'Crime noir shooter' Fallen Aces looks like a combination of Condemned: Criminal Origins and Dick Tracy comics

YouTube

New Blood Interactive, the indie publisher whose previous releases include Dusk, Amid Evil, and the just-launched-on-Early-Access Ultrakill, unveiled a new project during today's Realms Deep online event called Fallen Aces. The gritty noir saga tells the story of the A.C.E.S., the guardians of Switchblade City, who are being taken out, one by one. Now it falls to you—one man, with two fists—to get to the bottom of the mystery.

The action will unfold over three episodes, with "dozens" of non-linear levels that give players the option of busting heads, keeping it quiet, or mixing it up as the mood strikes. Use distraction and subterfuge to get the drop on the bad guys, or shove them in front of moving streetcars, shoot them in the junk, or blast them to bits with extraordinarily loud Tommy guns. The story will be told through hand-drawn cutscenes and "authentic period era gangster dialogue," backed by a soundtrack featuring era-appropriate strings, brass, and keys.

The trailer revealed today strikes me as a cross between Condemned: Criminal Origins and Kingpin, with a cartoony visual style that evokes old Dick Tracy strips. I don't know about you, but that's something I want to play.

Fallen Aces should be listed on Steam by the time you read this, and you can find out more at acesfallen.com.

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.