OnceLost Games announced its first game today, The Wayward Realm. Development on the title is being led by two industry veterans that played a heavy role in the beginning of The Elder Scrolls franchise: Ted Peterson and Julian LeFay.
The studio’s founding was first announced in 2019, but since then, there hasn’t been any news. This is the first peep we’ve heard from OnceLost Games, and for those waiting on a new RPG to sink their teeth into, The Wayward Realms is a promising pitch. According to its Steam page, it’s “a new class of game: The Grand RPG.” The game will be set on a massive archipelago of over 100 “realistically scaled” islands.
While the plot of The Wayward Realms isn’t clear, it seems like it has a lot in common with the Mount & Blade franchise. Players will be able to earn a prominent place in the game’s world by completing quests and defeating legendary enemies. Since this is a game from former Elder Scrolls devs though, the game’s ruling factions and enemies aren’t all humans. Dwarves, Elves, monsters, spirits, and demons can all be found across the game’s world, succinctly called The Archipelago.
Furthering the comparison to Mount & Blade games, The Wayward Realms will also have a virtual game master that keeps the world alive. Player actions will cause NPCs to react, causing endless shifts in power throughout the world with every interaction.
We’ll have to wait a bit longer for the first “Grand RPG” though. OnceLost Games hasn’t announced a release date or window for The Wayward Realms just yet.