There are several ways to my heart. Chocolate, esports shirts, pretty DnD dice, and dystopian, steampunk RPGs with cyberpunk flair. While the first three are relatively easy to come by, the latter, not so much. While BioShock has the steampunk, it lacks the cyberpunk, and while CD Project Red’s magnum opus oozes neon, it’s grounded in real-life. Welcome to Brightville, a brand new indie from Contrast Games, blends BioShock’s contemporary feel with Night City’s neon-bathed grime and Avowed’s fantasy combat, and, as you’ve likely guessed, it’s immediately found a spot on my wishlist.
The streets are illuminated in shades of neon pink, green, and blue. The buildings, however are turn-of-the-century Neo-Baroque, with eerie cables transporting shimmering blue energy hanging overhead. A voice booms over the speaker, 1984-style, barking out orders. This is action-adventure game where the city morphs around your choices.
You are a sentient automaton that’s unaffected by Brightville’s AI overlords. As a result, you’re at the top of the persona non grata list, and will encounter myriad foes intent on tearing you asunder. Your abilities rely on various different spells, and combat reminds me a little bit of the Wizard spec that I ran during my Avowed review. You sling spells, chain them together to deal massive damage, and send your enemies’ robotic innards flying.
But combat is just one part of Welcome to Brightville. You’ll be able to stealth your way through encounters and manipulate your way past potential barriers. All of your choices will impact how the world reacts: bribing the wrong person could cause more trouble, for example, and treading on a loose stone could alert enemies to your presence.
For me, however, the most exciting thing is the game’s connection to music. In my South of Midnight review I praised the fact that its combat sequences work in tandem with the overarching score. Brightville does the same: as our automaton lays into a spidery robotic head, each spell they cast has its own different choral tone, making everything feel a little more punchy. I love a good videogame soundtrack, and Brightville feels like it has its music on lock.
Contrast Games has confirmed that Welcome to Brightville will arrive in 2027. If you’re as intrigued as I am, though, you can wishlist it on Steam.
In the meantime, we have a list of all the PC games for this year and beyond.
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