Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive
- November 20, 2013
- Spellbound
- 6h median play time
Get on Steam"Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive" is a real-time tactical strategy game set in the Wild West of 1881. You lead a team of six diverse mercenaries, each with unique skills, to complete missions involving stealth, combat, and puzzle-solving. The story revolves around stopping a series of train robberies for the Twinnings & Co railroad company, with a generous reward on offer.
Reviews
- Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive is a classic game that combines engaging storytelling with challenging tactical gameplay.
- The game features a diverse cast of characters, each with unique abilities that allow for various strategies to complete missions.
- Despite its age, the graphics and atmosphere still hold up well, providing a nostalgic experience for players.
- The game can be extremely difficult to control, leading to frustration during gameplay.
- Many players have reported game-breaking bugs, particularly in later levels, which can hinder progress.
- Compatibility issues with modern operating systems can make the game unplayable without extensive tweaks and fixes.
- story184 mentions
- 27 % positive mentions
- 70 % neutral mentions
- 3 % negative mentions
The game's story is a classic western narrative featuring John Cooper, a bounty hunter on a quest filled with train robberies and bandit confrontations, supported by a diverse cast of characters, each with unique abilities. While the plot is engaging and offers a nostalgic charm, some players find it somewhat simplistic and occasionally overshadowed by gameplay challenges and bugs. Overall, the story is well-crafted, with cinematic cutscenes and voice acting that enhance the immersive experience, making it a standout in the tactical genre despite its age.
“Despite its aging graphics, the game's immersive storyline and unique gameplay make it a standout in the genre.”
“The story is great and follows each character as they work together to achieve their goals, and the music accommodating the gameplay is nice and fits in well with the wild west theme.”
“Great story, good graphics, nice maps, and little details which will make you smile.”
“The story is a standard western plot.”
“The story is pretty much straightforward and is not the strongest part of this game, so I will not address it specifically.”
“Desperados has laughable cliché characters but the gameplay and the story (which has a surprising twist) make it well worth the buy if you are into RTS games.”
- gameplay89 mentions
- 39 % positive mentions
- 56 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive features engaging tactical stealth gameplay that has stood the test of time, drawing comparisons to the Commandos series. While the game offers a rich atmosphere and a variety of mechanics that encourage strategic thinking, some players find certain elements frustrating or outdated, particularly in terms of controls and AI behavior. Overall, the gameplay remains a highlight, providing a challenging and immersive experience that appeals to fans of the genre.
“Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive shows that great gameplay stands the test of time.”
“Its engaging gameplay, memorable setting, and challenging missions make it a must-play for anyone who loves strategy games or the wild west.”
“The game has a very fair length of gameplay, about twenty to thirty hours, depending on your pace/playstyle.”
“The gun-shoot mechanic is broken.”
“Well, after playing for a few more hours, I can say with certainty that most of the gameplay mechanics have aged very poorly.”
“Archaic interface, bad controls, outdated mechanics.”
- graphics76 mentions
- 33 % positive mentions
- 63 % neutral mentions
- 4 % negative mentions
The graphics of the game, while undeniably dated by modern standards, still manage to hold a certain charm and nostalgia for players, showcasing beautiful sprite artwork and detailed environments that were impressive for their time. Many reviews highlight the game's isometric view and 2D graphics as appealing, despite some technical limitations like blurriness and low resolution on contemporary displays. Overall, the visuals are considered acceptable and even enjoyable, especially for fans of retro aesthetics, though they may require some adjustment for modern systems.
“The art style, the music, the voice acting, and the strategic thinking that this game gives you - man, I just love this game.”
“The game's got gorgeous graphics that have aged really well.”
“Yes, it is quite an old game now, but the 2D isometric graphics were so wonderfully rendered that the graphics still hold up quite well today, in a charming way.”
“The graphics are blurry on a normal monitor.”
“The graphics are dated and resemble blurry pixels of what they are meant to represent.”
“While it's not a terrible experience, its age makes it too clunky to really enjoy, and the graphics are very low res and basic.”
- music30 mentions
- 47 % positive mentions
- 43 % neutral mentions
- 10 % negative mentions
The music in the game is widely praised for its atmospheric quality and ability to enhance the overall experience, fitting seamlessly with the Western setting and gameplay. Many reviewers highlight the soundtrack as a standout feature, describing it as engaging and well-composed, contributing to the game's immersive storytelling and character development. While some mention that the soundtrack could be more epic, the general consensus is that it effectively complements the game's ambiance and strategic elements.
“The soundtrack is great, and always represents the situation you're in quite well.”
“The story is great and follows each character as they work together to achieve their goals, and the music accommodating the gameplay is nice and fits in well with the wild west theme.”
“Soundtrack and whole ambience actually are masterfully done.”
“By the late game, half of the guards will not respond to leftover playing cards, alcohol, musical lures, or even performing monkeys and sometimes dead bodies.”
“The soundtrack is very light in the game to reduce distraction when the player is trying to find solutions, but jumps up when the team should be informed of an alarmed sentry.”
“I did get some hard crashes when playing the game, but when I turned the music off, I only got a few soft crashes.”
- atmosphere18 mentions
- 56 % positive mentions
- 28 % neutral mentions
- 17 % negative mentions
The atmosphere of the game is widely praised for its authentic depiction of the wild west, enhanced by stunning visuals, immersive music, and strong voice acting. Reviewers highlight the nostalgic and gripping environment created through detailed level design and character interactions, making it a standout in the tactical genre. Overall, the game's atmosphere is considered a key strength, effectively blending storytelling with gameplay.
“An absolute gem, with stunning backgrounds, a diverse cast of characters, and an atmosphere so thick and juicy, you can eat it with a spoon.”
“Desperados III is good, but still can't match the gameplay, atmosphere, and storyline of this original.”
“The atmosphere is such a high level of what a tactical game should be like.”
“Desperados is a fantastic tactical game that manages to build up the atmosphere of the wild west as well as games like Red Dead Redemption.”
- humor10 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
The humor in the game is widely praised, with players highlighting its hilarious characters, witty dialogue, and amusing scenarios that provide a fun change of pace. Despite some outdated graphics and problematic themes, the comedic elements, including memorable quips and exaggerated cliches, contribute to an engaging and entertaining experience. Overall, the humor enhances the game's charm and keeps players invested in the story and gameplay.
“Linka: (laughing) I must admit, it was a fun change of pace.”
“Yes, the graphics are old, and some of the themes are a bit... problematic, but the dialogs are funny and sassy, the story is interesting and the group tactics are both challenging but don't require the best dexterity, but more thinking and finding the right timing.”
“If you haven't played Desperados before, it is essentially Commandos 2 but set in the Wild West with hilarious clichés to the max! Very fun, lots of character, beautiful artwork (although it has obviously aged quite a bit), excellent story, and lots of tactical variety.”
- optimization10 mentions
- 50 % positive mentions
- 20 % neutral mentions
- 30 % negative mentions
The game's optimization is a mixed bag; while it runs smoothly on Windows 10 after recent updates, many players report sluggish performance and low-resolution graphics, especially on modern systems. Despite its age, some users find it immersive, but others struggle with performance issues and the need for additional fixes to achieve satisfactory gameplay. Overall, while there are improvements, the lack of inherent optimizations for contemporary hardware remains a significant drawback.
“The game runs smoothly on Windows 10 and, even though it is as old as 20 years, it is still an immersive experience.”
“Review update: the update they launched today, 05/Jul/18, made the game run smoothly and fine on Windows 10!”
“Well, now the performance and UI are all perfectly smooth.”
“The heroes' skills are mostly useless, gunfights are random, as is the enemy AI, graphics are low-resolution, and even the performance is sluggish, in a 20-year-old game!”
“However, the Steam version of this game is no better performance-wise than the retail version from 2001 (it's probably identical) and will run poorly on this generation's computers for some unlucky people out there.”
“For this to be sold again without any optimizations at all is not what I expected...”
- stability8 mentions
- 25 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
The game's stability is mixed, with users reporting occasional glitches during cutscenes, freezes, and crashes, particularly on Windows 7. While some players find it generally stable and a faithful reproduction, others describe it as a "buggy mess" with erratic NPC behavior in certain levels. Overall, while not universally problematic, stability issues are notable and may detract from the experience.
“Not buggy, unlike other complaints.”
“It seems like a faithful reproduction that runs great in 2018.”
“Having played the game more and more, I've found it to be rather buggy at times.”
“And some of the levels are a bit buggy with the NPCs acting erratically at times.”
“Please try to fix the game, because for whatever reason in its current state it is a buggy mess.”
- grinding4 mentions
- 0 % positive mentions
- 25 % neutral mentions
- 75 % negative mentions
Players find the grinding aspect of the game to be time-consuming and somewhat tedious, particularly due to limitations like camera rotation and gun reload mechanics. However, the expansive and detailed levels, along with varied enemy AI, provide a rewarding experience that balances the grind.
“You'll need a second life for grinding.”
“It's a bit tedious because you can't rotate the camera.”
“The reload of the guns is a little bit tedious.”
- replayability3 mentions
- 67 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 33 % negative mentions
The game is praised for its high replay value, with some users recommending alternatives like Commandos or Shadow Tactics for a different experience. Overall, it remains a favorite for many due to its engaging gameplay that encourages multiple playthroughs.
“Good replay value!”
“For me, this game has a really high replay value and is, and always will be, one of my favorite games.”
“Instead, get the re-pop of Commandos, which is more playable, or just go for Shadow Tactics if you want to play a masterpiece in the genre.”
- emotional1 mentions
- 100 % positive mentions
- 0 % neutral mentions
- 0 % negative mentions
Users express frustration over poorly balanced characters, leading to a strong emotional response that evokes feelings of disappointment and sadness.
