Call of Juarez

Released in 2006, Call of Juarez was developed by the Wrocław-based studio Techland and became one of the titles that signaled the Polish game industry’s entry into the era of large-scale, globally ambitious productions. A dynamic western built around a strong narrative, it blended first-person shooting with adventure elements and a dual-perspective storyline.

Players alternate between two protagonists – Billy Candle, a young gunslinger accused of murder and forced to flee, and Reverend Ray, a preacher with a dark past who relentlessly hunts Billy, convinced of his guilt. This dual perspective allowed the story to unfold from both sides of the conflict, giving the game an emotional depth and dramatic tension rarely seen in first-person shooters of the time.

Call of Juarez stood out for its refined visuals powered by the proprietary Chrome Engine 3 and its evocative atmosphere inspired by classic Western cinema. High-noon duels, horseback chases, sun-scorched deserts, and a soundtrack reminiscent of spaghetti westerns combined to create a vivid, cinematic vision of the frontier.

Originally released for PC and later for Xbox 360, the game was praised for its distinctive atmosphere, narrative ambition, and fresh interpretation of the western genre in video games. Call of Juarez demonstrated that Techland could stand alongside international studios in terms of quality, scale, and artistic direction.

Its success led to the creation of a full series, including Call of Juarez: Bound in Blood (2009), Call of Juarez: The Cartel (2011), and Call of Juarez: Gunslinger (2013), cementing Techland’s reputation as one of Poland’s leading creators of action games.