What are the hooded Masters in charge of London doing with that information? Don’t worry about it! It’s probably nothing nefarious. You’re tasked with going out and taking stock of the various denizens in the city and their romantic inclinations. The assignment is a fairly simple census. To make ends meet, your housemate hooks you up with a gig for the government. Set in the immediate aftermath of London being pulled down into the underworld, you play as a single citizen struggling to find their feet (and love) in this new status quo.

It’s bold and bite-sized in ways that Sunless Skies and Sunless Seas weren’t while keeping a grip on much of the same atmosphere, gravitas and charm. Mask of the Rose feels like a savvy attempt to sway me away from this stance.įailbetter’s latest is a visual novel adventure that brings the developer’s distinct fantasy world to life in a more approachable way while putting a fresh spin on a familiar subgenre.

Even as someone who is inclined towards games that put all their chips on narrative and storytelling, a text-based RPG is something of a hard sell in 2023.

The supernaturally-slanted Victorian setting of Failbetter’s flagship browser-based game is one of the most intriguing games that I haven’t spent enough time in. I’ve always had trouble falling for the charms of Fallen London.

Mask of the Rose free instals