City of the Shroud, the real-time tactical RPG and social experiment from Abyssal Arts, launches the first installment of its tale today on PC and Mac via Steam. Chapter two will release later this year, followed by later chapters every few months, on Steam. A definitive edition containing all four chapters will come to Xbox One and PlayStation 4 in 2019.
PC gamers who join in the fun of chapter one prior to the development of chapter two will make decisions that impact who lives, who dies and who rises to power in a truly player-driven narrative. The community’s collective in-game actions will be the key driver for future episodes written by the developers, including Amazon bestselling author Moira Katson and former Capcom production manager Keaton White. While players may revisit the first chapter and all story branches, only choices from a player’s first playthrough of a chapter will have permanent consequences on subsequent episodes.
City of the Shroud follows an unremarkable commoner thrust into the role of a hero after a chance visit to the city of Iskendrun. This peasant-turned-savior must fight a losing battle on multiple fronts. The city is facing collapse as the nobility neglects the impoverished citizens in favor of war. Matters are complicated by five faction leaders vying for power and an unknown evil plaguing the city through wicked and powerful sorcery.
Tactical RPG elements meet classic fighting game inputs in a fast-paced, real-time combat system. Master think-on-your-feet strategy by chaining together devastating combos using down, left, up, and right through the game’s Combo Wheel.
“Although the titans of turn-based, tactical RPGs are an inspiration, we also wanted these battles play out to a much faster beat,” said Keaton White, founder of Abyssal Arts. “Players of City of the Shroud will get strategic combat at a pace that keeps up with their interest in the politics of a city on the verge of doom.”
