We've been cautiously optimistic about the forthcoming Evil West from Flying Wild Hog. That caution stems from a minor concern that it might be a bit of a paint by the number affair as far as third-person shooters go, but today's trailer has allayed those fears in a big way and now we just can't wait to get to monster slayin'.

A heroic journey to achieve

Get to know Jesse Rentier, the young and skilled vampire slayer you’ll incarnate in Evil West. Star agent of the Rentier Institute, a secret monster-hunting organization led by his father and many generations of Rentier before him, he’ll have to take the action into his own hands after a deadly vampiric conspiracy emerges from the darkness and wipes out the Institute.

With the help of Edgar Gravenor, another survivor from the Rentier Institute, he’ll have to battle fierce foes and demystify the conspiracy, while rebuilding the organisation and becoming the leader it needs.

A well-equipped gunslinger slaying monstrosities with deadly style

To reach his goal, Jesse will explore every corner of the Wild West, looking for new Institute members and valuable leads on the conspiracy, taking money from abandoned chests and corpses and growing his arsenal of weapons all the while. Armed with both old-fashioned firearms and advanced technology such as the lightning-fuelled Rentier Gauntlet, combine Jesse’s weapons and tools to your liking, each of them coming with its own skill tree for customised upgrades. Then take part in explosive combat encounters with your own mix of powerful ranged attacks and devastating melee combos.

At just under five minutes, you'd be hard pressed finding a better distraction today, and we urge you to check it out. And for those unsure of a setting like this, have a read of our in-depth breakdown of the Weird West as a sub-genre by author Christian D. Read.

Evil West rocks PS4, PS5, Xbox One and Xbox Series X|S this November 22.