When I got the press release for Whale Hammer Games’ gorgeous looking sci-fi epic, Tahira: Echoes of the Astral Empire, I was quickly intrigued.

Press play on the above trailer to get an idea of what kind of world you’ll be experiencing. In the game, you play as the eponymous Princess Tahira, the last princess of the small kingdom Avestan. Her planet, Ma’abtik, fell into a medieval dark age following the collapse of the Astral Empire after a long and bloody civil war. Now there is a new threat, an army wielding the weapons of warriors past, marching across Ma’abtik.

Tahira takes it upon herself to help her people escape, and leads a group of survivors away from her kingdom, which has been devastated by the remnants of the long-forgotten Astral Empire.

Whale Hammer Games are a small indie studio made up of Peter Castle and two other developers. The concept for Tahira came to Peter during his travels through the Middle East and South Asia. The core story revolves around Tahira herself, a princess that struggles with her own anxiety, which caused her to run away from her responsibiliites and kingdom. You’ll meet a wide cast of characters on your journey, and  learn about their past, as well as more of the world of Ma’abtik.

Consequent episodes will delve more deeply into her coming around and finally approaching the challenges set before her, namely leading the survivors of her kingdom across the medieval world of Ma’abtik. You’ll confront your enemies in turn-based tactical battles that consistently make you think carefully, and you’ll be able to strengthen your forces to match whatever playstyle you prefer.

Here are some of the key features of the first episode of Tahira:

• A character-driven story, in which you travel with and talk to a large cast that includes a swaggering mercenary power couple and a bitter exile wrapped in mystery and a cloak.
• Turn-based tactics battles that take place in a range of scenarios inspired by contemporary RTS games.
• A ruined world where sci-fi mixes with medieval fantasy
• An upgrade system that lets you customise your forces to fit your play-style
• Rotoscoped character animations
• An atmospheric score composed by Brendan Holyland

Whale Hammer Games have been working on Tahira: Echoes of the Astral Empire for over a year and a half, and they’ve got a Kickstarter planned for January of next year, alongside a Steam Greenlight campaign. The first episode of the saga is set to release later next year.