Becoming Pablo trailer shows cartel strategy at Insider Showcase

A new gameplay trailer for Becoming Pablo premiered at the Insider Gaming Showcase. The footage presents core systems where players build and manage a drug cartel using grand strategy, turn-based battles and economic management. The game is scheduled for release later this year.

The trailer focuses on map-based decisions and high-level strategy. Players expand influence across regions, negotiate or coerce other factions, and use bribery and blackmail to gain advantage. Smaller-scale, turn-based battles are shown for control of territories, routes, production sites and strongholds.

Combat sequences use board-game style tactics with an emphasis on maneuvering and planning rather than real-time action. The game also includes base-defense mechanics to protect controlled zones from rival cartels and law enforcement operations.

Economic systems shown cover production facilities, distribution networks and revenue management. The trailer depicts moving product through networks, balancing income against the costs of protection and corruption, and choosing where to invest and when to prioritize security or expansion.

The developers do not name any real people in the trailer. The setting and storyline draw on the history of cocaine trafficking in Latin America from the 1970s through the 1990s; the team says the title aims to reflect the era’s atmosphere without presenting a strict historical account.

The showcase also included Royston Cinemo’s Project Madras, an open-world action game set in a depiction of India. The developer of Becoming Pablo did not provide platform details or a precise release window alongside the trailer.