InXile's steampunk RPG Clockwork Empires aims to 'bring the level of reactivity from our isometric titles into something first-person,' Brian Fargo says, calling it the studio's 'most ambitious title'

In June 2025, after two years of virtual silence, we got our first up-to-date look at InXile Entertainment's upcoming steampunk RPG Clockwork Revolution. And then, well, it was back to silence. That may be because Clockwork Revolution is the studio's "most ambitious title, probably by a factor of 10," InXile head Brian Fargo said in a new interview with GamesRadar, and that sort of ambition takes time.

Clockwork Revolution is InXile's first big-budget first-person RPG, and Fargo said the studio aims to "bring the level of reactivity from our isometric titles into something first-person," which as a fan of the Wasteland games I'm happy to hear. Morality may also follow a twisting path based on the choices you'll make in the game, which will allow you to be the bad guy and maybe even make it worth your while.

"Here's what's really important to us: if you don't allow the player to be bad, to really go down those rabbit holes and see the consequences play out, then they never had free will to be good in the first place. They're not choosing to be good, they're just being forced down a path," Fargo said. "We think it's essential that players are making that choice, not having it made for them. We also have a very dark sense of humor, which makes all of it even more fun."

It makes me think back to the opening tale in our 2014 review of Wasteland 2, in which an ostensible protector takes his job a little too seriously, with horrific results. The game was a ton of fun and also dark, as Fargo said, in a way that Bethesda's Fallout never had the guts to be. That would occasionally open the door to unexpected outcomes that could be grim, funny—maybe both, if you're into that kind of thing—and surprising: In Wasteland 3, for instance, I successfully defused a hostage situation without resorting to violence, which unfortunately led to a whole big bunch o' violence a little bit down the road.

Personally, I'm not all that hot on steampunk as a setting (although I'm a big fan of the Thief and Dishonored games, so maybe I'm just in denial) but If InXile can bring all that to an immersive first-person world? Yeah, that's definitely a game I'm going to play. No idea when at this point—Clockwork Revolution still doesn't have a release date—but as long as they're cooking, I'm happy to wait.

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