The Game Awards 2022 is still months away from its December 8 airing date, but it's already confirmed to play host to the reveal of a new game from the developers of Battle Chasers: Nightwar. Seeking to keep up the momentum built from its most recent game release, Ruined King: A League of Legends Story, developer Airship Syndicate apparently couldn't wait for later this year. Airship Syndicate also shared some brief details about the game, including its codename Skylight.Airship Syndicate was formed in 2014 by former members of Darksiders team Vigil Studios after it was shut down as part of THQ's bankruptcy. Co-founders include comic artist Joe Madureira and Vigil principal designer Ryan Stefanelli, and Vigil senior animator Steve Madureira. The team has since developed three games, Battle Chasers: Nightwar, Darksiders Genesis, and Ruined King: A League of Legends Story. Their next project is known to be significantly larger than what's come before.In a tweet posted to the Airship Syndicate Twitter account, the developer confirmed that its Skylight project is going to be fully revealed during The Game Awards 2022. The tweet also confirms that Skylight, the project's codename, is also the name of the game's main city. Skylight is described as the "last bastion of hope for humanity" and "a place you'll call home." There's also an attached piece of concept art showing that Skylight is a massive fantasy cityscape mixing several cultural influences.
While the tweet from Airship Syndicate doesn't provide any more detail about Skylight, the studio has previously confirmed several details about the game. The Twitter profile for Airship Syndicate, for example, says that the studio's next game is a "brand new online world." The pinned tweet featured an interview with the Madureiras and Stefanelli from TennoCon 2022 confirming Airship Syndicate is partnering with Digital Extremes to create a massively multiplayer online action game.
Before anyone mistakes the new Airship game for an MMORPG, it should be clarified that Warframe may be a better comparison. The team states that players will be choosing pre-constructed characters rather than creating their own, perhaps like Warframe players choose their suits.
It's certainly exciting to hear about a new massively multiplayer action sci-fantasy game being in development. However, a studio like Airship Syndicate going from smaller-scale projects to a massive online live-service game is no simple task. Digital Extremes helping with the project does instill more confidence, but Airship Syndicate will have a lot to prove. A full reveal will occur on December 8 at The Game Awards, but don't be surprised to hear more teasers from Airship Syndicate between then and now.
Skylight is in development.