Now open to the public is the beta version of Bang! Howdy, a hybrid turn-based and real-time strategy game set in the Wild West. Bang! Howdy is a free game that you can play online, however you can purchase microcurrency for upgrades in the game, so the super-rich can have a sizable advantage on you if they so desire. This is part of an early trend of play-free-buy-upgrades type of games that we’ll be seeing more of this year.

“We’re happier than a coyote in the chuckwagon to let y’all know what we’ve been working on back at the ranch,” said Michael Bayne, project lead for Bang! and Three Rings’ CTO. “We think strategy fans will appreciate our fresh perspective on the genre and plumb everybody will enjoy our fun and accessible Wild West antics.”