A Western Full Of Soul
Tombwater is a game I wasn’t even aware of until it landed in my inbox, but I’m so glad that I gave this game a chance. Tombwater offers a new 2D take on the soulslike genre with a western flavor from developer Moth Atlas and publisher Midwest Games.
Tombwater may not reinvent the soulslike formula, but its focus on direct storytelling makes it stand out amongst the best in the genre. What I noticed immediately was this deeper focus on direct storytelling when compared to games like Elden Ring and Bloodborne.
You play as an outlaw who, years after a job gone wrong, travels to the town of Tombwater to meet up with your old mentor and gang leader, who is now serving as the sheriff of Tombwater. Once you arrive in the town, it immediately becomes clear something is very wrong. The town is largely deserted, and the sheriff is missing. Most who remain have been afflicted by some sort of madness that causes them to attack you on sight and occasionally turn into horrifying monsters.
As you explore, you’ll find pools of blood, something that you might expect to show you the death of other players, given that’s what they do in the rest of the soulslike genre. In Tombwater, these puddles of blood instead show you flashes of the events that took place in this town before you arrived. It’s a neat twist that helps with that more direct storytelling I’ve always wanted from this genre, but it’s not the only thing the game does to enhance its story. Once you progress a bit further and begin to explore more, you will also find full flashbacks from the outlaw’s past, and see how he became who we find at the beginning of the game. For a pretty much nameless and voiceless character, it surprised and impressed me how much character building Tombwater is able to do in just these flashbacks alone.
The only downside for me is the lack of voice acting throughout the game. All dialogue and story is presented using text, and while that is fine, I always prefer voice acting in games with so much story. Having to read so much can sometimes break the immersion of otherwise fantastic storytelling. Not to mention, for those with conditions like Dyslexia, games with no voice acting can sometimes be unplayable. So, I hope this is something the developer and publisher consider adding to Tombwater somewhere down the line, alongside additional accessibility options, since they unfortunately don’t have any bespoke options for accessibility at the moment.
Gameplay will be accessible for many out of the box, with its simplistic control scheme really helping the playability straight away. That being said, as you progress, reaction speed can play a huge role in your ability to succeed across all areas of the game. From dashing between moving platforms with a well-timed press of B to using the twin-stick style aiming and movement as combat becomes more chaotic, and much more. The need for fast reactions at times can present a real test for those with physical disabilities like myself, but I haven’t yet found any of these challenges to be insurmountable. Although I have yet to fully finish the game, meaning there is every chance that Tombwater might become too challenging for me in the wrong way. Hence, the need for additional accessibility options that I mentioned earlier.
Progression is a key part of Tombwater, just like it is in all soulslike games. At the start of the game, you choose a class you play as for your base stats. Then, as you explore and defeat enemies, you’ll earn XP that can be used to level up at any bonfire in the world. You’ll also earn money which can be used at various vendors throughout the world, but keep in mind, with Tombwater being a soulslike, if you die, you lose it all unless you can recover your soul.
This leveling system is important, but it’s not the only aspect of progression in Tombwater. You will also progress in your combat capabilities, unlocking new melee and ranged weapons from chests that you can find. Each type of weapon is equally important, because although being a western, Tombwater does have guns, bullets are limited and can be refilled through melee hits to enemies. If you’re more of a magic user in these games, don’t worry, Tombwater still has spells which you unlock by finding special items and turning them into a spell at a bonfire. When you use spells, they fill a madness meter which can be increased in size by allocating level points into lunacy at a bonfire. Personally, my preference was to focus on stamina and health stats so that I can take more damage while also doing several melee hits to earn bullets for my shotgun, which I found in a chest early in the game, and I’ve been using it ever since.
Now I have to talk about my only major issue with Tombwater. While exploring is fun and rewarding, the game’s map is bad. It doesn’t mark anything for you outside of region locations, not even bonfires. To give the game some credit, I appreciate that the game gives you several markers that you can place yourself, but the lack of automatically marking even basic elements made exploring this world a chore at times and really hurt the fun of exploration.
This isn’t helped by the fact that many areas of Tombwater look so similar. With its retro 16-bit art style, it looks great, but the reuse of some assets makes it hard to know if I’m near a bonfire or if I’m in a brand-new part of town. A better map would completely alleviate this issue and allow the game’s fantastic art to shine through without an issue.
Thankfully, the audio is also allowed to shine without issue here. From the nostalgic feel of the 16-bit style score, to the sound effects for weapons and enemies, all the sounds feel perfectly matched to Tombwater's aesthetics and western theme.
Tombwater captures the soul of a soulslike game and wraps it in a retro-western inspired skin, while offering a deeper focus on story without short-changing the mechanics you’d expect from the genre. The basic map definitely hurts exploration, and the lack of accessibility will mean the game is unplayable for some people, but even then, it’s impossible not to recommend Tombwater to fans of soulslike games and retro games alike.
Developer - Moth Atlas
Publisher - Midwest Games
Released - March 31st, 2026
Available On - PC
Rated - (N/A) - No Descriptors
Platform Reviewed - PC
Review Access - A review code for Tombwater was provided by the publisher for the purpose of this review.
I’m Jordan I have a background in game design and am deeply passionate about accessibility in gaming. My favourite games/franchises include Shenmue, Red Dead Redemption 2, Plague Tale: Requiem, Metal Gear Solid 3, Yakuza, Splinter Cell, and Assassin’s Creed.