Witchfire looks like the heretical steampunk FPS we’ve been waiting for

Witchfire SGF 2022
(Image credit: The Astronauts)

New gameplay has been released for upcoming dark fantasy first-person shooter Witchfire, and it looks like a bundle of steampunk demons and roguelike shooting.

First revealed back in 2017, Witchfire has been treated to new in-game footage as part of Summer Game Fest 2022. While there’s little in the way of context, story, or plot to glean from the 2-minute video, there’s certainly a lot of violence.

The first-person shooter, which will reportedly feature roguelike elements, includes plenty of medieval-esque guns – from shock-charged revolvers to automatic crossbows – and plenty of infernal monsters to employ them against. You’ll be navigating across a dark gothic fantasy world, slaying legions of demons that are sent your way.

Watch the gameplay clip below.

That premise isn’t too surprising given the game’s director worked on People Can Fly’s 2004 shoot ‘em up Painkiller. While Witchfire looks different in several respects, it will certainly capture Painkiller’s frenetic, infernal shooting. It’s been a while since any FPS has been able to capture that game’s sumptuous arcade shooting – hopefully Witchfire will fit the bill.

The shooter is a big change of direction for developer The Astronauts. The studio's previous title, The Vanishing of Ethan Carter, was a slow-going, cerebral horror adventure game. The developers have ditched mystique in favor of murder for their latest outing.

It’s releasing on the Epic Games store and will launch in early access “soon”, according to the trailer.

Callum Bains
Gaming News Writer

Callum is TechRadar Gaming’s News Writer. You’ll find him whipping up stories about all the latest happenings in the gaming world, as well as penning the odd feature and review. Before coming to TechRadar, he wrote freelance for various sites, including Clash, The Telegraph, and Gamesindustry.biz, and worked as a Staff Writer at Wargamer. Strategy games and RPGs are his bread and butter, but he’ll eat anything that spins a captivating narrative. He also loves tabletop games, and will happily chew your ear off about TTRPGs and board games. 

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