WEBVTT

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(upbeat music)

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- Hi, it's Levi,

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and one of the games I'm
pretty stoked about this year

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is this character action game

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from Ex-Ninja Gaiden developers

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at 110 Industries and Soleil Game Studios.

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Dubbed a "Hybrid slasher shooter",

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'Wanted: Dead' is truly a
medley of various genre tropes.

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Think 'The Division' meets
'Metal Gear Rising: Revengeance'

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with cover based shooting
a la 'Gears of War'.

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Minigames similar to the 'Yakuza' series,

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fast-paced melee action
like 'Devil May Cry'

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and a 'No More Heroes' esque font

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because, I don't know, why not?

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Get it all in there.

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I mean, there's so much
happening in this game

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from 'Immortality' style FMV bits

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to 'Cyberpunk: Edgerunners'
esque anime sequences

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that it makes my head spin.

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In the good way, of course.

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There's even a cat, come on!

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But what really grabbed my
attention, felines aside,

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was the juxtaposition between
close and ranged combat,

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something 'Wanted:
Dead' seeks to establish

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as its own niche subgenre.

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Players are encouraged to
balance melee and range tactics

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while performing over 50 executions

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in a beautifully balletic bloodbath.

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Much like it's inspiration,
'Ninja Gaiden'.

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(upbeat music)

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I do have some reservations though.

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In a gameplay deep dive video
the devs put out recently,

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partner AI seemed a little unreliable.

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And enemy AI as well, as enemy variety,

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left a lot to be desired.

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Also, could we maybe get a
new death scream or something?

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(character screams)

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And that voice acting, oof.

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- Hey, we are with the police.

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- But we saw just one stage out of five

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that will take roughly
12 hours to complete,

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a game length I'd love
to see more of in 2023.

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The developers aim to create a

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"Love letter to the sixth generation

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of video game consoles",

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and from what we've seen so
far, they may have succeeded.

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There's real confidence behind

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what 'Wanted: Dead' is trying to do.

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They aren't afraid of being
cringe, and so they are free.

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So what do y'all think of 'Wanted: Dead'?

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Are you wanting to chop
some heads off now?

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Let us know in the comments below.

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Video games forever.

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kotaku.com.