Cults are no laughing matter. Except here. In the midst of a crazy world, it’s nice to laugh, and JOIN US dropped a trailer at the Xbox Games Showcase that had me chuckling. I was curious how Wolf Haus Games would approach the subject, and now that I’ve played a demo for it, I’m actually looking forward to the full release.
JOIN US takes you to a compound at the beginning, where you’re already a part of a cult. There is character creation, and there’s a lot here in terms of customization. Beyond messing around with outfits, facial features, and body types, you’ll also get to choose your cult name and logo. It’s hilarious how all-out Wolf Haus Games has gone in letting you craft your cult, and I’m all about that.
Once I completed the initial customization, I ran through a quick tutorial. Here, you learn how to move, shoot, and such, all ending with you running through a group of followers to meet “The Leader”. Yes, they were spouting a bunch of silly voicelines and praising their leader. Yes, I also recognize the Simpsons reference in the name – and funny enough, the devs didn’t intentionally add it. They did add a King of the Hill reference somewhere, but I never came across it.
After your meeting is complete and The Leader’s message – go forth and convert more people – is clear, you arrive at your new compound with a few followers. It's nothing special, at least now, but eventually you’ll get the opportunity to add to and improve it. As soon as I had arrived, a local set of farmers who didn’t like our teaching showed up, looking to take us out.
This attack is where I got my main impression of the game. There is big Saints Row energy in JOIN US. From the movement, to the gunplay, to the driving, to the followers, this might be the Saints Row game many have been waiting for. Weathering the attack, I went over to the followers and chose several to come with me, as it was time to take the offensive in this battle with the locals.
Traveling in an SUV to the farm, it wasn’t too tough to dispatch them. What’s cool is that you aren’t stuck in whatever kit you have, as you can swap between followers by just pointing at them and holding a button. Being able to change on the fly is pretty great and helps you enjoy the variety of weaponry without running around and looking for a new one on the ground.
All of JOIN US occurs on an open-world map, and you can enjoy it in one of two ways. Wolf Haus Games referred to a campaign that should be roughly fourteen hours' worth of story to enjoy. The second way is a sandbox mode, which I assume just lets you run around and play around with the systems and mechanics. There were a lot of meters at the top of the screen, and given my lack of play time, I didn’t get to explore everything working underneath the open-world gameplay. Needless to say, there’s a lot going on in JOIN US that twenty minutes won’t uncover, so I look forward to getting deeper into the cult… wait, maybe that’s not how I should say that.
Of course, the best way to enjoy this is going to be with friends. JOIN US is going to have four-player co-op, letting you convert towns with the help of your buddies. Since my demo was single player, I don’t know exactly how it’ll work, but being able to dive into the cults your squad creates and cause chaos is going to be a fun time.
While my preview was clearly an early alpha build (the graphics and performance were rough), I can see the potential for JOIN US. Friendslop-style games are all the rage right now, with things like PEAK and R.E.P.O. ruling the Steam charts. JOIN US, however, doesn’t fit exactly in this genre, feeling more like a full-fledged game that just so happens to be perfect for a group to play. If Wolf Haus Games can smooth out its edges and offer an engaging narrative behind it, this could be a huge hit. JOIN US releases in March 2027 on PC, Xbox Series consoles, and PlayStation 5.
