Showgunners is a tactical, turn-based action game from developer Artificer. Players take control of Scarlett, an ex-bounty hunter seeking revenge, and her ever-growing team as they compete in the cyberpunk gladiatorial show, Homicidal All-Stars. Similar to games like the Danganronpa series or Deathverse, this deadly show sees everyone from volunteers to death-row inmates fighting for their lives in order to be the last one standing, gaining fame and fortune along the way. Showgunners leans into its setting with confidence and tailors its gameplay accordingly, resulting in an incredibly fun and addicting experience.
Prior to jumping into the action, Showgunners provides a decent array of options to play with, such as how much violence is displayed, how often the announcer will interject, keybinding changes, quality setting adjustments, and more. The main menu also displays the built-in Twitch Mode to allow for easy streaming, as well as built-in Discord and Twitter integration. In addition to the standard very easy-to-hard difficulty options, players can turn on “Iron Man” mode. This mode isn’t an extra-hard difficulty setting but is instead a series of limitations to the chosen difficulty, similar to the skulls in the Halo Infinite. In this case, Iron Man removes the ability to manually save and makes game-overs result in permadeath, but players can disable it at any time.
Combat Absolutely Shines As A Turn-Based Thriller
Gameplay is split into two sections: exploration and combat. Exploration has players freely navigating a semi-open area filled with loot, med-stations, shop kiosks, traps, and other encounters. Engaging with fans provides Fame and Personality Points, the latter depending on how players sign the autograph.These two point systems allow players to unlock sponsorships, some of which require personality requirements to access. These exploratory spaces are fairly linear, as each path leads the player to an Arena that, after completing, will open up another section to explore. Arenas are the main event, as they are larger areas filled with various hazards, enemy types, and bosses.
Combat is where Showgunners shines, as it reminds players that it’s a turn-based tactics game at heart. Combat relies on an Action Point (AP) system, which applies to any action whether its moving, reloading, or attacking. Players have two AP per character and the available range of an action is indicated by blue or yellow borders, indicating that taking the action will cost one or two AP respectively. Some character specific abilities help work around these limitations, such as Scarlett’s “Assault” that lets her move two AP before attacking.
With AP being limited and the powerful abilities having a cooldown period, cover is a crucial component of combat for both players and enemies. To decide the best flanking positions, players can hover over their desired spot, which will reveal the chances of successfully hitting the closest enemy and how much damage would be done. Unless players get right next to an enemy, these hits are far from guaranteed but the risk/reward of these approaches feels satisfying and completely fair. Adding to the danger of the arenas are hazards, such as speeding trains, or “plot twists” in which the show runner, Orion Ford, introduces new elements to the arena such as explosive barrels; though these hazards can quickly become blessings if utilized right.
What makes Showgunners so addicting is that its combat is tight, responsive, fair, and accessible. The options available to players during combat and exploration are just enough to feel varied without feeling overly complicated; though the combat U.I. can get cluttered at times. This is the perfect game for players that are new to this genre or for veterans looking for a more casual experience that still provides enough of a challenge to stay interesting.
Showgunners is available for PC and Steamdeck. Screen Rant was provided with a digital Steam download for the purpose of this review.
