The French game studio Spiders is starting to develop a unique identity. In 2019, it releasedGreedFall,an action RPGabout fictional seafaring nations arriving on an island filled with treasure and magic and attempting to colonize it. It’s up to the player to decide whether they want to choose one of the many factions competing for control of the island or to help the island’s natives fight back. It reads as a pretty clear historical allegory for the Age of Exploration, when European nations traveled the globe in search of land in wealth. Now Spiders is moving on to another historically inspired game in the form ofSteelRising.
It seems appropriate thatSteelRising’s French developer is telling a story set in the time of King Louis XVI, the last king of France. In this alternate reality, Louis XVI is terrorizing the people of Paris with his automaton army, and the player will join the rebellion and do battle with these automatons in another action RPG. It’s certainly a fresh take on the French Revolution, and such a unique premise might help Spiders keep furthering itself in the public eye. Details on the game may be scarce, but considering all the complicated context of this point in history, there’s certainly as much to explore as the Age of Exploration offered forGreedFall.
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Revolutionary France
The French Revolution was a chaotic and unstable time in which the government saw multiple upheavals. It was also very violent, with many people from both sides of the conflict meeting their deaths at the guillotine. As a result,SteelRisingwill likely make commentary on the social inequalities that motivated the war, as t he French Revolution was largely driven by common people fed up with the way they were treated by nobility. Louis XVI is clearly the main antagonist, but the game is sure to have references to lots of other French nobles, like Marie Antoinette.IfSteelRisingis anything likeGreedFall,players might even get the option to side with the crown and thwart the revolution.
It’s worth noting that this period in history wasn’t just one of violence. Around this time, great scientific innovations were being made all around the world, including France. For instance, one French nobleman named Antoine Lavoisier made great strides in chemistry and biology before he died in the Revolution. SinceSteelRisinghas a high emphasison sci-fi automatons with an 18th century aesthetic, it’s probably taking inspiration from the surge of scientific advancements that happened in the late 18th century. Odds are good that Louis XVI will have a cunning scientist at his side, supplying the crown with this mechanical army.
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Retelling History
Spiders is a fairly young studio that’s still trying to make it big on the game market, and though it does have a few other titles to its name, it’sproved its potential withGreedFall.What’s more,SteelRisingandGreedFallindicate that Spiders wants to have a unique identity as a studio. It seems more and more focused on telling stories inspired by important parts of global history. Even other Spiders games likeThe Technomancerserved as speculative versions of reality, exploring how Earth’s history could change with advanced technology or supernatural powers.
SteelRisinglooks like it might have some familiar steampunk sensibilities, looking at the game’s automatons. However, using them to retell the French Revolution is a pretty fresh take. Many reviewerspraisedGreedFallfor demonstrating Spiders' refreshing ideasand storytelling capabilities, soSteelRisingcould be another example of that blossoming skill. Being based in Paris, there’s few studios more qualified than Spiders to turn Paris into a steampunk battleground and explore the French Revolution through an action RPG. Lots of details aboutSteelRisingstill need filling in, so fans will have to keep an eye on it for now. Now that it’s been several months since the game was revealed, maybe Spiders will have more to say soon.
SteelRisingis in development for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X/S.
