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Shadow Strings

A 2.5D story-driven RPG blending turn-based timeline combat, rhythm-based actions, and Metroidvania-style exploration. As Emilia descends into the underworld, she must confront gods, shadows, and the trauma that binds her — and fight to save the one she loves.

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Developer
hybrisgames
Publisher
hybrisgames
Release
Coming Soon
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About the Game

Descend into the underworld — and let your music shape fate

Shadow Strings is a 2.5D story-rich dark fantasy RPG combining turn-based timeline combat, rhythm-based actions, and Metroidvania exploration.

Key Features

  • Turn-based Combat – A unique blend of turn-based timeline battles and rhythm-based actions.

  • Music as Power – Play melodies to cast spells, solve puzzles, and reshape the world.

  • Metroidvania Exploration – Unlock violin powers that open new paths and reveal hidden secrets.

  • Narrative Depth – A psychological story of trauma, love, loss, and resilience.

Timeline Combat with Rhythm Precision

Battle through a hybrid system that rewards timing, strategy, and adaptability:

  • Strike enemy weaknesses to break their defenses and push them back on the timeline.

  • Fall behind the line, and fighters suffer increased damage before recovering.

  • Use rhythm-based inputs to empower every attack, melody, and defensive action.
    Music is not just theme — it is the core of combat.

Music as Power — Reshape the World

By freeing imprisoned gods, Emilia gains unique violin abilities that affect both combat and exploration:

  • shift between Light and Shadow to reveal hidden routes and create platforms,

  • cover entire environments in ice to freeze hazards and alter the terrain,

  • create magnetic fields to move or manipulate objects,

  • summon gods for devastating attacks — and learn new skills to expand Emilia’s combat repertoire.

Each new power opens hidden paths, solves puzzles, and transforms how you navigate the five realms of the underworld.

A Focused, Story-Driven RPG

Shadow Strings emphasizes meaningful progression over grind.
Develop Emilia through:

  • Treatments that shape her stat growth, each with benefits and side effects,

  • weapons and outfits with unique affinities and resistances,

  • companions who support Emilia with their own instruments and playstyles,

  • hidden memories that reveal the truth of her past.

No filler. No endless backtracking.
A challenging, narrative-driven experience built for players who value emotional storytelling and deep, tactical systems.

Explore the Realms of the Dead

Journey through atmospheric regions inspired by Greek mythology:
Acheron’s mist-filled shores, the fire-and-ice tribunals of Orkus, the despair of Tartarus, the fading Asphodel Fields, and the distant light of Elysion.
Each realm holds secrets, puzzles, enemies, and fragments of Emilia’s lost memories.

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