Co-op PvE games have blown up on Steam recently, thanks in part to games like Helldivers 2, which offers frantic third-person shooter mayhem for up to four players. Recently, Far Far West took the PC gaming world by storm with a similar gameplay loop, showing that there is still an appetite for fun and interesting co-op PvE experiences on Steam. For players who can’t get enough of this genre, Canyons should be on their radar, as it looks to blend Helldivers 2‘s gameplay with Fallout‘s world, wrapped up in a crusader theme.
Canyons comes from developer RedRuins Softworks and publisher HypeTrain Digital. RedRuins’ only other game release is the single-player sci-fi survival crafting game Breathedge, so Canyons will be a jump into uncharted territory for the developer. While the game doesn’t have a release date yet, the gameplay footage shown of Canyons so far is encouraging for players looking for the next game like Helldivers 2.
Open-World Pirate RPG on Steam is More Than Temu Assassin’s Creed Black Flag
Pirate fans looking for a great open-world RPG to dig into before Assassin’s Creed Black Flag Resynced launches have to check out this Steam game.
Canyons Features at a Glance
- CO-OP PvE adventure set in a procedurally generated world
- CRAWLERS — Pilot a massive machine across the barren canyon wastelands.
- EXPEDITIONS — Gather loyal friends, load ammo onto your rusty Crawler, and embark on expeditions to conquer, save, build, or destroy these damned canyons.
- HAVEN — Establish your settlement in the canyon caves, equip it with everything survivors need, and they will gladly settle there.
- CAPTAIN — Besides improving basic stats, you can master dozens of professions, each enhancing your character in some aspect of the game.
Canyons is a third-person action shooter set in a procedurally generated world. Fight mysterious Awakened alone or in co-op for up to 4 players, command giant Crawlers, build your haven, and survive a brutal living world.
What’s That Weapon?
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Identify the silhouettes before time runs out.
Easy (7.5s)Medium (5.0s)Hard (2.5s)Permadeath (2.5s)
Canyons Pits Crusaders Against Heretics in a Post-Apocalyptic World
Canyons looks to blend the fanatical elements of Helldivers 2‘s lore along with its gameplay and places it into a Fallout or Mad Max-style post-apocalyptic world. A procedurally generated level design means that expeditions in Canyons will play out differently every time players embark. Between slaying hordes of enemies and then returning to the Haven to build their settlement and improve their character’s abilities, Canyon offers players a substantial gameplay loop that mirrors that of Helldivers 2.
The World of Canyons
In a world without abundant water, survival is only possible in the canyons, and players must defend their settlements from the zombie-like Awakened. The dominant force in the world of Canyons is the Order of the Double Cross, a zealous organization in which its Crusaders form pacts with the Awakened to gain their powers, almost like a warlock bending demonic forces to their will. Players will embark on expeditions through the canyons as the captain of a Crawler that hosts Crusaders bent on beating back the encroaching Awakened and looting treasure along the way.
The Haven of the Covenant acts as the player’s home base, and they can upgrade it with features like workshops, living quarters, defenses, and even a shipyard to upgrade their Crawler. Living in the world of Canyons can be dangerous, and having the right defenses can be the difference between survival and losing Haven to foes. With experience developing survival crafting games in the past, RedRuins seems well-suited to make the base-building mechanics of Canyons a robust part of its gameplay.
The Gameplay of Canyons
Like Helldivers 2, Canyons is a third-person shooter where groups of up to four players can brave the canyons of the wasteland. Unlike the weapons of Helldivers 2, Canyons utilizes old-world weaponry like canons strapped to Crawlers and rusted bits of assault rifles cobbled together. All types of weapons will be necessary to tackle the overwhelming hordes of enemies that Canyons throws at players.
Scratch & Peek
Identify the cover art while scratching off as little foil as
possible.
Identify the cover art while scratching off as little foil as possible.
EasyMediumHardPermadeath
There is a good deal of depth to the combat in Canyons, with one gameplay trailer showcasing the player using a canon mounted on their Crawler to destroy part of the environment, cutting off a horde of enemies in a tunnel. Players will also be able to customize their character with different types of personal skills and master various professions to give them a better chance at surviving when out on an expedition. Blood Pacts made with the Awakened can also influence a character’s build, giving Canyons a nice breadth of RPG-like mechanics for players to dig into.
How Canyons Compare to Games like Helldivers 2 and Fallout
While Canyons stands on its own as a unique entry in the third-person shooter co-op PvE genre, it’s clear to see where the game gets its inspiration from. Helldivers 2 is an obvious choice, given that it’s arguably the most popular entry in the genre of the past few years. But aside from the shared gameplay loop, Canyons‘ zealot-like Crusaders and their devotion to life itself are very similar to the fanaticism with which the Helldivers defend Super Earth and spread managed democracy throughout the galaxy.
A post-apocalyptic game like Canyons is also naturally going to draw comparisons to the Fallout series as well. While gameplay might be more aligned with Helldivers 2, there is a shared aesthetic between Fallout and Canyons. The types of rough, homemade weapons put together from scraps of old-world tech feel a lot like the weapons of Fallout, and the roving hordes of zombie-like enemies mirror the threat of ghouls in the Fallout universe. Although Canyons lacks the same mid-century, atomic age designs that Fallout leans on, the two games’ wastelands are clear bedfellows, making it a game that should appeal to both Fallout and Helldivers 2 fans alike.
