Snowy Wasteland 3 Launches Crowdfunding On Fig

We already knew Wasteland 3 [official site] was coming out and that it was set in the frozen hinterlands of Colorado, because we have an incredible repository of knowledge and wisdom. But we didn’t know exactly what would be waiting for us there. A short trailer accompanied the game’s crowdfunding launch on Fig today and it reveals what we should have guessed all along. The only thing waiting for us in the frozen north is death by a cannibal’s axe. But there are some other details. Come see.

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Blood on snow – the medium of all the best artists.

The developers, inXile, have started their fundraising efforts today on Fig, where they are hoping to raise $2.7 million for this new happy-go-lucky jaunt into human depravity. And they’re already over halfway to their goal, although that is because $1.31 million of the total raised so far has been pumped in by investment men in real, actual suits. That’s the way this particular fundraising site does things.

Fig is a bit different to the usual Kickfunders, you see, in that it includes investors. It also allows you, Joe Videogames, to put in a big wad of cash at a “non-accedited investor” level, in which case you get money back if the game turns a profit. It’s partly run by a board of directors that includes Tim “Millions” Schafer and inXile’s own head Brian “$$$” Fargo, both individuals with, er, some experience in crowdfunding. But obviously, becoming an investor is a little more complicated than that.

Wasteland 3 is throwing you in at the deep end of the frozen pool. You are the last surviving member of a destroyed Ranger team and you need to set up a base in this new land where nobody cares how important you were in the deserts of the previous games. Decisions and actions will change how your base grows in this one, say the devs. Meanwhile, they’re adding vehicles to the mix, introducing the ability to use them in combat, like the turret-happy squadmate in the trailer.

But plans for the multiplayer sound the most interesting. You’ll be able to play the campaign mode with a friend by linking your games together, and while you can do missions and continue your playthrough while they’re offline, that will still affect the world as a single place. In other words, your pal Dan will log on and wonder why his neighbouring clan of Snow Friends has been wiped out. “Whoops,” you might say. “I murdered them.”

Here’s how the devs describe it:

Wasteland 3 opens up the possibility to play through the campaign with a friend. Both of you will control your own squad of Rangers.

The core of Wasteland 3 will still be a rich single-player experience. If you play with a friend while both online together, you'll be able to share many missions, and join up to hit key story beats, but you can also split up and cover more ground. Once a game is started, you can play Wasteland 3 while your friend is offline, and do a lot of missions without them. Be aware, however, that the actions you take while your friend is offline are not without consequence!

Wasteland 3 can be played as an offline, single-player game, and will be built from the ground up with a focus on story and reactivity that makes no sacrifices for the multiplayer experience. At the same time, co-op players will enjoy working together to change Wasteland 3’s highly reactive world… or finding ways to destroy what their friend has worked to accomplish.

You can take a look at the Figstarter for more blurbs like that and details on the various rewards for backers. They are aiming to have the game released in time for the blizzards of Christmas in 2019.