Empyrean

Look, I’ve done a lot of projects, but Empyrean? This one is different 🤯. This is the one. The one where we sat down and said, “Okay, what if we made a next-gen sci-fi game 🎮 that doesn’t treat space like a neon-lit action park but like an actual, terrifying, mind-blowing thing?” And then, of course, we immediately made it about identity, trauma, and cosmic–scale existential dilemmas. Because, obviously. 🤷🏼

This all started when I teamed up with Sabrina Calvo ✍🏽 and Scott Turner Schofield 🖊️—two brilliant, crazy, ridiculously talented people. Sabrina is a narrative anarchist, a builder of worlds that don’t just feel real but feel like they’ve been arguing with themselves for centuries 🧠. Scott, meanwhile, is a powerhouse of trans storytelling 🏳️‍⚧️💪🏼, a creator who doesn’t just write characters—he makes them feel like they’ve already lived a full life before you even meet them.

Together, we wanted to make a game that isn’t just “cool sci-fi” but sci-fi that actually means something. Something with weight, consequence, and a sense of humor 🏋🏽 about how absurdly bad humans are at handling the unknown. 🤯

🌠 SO, WHAT’S THE DEAL?

You play as Jay, a scientist and explorer aboard the research vessel Kemal 🚀. Their job? Simple: investigate a gigantic alien cargo ship—think half a city floating in deep space—that’s hurtling toward a dying star. So far, so sci-fi. But then things go wrong (as they always do).

The laws of physics start breaking. Gravity stops listening. Jay wakes up alone in a universe 🪐 that isn’t quite right. The crew? Gone. The ship? Missing. The only clue? A faint resonance, an echo of something massive, desperate, and unfinished.

From here, the game spirals into a story about time, memory, and what it means to be human when humanity itself starts feeling optional. Jay’s choice shapes not just their fate but the fate of entire species—including the Epochians. This alien civilization doesn’t just experience time ⌛ differently but communicates through layered harmonics, storing their history in vibrations that literally ripple across space.

🎮 A GAME DESIGNED FOR PEOPLE WHO LOVE STORIES (BUT HATE BAD DESIGN)

You ever play a game and think, Why is this UI screaming at me? Why am I crafting nonsense just to pad playtime? Yeah, us too.

That’s why Empyrean is built for next-gen engines with zero clutter, no pointless fetch quests, and no unnecessary skill trees. Instead, we’re giving players fluid cinematic exploration, deep emergent storytelling, and time-warped mechanics that make you actually think about how space works.

Here’s what we’re doing differently:

✅ Exploration that actually matters – No HUD, no distractions, just pure immersion.

✅ Non-lethal gameplay – Intelligence, diplomacy, and adaptation overshooting things.

✅ Physics-based movement – Gravity, inertia, and environmental puzzles that actually make sense.

✅ A narrative that adapts to you – Relationships, moral choices, and time itself shift based on your playstyle.

👩‍🚀 COMING OF AGE, BUT IN SPACE

At its core, Empyrean is a coming–of–age story—not just for Jay, but for entire civilizations. Jay is in transition—not just across time, but within themselves. Their gender identity is woven into the narrative as something integral, not a checkbox or a plot twist. The journey isn’t just about saving a star system; it’s about finding a place in a universe that wasn’t exactly waiting for you to exist.

And it’s not just Jay—every species you encounter is going through some kind of upheaval. They’re evolving, collapsing, clinging to old ideas, or desperately trying to figure out who they are. It’s a game about how we grow, how we change, and how the biggest discoveries aren’t always about space—they’re about ourselves.

🌌 Real astrophysics – No “pew pew” lasers. Just actual space terror.

💡 Adaptive lighting & physics-driven traversal – Because moving in zero-g should be fun, not a nightmare.

👽 Alien cultures that actually feel alien – Not just humans in funny outfits.

We’re still in development, refining our vertical slice, locking in the mechanics, and making sure every decision actually matters. But here’s what I know:
This is more than just a game. It’s an experience designed to stay with you—to make you rethink what a sci-fi game can be, to make you laugh, maybe cry, and definitely panic at least once when you realize space is way too quiet.

💫 The stars are calling.

🌠 Are you listening?

Empyrean received support in writing from the CNC (France) in 2024. The project is under development—the deck and script should be available in May 2025 🤞🏼

As Co-Creator & Writer, I shaped this hard sci–fi cinematic video game 🌠, crafting a philosophical coming-of-age story, rich lore, and deep character arcs for a truly next-gen gaming experience 🎮 with my absurdly talented co-creators. ✨