Blackwood Asks Big Questions, Like 'What If John Wick Had to Manage a DVD Store?'

Sometimes I just don't know what to make of a game. BLACKWOOD is one of today's bigger releases, a John Wick-inspired cinematic shooter from Bangladesh-based studio AttritoM7 Productions, previously known for the tactical squad shooter Zero Hour. On one hand, it looks pretty slick, with some very flashy takedown animations. On the other hand, between those stylish gunfights, it looks to be a lot of walking, talking, and– bizarrely–managing a DVD store. And lastly, it's not a full game. Not yet, at least.

While not technically early access, Blackwood is, effectively, an early access game. If you buy it now, you receive the first third of the game, with the remaining two acts coming as free updates scheduled for March and September 2027, respectively. Some guardedly positive early reviews are out, and several YouTube channels have posted full walkthroughs of the current chapter already. Worryingly, some have that first act clocking in at slightly more than an hour long. Maybe ninety minutes, if you take your time, and this game doesn't seem exactly built to be replayed and repeated.

The thing is that it looks decent. Polished. Like a real video game project made by people. But there are bits I've seen where characters slip and slide awkwardly around, and snap suddenly into those nice-but-canned takedown animations. Without diving into it myself, it's genuinely hard to get a sense as to whether we're looking at a genuinely good John Wick tribute, or the second coming of The Quiet Man, a game infamous for having surface-level gloss and a deeply confused, wonky design beneath the facade.

Blackwood is out now for £23.49/$25, with a 10% launch discount running until September 23rd. There's also a small extra discount to be found if you own the excellent (if dumb-as-rocks) Trepang2, Zero Hour or A.A.U. Black Site. And as mentioned, the game won't be complete until this time next year at the earliest. But once it's finished? £25 for a 3-4 hour but dense game ain't too shabby. But I think I'll be saving my money on this one for now.

Personally, I think that until the dust settles and we can get a better handle on this one, if you're looking for a John Wick video game experience, you should consider Gunman Contracts, which is a fantastic (if also incomplete) ride, if you've got a VR headset.