After the positive reception of the historical action RPGGreedFall, developer Spiders is following up with another fantasy-meets-fact period game calledSteelrising. Set in Paris in 1789,Steelrisingfollows an alternate history of the French Revolution, where the incumbent monarch Louis XVI rules with an iron grip and has unleashed a violent army of automatons against the public uprisings. Spiders is once again exploring a fairly under-utilized time period in video games afterGreedFall’s early seventeenth-century setting, andSteelrising’s unique take on this turbulent time during the 1700s should create a compelling narrative.
Despite the looming launch date, some largeswathes ofSteelrising’s story are still a mystery. As Spiders is offering its own take on the events of the French Revolution, players that think they know how it will all pan out could be very much mistaken. Although the game still has many closely-guarded secrets, players have seen the game’s lethal protagonist in action. With a few trailers and some gameplay footage already released, gamers have been given a brief glimpse ofSteelrising’s intriguing main character – the court dancer turned ruthless warrior, Aegis.
RELATED:Steelrising’s Setting Could Elevate Its Gameplay
Aegis - The Killing Machine
Aegis is an automaton– a moving mechanical device – that was designed by a character called Eugène de Vaucansson. This could be a reference to Jacques de Vaucanson, a real-life figure and eighteenth-century mechanician who made an early form of ‘robots’ capable of automated functions. At first seemingly created to merely be a dancer at court and entertain the upper echelons of society, Aegis uses her agility and balletic skill in combat instead, taking on mechanical foes that are much larger and more powerful than herself.
Players will be able to customize Aegis' appearance to some extent, choosing her facial features, hairstyle, and the material she is constructed from. Thanks to her upgradeable and repairable appendages and physique,Steelrisingwill employ a Soulslike mechanicwhere dying over and over becomes an integral part of the gameplay as players learn to adapt and Aegis can rebuild herself as well. Her fast-paced movements and aerial combat will add a lot of fluidity and verticality toSteelrising’s action, as Aegis utilizes a range of weaponry and skills to elegantly dispatch her enemies.
The World Of Revolution And Villainy
In a city submerged in chaos thanks to the madness of King Louis XVI and his battalion of battle-ready automatons,Queen Marie-Antoinette recruits the unique Aegisas her bodyguard to help bring down her husband and save the revolution. The challenging action RPG sees players take to the burning streets of Paris as they face legions of the king’s mechanical soldiers and traverse the environment with the help of a grappling hook. Players will reportedly be able to use a variety of nine different weapon types, which should help them choose their own preferred approaches to combat and gameplay style.
Steelrisingboasts many secrets throughout the dangerousParissetting, with hidden passages and intrigues strewn across the detailed map. Aegis is described as a very stylistic character, with exaggerated proportions, unique movements and characteristics, and more than a few secrets of her own. Initially to be named Ada after Ada Lovelace, the daughter of Lord Byron and a pioneer of programming, the protagonist was later called Aegis after the goddess Athena’s shield that she uses to protect Zeus. This reinforces Aegis' role as not only the queen’s protector, but the protector of the revolution and the people of Paris as well.
Steelrisingreleases for PC, PS5, and Xbox Series X on August 04, 2025.
MORE:Why BioWare Fans Should Check Out GreedFall and be Hyped for Steelrising
