WolfEye Studios, co-founded in 2019 by Raphael Colantonio, co-founder of Arkane Studios, and Julien Roby, a seasoned veteran of the same studio, has just dropped tantalising hints about their next big project.
Following the success of their 2022 isometric RPG, Weird West, WolfEye is now diving into early production on a first-person action RPG set in a retro sci-fi 1900s North America.
Fans of Dishonored and Prey were disheartened earlier this year when Arkane Austin, the studio behind these beloved titles, was shuttered by Microsoft. However, there’s a silver lining for those who appreciate immersive, narrative-driven games.
After a series of recent teasers, WolfEye Studios has showcased three images that hint at the game’s unique setting and style. The visual style is striking, and the overall aesthetic hints at a sci-fi western setting, blending futuristic and retro elements.
The first image showcases a vast, desolate landscape with striking red rock formations, a characteristic of the American Southwest. Industrial buildings dot the horizon, with a larger platform in the foreground. A billboard assuring us “The future is bright”, as the sun rises, breaking through the thick clouds and dust.
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Diving deeper into an industrial steampunk-ish aesthetic, a large enigmatic device, potentially a large antenna or perhaps generator, is being tinkered with. There’s also a retro styled poster in the background with likely some sort of dystopian propoganda. Reminiscent of alternate reality-type marketing seen in Dishonored, Bioshock, and Fallout. This scene looks a little darker than last, meaning we could be looking at dynamic weather and times of the day, similar to Weird West.
Introducing a large intimidating robot: it’s bi-pedal structure, machine guns, and red and blue light fixtures have me thinking this is some sort of security or enforcement bot. In the background is what looks like its charging station — perhaps there are only certain times the bot is activated, or triggers for it to patrol? Lastly, the puddle on the ground tells me we could be playing with the elements just as we did in Weird West! Potentially able to temporarily or permanently short-circut the bots.
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In an interview with Rock Paper Shotgun, Raphael Colontonio explained that the game will be very “freeform” and “you can explore whatever you want.”. Colontonio mentions that the game will have similar gadgetry and powers from it’s ancestors Prey and Dishonored, “if you look at the continuum from Dishonored to Prey, and then we imagine, how would it be if it was even more open than that, even more RPG than Prey?”. There is also mention of a magnetic rope that can be used to traverse in a way similar to Dishonored’s Blink, or Prey’s GLoo Cannon.
Has WolfEye Studios captured your interest? They have already opened up sign ups for a chance to be involved in a private Alpha testing! The sign up page giving us one more sliver of information, the company name “Candis Technologies”.
As a massive fan of Arkane Studios, and WolfEye Studio’s Weird West, I am particularly excited to learn more about this new first person action RPG! Stay tuned for more.
