Released in 2001, Desperados: Wanted Dead or Alive was developed by Spellbound Entertainment and published by Infogrames for Microsoft Windows.

In the game, the player controls up to six characters in an Old West setting, led by knife-fighter and gunslinger John Cooper.

The sequel Desperados 2: Cooper's Revenge was released in 2006, again developed by Spellbound Entertainment and published by Atari for Microsoft Windows.

The series was revived in 2020 with Desperados III, developed by Mimimi Games and published by THQ Nordic for Microsoft Windows, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, Linux, and MacOS.

The story is a prequel to the first Desperados game, exploring the origins of protagonist John Cooper in the 1870s.