Failbetter Games have apparently taken a shine to all things cold and dark. Their upcoming game, Sunless Skies , leaves the weird and dangerous underzee of Sunless Sea behind and reaches for the stars… which, incidentally, happen to be just as weird and dangerous.
If you’re already familiar with Failbetter Games’ particular brand of weird Victorian fantasy and narrative-driven gameplay, you can expect similar things in Sunless Skies. However, the game’s setting and a bunch of features will be notably different from their previous title, and you don’t need to have played Sunless Sea or Fallen London to enjoy this game.
Influenced by “the science fiction of H.G. Wells and C.S. Lewis, the planetary romances of Leigh Brackett, Art Nouveau, and Planescape: Torment” you commandeer a spacefaring locomotive into the stars and encounter many a wondrous and strange thing.
Such a journey into the unknown is not without danger, and dying is consequently a big part of the game. A source of frustration in Sunless Sea was that your progress would be reset, forcing you to replay a lot of early game content over and over. Now, “a captain’s actions are not erased when they die. Many of the effects you’ve had on the world are remembered, and the achievements and follies of your earlier captains may haunt those that follow.” This sounds like an excellent and meaningful change in the way the game is played.
The Kickstarter campaign is in full swing and already raised a third of its initial funding goal within minutes. The campaign website also allows for an extensive glimpse into the wondrous universe Failbetter Games are creating, so I suggest you drop by and get a first taste of the things to come.
To learn more about Failbetter and the other games in this universe, you can visit their website, as well as Twitter and Facebook.
