Former BioShock and Borderlands Developers Announce Chaotic New Game

Summary

Stray Kite Studios has announced Wartorn, a real-time strategy roguelite boasting destructible environments, challenging moral choices, and a striking painterly aesthetic. Launching in early access on Steam and the Epic Games Store in Spring 2025, Wartorn marks the studio's first original title.

Stray Kite Studios, a Dallas-based developer founded in 2018, comprises approximately 30 industry veterans—former BioShock, Borderlands, and Age of Empires developers—who previously collaborated on the standalone version of Tiny Tina's Assault on Dragon Keep: A Wonderlands One-Shot Adventure and numerous creative Fortnite maps.

Wartorn, their debut original game, follows two elven sisters on a perilous journey to reunite with their family. This journey will be fraught with challenging battles and morally complex decisions.

Wartorn's Chaotic Gameplay

Wartorn's fantasy world is deeply divided and chaotic, presenting numerous challenges for the player. This chaos extends to the game's physics-driven environmental destruction, ensuring each encounter is unique. The game explores themes of finding purpose amidst chaos, with co-founder and creative director Paul Hellquist stating, "We’ve poured our hearts into creating a game that not only entertains but also makes players think deeply about sacrifice, survival, and the bonds that unite us."

Difficult Choices and Dynamic Combat

Between battles, players face difficult choices, such as deciding who to save or feed, adding to the story-driven roguelite experience and ensuring replayability. Combat offers similar freedom, featuring a dynamic magic system that allows players to creatively combine fire, water, and lightning. These spells interact uniquely with each other and the environment, offering strategic depth (e.g., shocking enemies in water or igniting tar-covered mobs).

We’ve poured our hearts into creating a game that not only entertains but also makes players think deeply about sacrifice, survival, and the bonds that unite us.

Wartorn's progression system features persistent upgrades between runs, making subsequent attempts easier. The game's painterly aesthetic enhances the dramatic setting, while an adjustable slow-motion feature allows for precise command input during chaotic moments, ensuring accessibility. The game is slated for early access release on Steam and the Epic Games Store in Spring 2025.