Horror and the Weird West

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KBash

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Published on May 28, 2025 8:30:04 PM ● Video Link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L9_dKfB30Gc

Duration: 0:00

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The Weird West is a subgenre that sprouts from some pretty fertile ground. We've all seen gunslinger flicks. It doesn't matter what your fictional framework is - eventually, someone's gonna wanna shove zombies in there. A long-standing and wildly expansive history informs this puny subgenre, living perpetually in the shadow of its forebear, and firmly B by design. Nowadays, though, the Weird West has a home in everyone's favorite modern medium...

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Further reading and sources:
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*I want to make a note that I'm aware of the current Microsoft boycott concerning South of Midnight. I believe that the game itself is a relevant point of discussion, so I chose to go ahead with coverage. I've had the video stewing for a while, but it's announcement merited inclusion, so I put the video off and made plans to cover the game, only to find the boycott happened right around its release date. I had an active Gamepass subscription from Ninja Gaiden II Black, finished my recording in 4 days, and cancelled it afterwards. Either way, I'll understand if anyone is uncomfortable with me handling the game.

0:00 premise
3:55 brief history of The Western
14:31 explaining the Weird West
18:39 how a TTRPG handles the Weird West
30:40 video game Westerns
39:03 Undead Nightmare and Red Dead Redemption
44:44 the weird west games that didn't make it
47:48 Damnation
58:33 Blood West
1:13:09 Weird West
1:28:57 Evil West
1:36:51 Hard West
1:45:40 South of Midnight
1:55:19 Interstate 35
1:56:53 games, history, and the west