This gorgeous kingdom-builder is inspired by Tactics Ogre, so they hired the same composer

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Songs of Silence is a new strategy game being developed for PC by Chimera Entertainment that takes players to a beautiful fantasy realm of Light and Dark, each filled with warring factions, and both oblivious to the creeping invader that threatens to destroy them all.

Players in Songs of Silence will command one of multiple factions, each with a unique style of play, and use subterfuge, magic, and raw military might to conquer their rivals in a mix of turn-based strategy, real-time battles, and exploration. The game employs "card-based mechanics," but it's not a deck-builder: The cards you hold represent the heroes and locations you've discovered during gameplay. Songs of Silence will feature a story-driven singleplayer campaign and also support PvP multiplayer for up to six players at a time.

It all sounds very epic, but Chimera said gameplay in Songs of Silence is actually "fast paced, with short and intense real-time battles" that will enable players to complete a full map in a single session.

"[Songs of Silence] took inspiration from some of our all-time favorites, such as Ogre Battle, Kohan, and Warlords," creative director Alexander Kehr said. "We want to focus on conquest and army management in a genuinely interesting fantasy world, with as much replayability as possible. A pure experience."

What really caught my attention about Songs of Silence is its vibrant, colorful visual design. It has no bearing on gameplay, I know, but it makes a powerful first impression, and I will admit that I am a sucker for pretty games: I'm not really an RTS fan but I fell in love with Homeworld way back when largely because of how it looked and sounded.

Speaking of which, Songs of Silence also promises "compelling voiceover narration" and a soundtrack by Hitoshi Sakimoto, a composer known for his work on games including Valkryia Chronicles, Tactics Ogre, Final Fantasy Tactics, and Odin Sphere.

A release date for Songs of Silence hasn't been announced, but it's available for wishlisting on Steam. In the meantime, you can keep up with what's happening on Discord, and have a look at some lovely screens below.

Songs of Silence screen — (Image credit: Chimera Entertainment)

Andy has been gaming on PCs from the very beginning, starting as a youngster with text adventures and primitive action games on a cassette-based TRS80. From there he graduated to the glory days of Sierra Online adventures and Microprose sims, ran a local BBS, learned how to build PCs, and developed a longstanding love of RPGs, immersive sims, and shooters. He began writing videogame news in 2007 for The Escapist and somehow managed to avoid getting fired until 2014, when he joined the storied ranks of PC Gamer. He covers all aspects of the industry, from new game announcements and patch notes to legal disputes, Twitch beefs, esports, and Henry Cavill. Lots of Henry Cavill.