… water is everywhere but none of it to drink…

Featuring a top-down isometric presentation, Empyre: Lords of the Sea Gates will rekindle old-school PC RPG fans with feelings of some of the classic story driven RPGs of the 90s. While the combat should feel familiar to veteran players, there’s a new twist in that the game uses a hybrid Real Time/Turn-based System. Players can enter a “Planning Mode” where they choose actions for each character in their party while combat is paused, and when entering into the “Action Mode” all characters will perform simultaneously, giving players complete control over their party while presenting a streamlined combat system that eliminates waiting for each character to act in sequence.

Empyre: Lords of the Sea Gates is the story of an alternate New York in which the entire city is flooded by rising oceans and the citizens must learn to live in a new reality where there is water everywhere, but none of it possible to drink. The player must make their way in search of a fresh water supply source, picking up companions along the journey. But the trip won’t be easy, as there are many threats both human and inhuman that players will encounter.

Empyre: Lords of the Sea Gates features an original story penned by renowned writer/comic artist Paul Noth, a staff cartoonist for The New Yorker magazine, where his work has appeared regularly since 2004. He created the Emmy-nominated animated series "Pale Force" for Late Night with Conan O’Brien and was animation consultant for Saturday Night Live. He's also developed shows for Cartoon Network, Adult Swim and Nickelodeon, and his trilogy of middle-grade novels will be published by Bloomsbury, starting in April of 2018 with “How to Sell Your Family to the Aliens."

“After writing for different media throughout my career, I’m very excited to be working with Coin Operated Games to write their video game script,” said Paul Noth. “The world that has been created in Empyre: Lords of the Sea Gates is amazing and truly unique, so I’m thrilled to be able to develop a story set in this new world.”

Although set in a fictional, alternate history, the game pays homage to historic accounts by adding authentic items such as patent medicines including poisons or tonics made from dangerous ingredients. Many of the games’ objectives and side quests will tie directly into the experiences that someone in the 19th century would have. The game’s authenticity reflects scenes from New York circa 1900, while tying the storyline to current day themes such as global warming and the rising of the oceans.  

“We are very honored that Paul is working with us on the storyline for Empyre: Lords of the Sea Gates,” said John Randall, Creative Director of Empyre. “He is a world class writer, and has been invaluable to us with helping to shape the direction of our games’ signature Neo-Victorian story and experience.”

Empyre:  Lords of the Sea Gates pays homage to historic accounts by adding authentic items such as patent medicines including poisons or tonics made from dangerous ingredients. Many of the games’ objectives and side quests will tie directly into the experiences that someone in the 19th century would have. The game’s authenticity reflects scenes from New York during the 1900s, while tying the storyline to current day themes such as global warming and the rising of the oceans.  

Currently in development by a team of industry veterans from such influential companies as Crytek, Codemasters, Gameloft and Creative Assembly, Empyre: Lords of the Sea Gates will be available via Steam on October 4, 2017.