14 DAY TRIAL // What we know: Wasteland 2 is a party-based role-playing game that’s being developed by InXile and will be launched before the end of the year on the PC.
The title is designed to use the legacy of the classic series on which it is based and will allow players to explore a post-apocalyptic world as a Desert Ranger, taking on a variety of missions, discovering allies and enemies and finding the best way to upgrade the abilities of their characters.
InXile is creating a combat system based on action points and cover spots that seems to work pretty well based on the early build that backers have received access to.
At the same time, the world is interesting, with a wide range of factions that need to be managed and a lot of situations where various skills can create vastly different outcomes.
Wasteland 2 had quite a few issues with the stability of the early builds, but InXile is promising that they will all be fixed before launch.
Why it matters: The game is important because it’s one of the first titles to receive huge support from fans via Kickstarter.
If the team at InXile can create a deep, stable and effective game that sells plenty of copies, it will show other companies what can be achieved without the backing of a traditional publisher.
The party-based role-playing game genre might also witness a future revival if Wasteland 2 manages to become a success.
But there are also potential dangers, the biggest of which is a lack of polish, and lower than expected sales might be a sign that the Kickstarter model is better suited for smaller titles that can survive even if they never appeal to mainstream players.
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