After a disastrous modern-day detour in 2011’s Call of Juarez: The Cartel, Techland is both bringing the franchise back to its Wild West roots and trying something very different in Call of Juarez: Gunslinger. For the first time ever, you won’t be able to find Ubisoft’s western-themed shooter in stores — but as an Xbox Live Arcade release, the focused aim of Gunslinger could make it a top shot on the downloadable service.

Instead of focusing on the family-based narrative tying the three retail Juarez titles together, Gunslinger has you playing the hero recounting his greatest memories to fellow drinkers at a saloon. While there’s a fair chance you might not see the brothers McCall during these flashbacks, you will get to fight on the same bloodied dirt as popular Old West figures like Jesse James, Butch Cassidy, and Pat Garrett.

When will an Old West barfight end with a group hug?

During our demo, the Gunslinger fought alongside the West’s biggest legend: Billy the Kid. As he blasted his way to the stronghold where he was being pinned down, we got to observe Gunslinger’s mix of arcade elements (like a slow-mo meter that fills upon completion of combos, as well as point totals and kill names emanating from eliminated enemies) and deeper features like gaining experience and building out skill trees.

The level we saw ran under 15 minutes but never stopped to catch its breath, giving us the strong sense that Gunslinger will offer up something worthwhile for those who didn’t have the time to mosey around Red Dead Redemption’s vast villas. Who knows? Maybe there’s room for more than one big gun in the Wild Xbox West.

Even in the bloody and destructive aftermath of a gunfight, there’s a bit of beauty in Gunslinger’s vistas.

PUBLISHER: Ubisoft • DEVELOPER: Techland • MULTIPLAYER: TBD • RELEASE DATE: Early 2013 • FOR FANS OF: Non-modern Juarez games, Young Guns, Bulletstorm