Remember how you used to always play “cowboys and Indians” when you were a kid? Remember the days when nothing could be more appealing than a solitary life in the wild west, exploring the American desert on horseback, with a rifle on your back and a couple of six-shooters in their holsters? Maybe you wanted a life of adventure, treasure-hunting, spectacular clashes with Indians or bar brawling. Not many things can compare to such a life in the badlands and prairies, teeming with outlaws, where you have the chance to become the most infamous gunman in the land. Or maybe your whole life was changed by some spaghetti western masterpiece in which Henry Fonda and Clint Eastwood would lay down the law. Or maybe you’ve been living under a rock and haven’t experienced any of the above. In any case, Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is a game you should play.

 Interested?  Read more for the full review, and click here for the demo download.

To begin, I have to say that Bound in Blood is a revival and renewal of the Call of Juarez franchise, even if the story takes place before the events transpired in the first game, which was somewhere above mediocre, plagued by a swarm of bugs. The new game is meant to refresh the shooter genre and you don’t have to be an old CoJ player to “get” Bound in Blood. Actually, it might be better not to have played the first title at all, to avoid the unflattering first impression.

There aren’t that many titles that can boast as many perks as Bound in Blood. Ultimately, what makes a good game? Some would say that decent gameplay is enough, even if the graphics suffer from neglect. Or maybe a solid storyline can compensate for some uninspired, 3-in-the-morning decisions that the producer might have made regarding some other aspects of the game. There are plenty of good games in this situation, but those who really stand out are those who manage to pull off a sort of tutti-frutti salad, where each ingredient fits perfectly and has it’s own distinctive flavour to compliment the whole.

But enough suspense, let’s get down to it. The story of the game takes place in times of war, in America, or, to be precise, at the end of the 18th Century Civil War. Three brothers find themselves in the middle of the conflict between the United States and the Confederacy, fighting for the latter, that is to say, the eventually losing side, as those of you who weren’t skipping history class might recall. Of the three brothers (Thomas, Ray and William), only two are dedicated to the noble cause of the war, the third one being somewhat of a hippy, giving up a life in the army for a life in the service of God. It only makes sense that the youngest brother, the priest, would narrate the game, telling in horriffic detail the changes his brothers undergo after the war.

The first level gently deposits the player in the middle of white-hot warfare. You get a choice between one of the older brothers, both trained and skilled in the use of firearms. Despite all efforts, the Confederates are beginning to lose the war and the two brothers receive an order to retreat, which they gracefully ignore, for the simple reason that they don’t want to leave their little brother and the rest of their family behind. Thus, they desert and take off for their home, where their family is allready under attack. Ultimately they decide to renounce the allready futile cause of the war and rebuild their family.

As in a novel, the story build-up gradually as new conflicts pop up and intertwine. The most important one is those between the brothers and the remaining Confederate resistance, after losing the war. This so-called resistance is more like a group of charlatans which pillage and plunder in the name of some blind-sighted revenge. Barnsby, one of the main antagonists, swears that he won’t rest untill all deserters are killed. Another level of conflict is internal, centered around the three brothers, focusing on issues such as love and compassion. The story is pretty enthralling and sports an impressive array of unexpected twists and turns, however all of these have something or other to do with the gold rush. To rebuild their home and family, the boys need money, which they can easily obtain by striking a deal with Juan 'Juarez' Mendoza, a Mexican criminal devoid of all moral thoughts, who agrees to co-operate with the brothers as long as they keep their promise of splitting an Aztec treasure with him. The problem is that Ray and Thomas have rather explosive tempers, a talent for getting into trouble and they lose humanity with each enemy they send on a deep-six holiday. The rest is history.

At the beginning of every level we are presented with the same choice between one of the the two elder brothers: Thomas and Ray, the youngest brother, William, being off-limits because of his inability to kill even a fly. Ray is the oldest brother and is especially adept at brawling. He mostly uses pistols, even two at once, as any self-respecting cowboy should. Also, because he’s the brawniest of the bunch, he can use heavy weaponry and armour. Not to mention his skills with dynamite, which he can use to flush out enemies or trigger land-slides. The middle-brother, Thomas, is the quickest, he can use a rope to get to high platforms and a high-precision rifle to take out enemies from afar. He can’t use dinamite or heavy armour, doesn’t do so well with pistols and has less stamina than his older brother but he can use a bow which, believe it or not, is the most powerful weapon in the game. The bow has unbelievable precision, even at large distances and when Thomas concentrates, the flow of time slows down, allowing plenty of time for drawing a beat. Of course, there’s no Wild West without duels. Every time a boss shows up, he can be eliminated only through a fair-and-square duel, where only the quickest survives. These gunfights are exactly what you’d expect from the movies: full of tension and completely lethal. Another gameplay mechanic that’s used is the so-called 'rage'. After having eliminated multiple enemies, the games allows you to enter a heightened state of concentration, in which you can literally decimate everything in your path. Thomas draws beats automatically, the player needing only to click away for a very rewarding one-shot-one-kill frenzy. Ray must be controlled by the player for drawing beats, but he shoots automatically.

The graphics aren't too far from perfect. There are some bland textures, true, but it’s a good choice on the developer’s part, because the gaming world is full of detailed graphics and no-one wants exagerrated graphics that freeze-up every ten seconds. On maximum settings, most levels can be dubbed, without a shadow of a doubt, as artistic achievements. Canyons and forests look natural, every rendition of scenery being unforgettable. But the game not only boasts advanced graphics technology, it also treats us with excellent optimization. Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is one of the few titles that entices you to stop and smell the roses, as it were. It’s beautifully done and lacks the fake or exaggerated effects such as the bloom effect or motion blur. I haven’t encountered any graphics issues during my five hours of gameplay. Hold-up there! Five hours of gameplay?! Yes, on medium difficulty, completing all missions. Sincerely, that’s what the game told me when I finished, but it seemed longer to me, perhaps because of getting immersed in the game world and admiring all the details. Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood reminds me of another game with 'a calling' in the title: Call of Duty 4. Why? Well, the action is intense, dramatic, the game is enthralling, good but very short, exactly like CoD4. Don’t get me wrong, Bound in Blood doesn’t try to copy the Call of Duty franchise, I used the analogy solely as a compliment.

As well as the levels in which the story and action unfolds, the game offers two very large areas, whish three secondary missions each. In these maps, we get the chance to kill some bandits, recover some goods and save a damsel in distress, with the objective being slightly adjusted for each mission. These areas are considerably vast, while still being boundered by virtual limitations, such as rocks, trees or, simply, invisible walls. These zones can be explored on foot, but anyone knows that cowboys don’t take on the badlands without their trusty four-legged companion with a long face. Horseriding is pretty immersive, the feeling of speed being conveyed to a satisfactory level. In most levels, the two elder brothers will ride and fight co-operatively. The NPC brother won’t be of much use because, if left alone, he’ll hurry up and die, without getting much done in the process.

Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood is a game which I can warmly recommend to anyone, whether a shooter fan or not. For a Western enthusiast however, it is a must-have and is worth every silver dollar. It has beautiful presentation, a story worth the attention and does not become exhausting at any point.