Rival Kingdoms

From Space Ape Games, the makers of Samurai Siege, comes another RTS title called Rival Kingdoms: Age of Ruin due later this month.

Unlike Samurai Siege, this game has a fantasy setting that was created with the help of Rhianna Pratchett. In the war ravaged world of Estara, players assume the role of a new recruit and will be responsible for staking out camps, raising up armies, forging alliances, and battling Ruin, who threatens the entire world.

To help balance the scales against the forces of Ruin, there are powerful beings known as Ancients that avail themselves to players in battle. Players can also band together to form kingdoms, and can both prepare for war, as well as be assigned various roles such as Lord, Sentinel, and Champions, each with their own duties and rewards.

Space Ape is striving for something different with this game. Regarding the game's narrative, Rhianna Pratchett had this to say (in the press release) “Working with Space Ape on Rival Kingdoms has opened my eyes to the delightful reality that rich narrative experiences are no longer just the preserve of console and PC games. Mobile games are attracting a new audience who expect to be able to enjoy a few minutes or a few hours in a more interesting and multi-dimensional world. As a writer, it’s a fascinating challenge – like the graphics, sound and file size, the story needs to be delivered in a tighter, more economical package, but still satisfy the experienced gamer. Estara, the land of Rival Kingdoms, has many of the elements fantasy fans expect – heroes, villains, dragons and ancient beings wielding supernatural powers – but I think we’ve built some twists and surprises into the world as well. I can’t wait to see how players react to it.”

The games should be released this month. Ifthe pricing on iOS is any indicator, it'll be free work IAPs.