promising description if I’ve ever seen one. Along the way, players will meet other survivors and learn about their stories, face them over territory, or help them out.
Meanwhile, soaring temperatures and frostbite are constant dangers, adding a survival gameplay twist to the formula. Waterborne diseases, bleeding bites, suffocating mines, and maybe even tuberculosis are all threats players will have to face. Other features & threats of its open world include the following:
- Bandits (everywhere!)
- Wild animals (everywhere!)
- Hidden Threats (everywhere!)
- An Events system that puts players’ wagons, homesteads, and production
Taking a page from games like Satisfactory and giving it a Western makeover, players will also be able to set up production lines like mining outposts, lumberyard operations, animal ranching, and more. There is plenty to harvest in the Westlands.
Trust in Your Wagon Like Arthur Morgan Trusts His Horse
In the Westlands, players will have a mobile, customizable base of operations in their Wagon. The customization options include, but are not limited to, selecting the best horse from those you’ve raised, various attachments to enhance the Wagon’s capabilities, and a deployable campsite with a variety of workstations and utilities.
Westlanders’ Open World is Fitting for Its Survival-Crafting Features Too
While Westlanders‘ approach to the Wild West, direct storytelling, and environmental storytelling all come from Red Dead Redemption, how players engage with that open-world takes the best of survival-crafting games like Valheim or The Forest (with less horror) and automation games like Satisfactory.
Across the Westlands, players will be able to create massive settlements and hubs, letting them live out their dreams on the western frontier. Succeeding, however, requires mastery. Players will be able to use basic tools to advanced craftmanship to design and build their settlements. Fittingly, Westlanders features technology based on the late 1800s, ranging from basic bushcraft all the way up to iron-forged tools and firearms. An extensive tech tree will have players go step by step, advancing from the basics to automated outposts.
Westlanders players will be able to create outposts for various resources, hiring specialized workers, managing their assignments, and paying their wages to automate resource production, maximize efficiency, and establish a massive economy. Workers have various perks and flaws on top of that, and they can advance in skills during their time under a player’s employ. With a road system, various outposts, and logistic networks, players can tame the wild west and establish a trade empire—or retire, should they so wish.
Overall, Westlanders provides its own unique take on Wild West open worlds, survival crafting features, and automation games, and if any of that strikes your fancy, it’ll be releasing in Early Access sometime next year.