Dark Future: Blood Red States

Dark Future: Blood Red States for PC is a turn-based strategy game, but also an adaptation of a post-apo board game Dark Future, which was released by Games Workshop in 1988. Auroch Digital – best known as the creators of other adaptations, among them Chainsaw Warrior or Chainsaw Warrior: Lords of the Night – developed this PC version.

Plot

The game is set in near future (2023) and as a result of a global cataclysm, humanity was almost entirely destroyed. What has since emerged resembles the Wild West. The rich remain isolated in fenced, heavily guarded, private settlements patrolled by armed forces. Most of the survivors cannot afford such luxury, however, so ordinary humans have no choice but to make ends meet somehow among the decaying ruins of towns and cities, where deadly threat awaits around every corner. The players assume the roles of commanders in charge of squads known as Sanctioned Ops – these are patrolling ruined roads and highways; they are on the hunt for different renegades trying to live beyond the law. Dark Future: Blood Red States offers an extensive story campaign, as well as a multiplayer.

Mechanics

The player mostly attends chases on urban roads and highways, going after vehicles controlled by members of different criminal groups. The vehicles are both heavily armored and armed, but each of them can be modified to a large degree as well. The gameplay is turn-based here – both the sides give orders at the same time and watch several seconds of real-time action afterwards, as their orders are being executed. Implementation of such mechanics resulted in placing the player in face of the necessity to predict the opponent's moves, instead of only having to react to them. The player can both give orders to attack or move, but they can also initiate a series of hazardous maneuvers – executing those effectively can tip the balance in favour of one's victory here.

Between missions, the player both manages their equipment and crew. One needs to repair damages, buy new vehicles and modify the owned ones. It is also necessary to recruit drivers, develop their skills and equip them with cybernetic augmentations, which improve their effectiveness behind the wheel.

Last updated on March 11, 2017