// About The Studio

Patriots Division is a game development company focused on creating next-generation digital experiences. Our flagship product is Shadow War, a competitive 5v5 hybrid action game fought by megacorporations in a near-future Earth. Our studio is globally distributed, composed of creatives from all regions, industries, and backgrounds, with a shared experience in game development and passion for innovation.

Patriots Division seeks to create world-class interactive products and intellectual properties that help define the next era of gaming. Through gripping stories, compelling characters, and creative ideas, we believe that by pushing the boundaries of our chosen medium can affect not only gaming but culture.

// Gameplay

Shadow War is a third-person 5v5 action title with heavy strategic elements and unique gameplay mechanics, rewarding both tactically minded and mechanically focused audiences. Players will be able to select from a roster of diverse and powerful characters (known as “Operatives”) and form a team with their allies to compete in intense five versus five matches.

// Operatives

Operatives are varied and fit into one of several roles. The first of these are the highly armored Vanguards, imposing tanks that protect their allies. Next is the Assault class, quick and versatile duelists that prefer melee combat. Players wishing to stay at a distance may find themselves opting for the Specialist class, while those who wish to assist and enable their team will be able to play the Tactical class. Finally, the Predator class will allow for on-demand target access and bursts of damage to finish off key roles.

// Abilities

Operatives have several abilities depending on the weapons they can use. Some operatives have both ranged and melee options, or abilities supplementing both playstyles. Creative players will find the best applications of each combat mode to achieve the best result. In Shadow War, the choice is yours.

// Modes

There are a multitude of maps and game modes available in Shadow War, featuring locations from all over the in-game universe. In one map, combatants will fight atop a corporate building in a futuristic New York City, a false front for a dangerous terrorist operation. In another, players will battle for supremacy in the Memetic Archive, a top-secret underground data vault hidden in the north.

A typical Shadow War match is 5v5 and fought for victory points, with the winning team at the end of each match having the most victory points. Average game times will range from 10-20 minutes, allowing for fast and fun games with low downtime.

// Competition

Competition is at the core of Shadow War. Featuring extensive systems to enable players to improve in skill, mentor new talent, and form guilds and clans, the game is set to engender and support the healthy competition of which game mechanics are so capable.

// Collectibles

Collectible items in the forms of digital skins, customizations, banners, icons, and even physical swag are a large focus of development. Personalization is a key focus, and by earning the best titles and accolades in-game, you’ll be able to flex your feats both in-game and in the real world.

// Introduction

In a not-so-distant future, the world stands at the precipice of a new era. Mankind’s technological progress has ushered in an age of stifled peace and suffocating prosperity. The slow process of globalization that started decades prior with the advent of Morgana, the world’s first superintelligence, was now nearly complete.

The superintelligence would, in short order, embed and ingrain itself into every facet of human life. It was not long before Morgana had achieved complete mastery over mankind. The AI understood that society was not ready to accept such a subservient role in the larger game, and thus, it took to hiding itself behind paid politicians, deep state actors, and other incentive systems to ensure it maintained a silent supremacy.

In the year 2040, a security council of the world’s leading intelligence organizations held a top-secret convent where details of Morgana and her existence were laid out to participants of the event. Rather than submit to the will of the superintelligence, the committee drafted up plans for an above-top-secret cell of shadow operatives that would serve as an emergency backup plan in the event of the AI becoming hostile to humanity.

These operatives would work independently of each other, and in pursuit of their own regional interests to avoid Morgana’s detection, under groups managed by those at the event. On the face of it, these groups would market themselves as mercenary PMCs and for-profit companies. In reality, they were training grounds for units that would work to rid the world of Morgana should the need ever arise.

// Surveilled

Morgana's eyes are everywhere in this world, and this makes it difficult to do anything which strays from her enigmatic machinations. Indeed, before fire teams can even set foot on a location, a number of measures must be taken against surveillance: Video feeds must be severed or hijacked; heat signatures must be masked; electromagnetic signals must be covered up and obfuscated. If any part of this is done incorrectly, then Morgana will swiftly dispatch Sentinels to "de-escalate" the conflict.

Morgana is especially attuned to the detection of contraband electronics, for she propagates across digital devices. Although sophisticated electronics provide such an extraordinary advantage, the amount of radiation they produce makes them appear to Morgana as a bright beacon in the darkness. Neither are the abilities of Ultras safe, for trained psionic manifestations produce large amounts of background radiation, and this, too, can represent a threat to her grand vision. Indeed, if one wished to be truly invisible to Morgana, there would be no choice except for simple mass-driving weapons and analog devices.

However, we live in an unpredictable world, and Morgana is forced to accept this fact. Often, anomalous readings are no more than sensor failures, natural events, or perhaps some cosmological phenomenon. To preserve resources, Morgana cannot investigate everything, and she will generally only invest resources towards long-lasting anomalies. This works to our advantage.

Thus, these are means of evading Morgana. . . Foremost, it is essential to never use the majority of modern microchips. Most modern chips come installed with her custom firmware, and are naturally-compromised. Only a few PMCs are capable of developing silicon with on-board security that prevents Morgana’s infiltration.

Secondly, radiation output must be carefully monitored and regulated. Special neural implants in all operatives help modulate their psionic output, and binary sensors on their electronic equipment keep radiation right around background levels. Finally, when high-output devices are totally necessary, counterfeit, stolen, or laundered microchips are used to verify the emissions. Unfortunately, these IDs can typically only be used once before attracting attention, and computing signatures in the systems that verify them takes some time, so operatives can only use such high-output weaponry quite rarely.

// Motives

Morgana's motives are arcane, and the only thing that we are certain of is that she is interested in hardware accumulation. Whether these are the hard-coded machinations of Sullivan or whether it is simply in her best interests, one cannot say. Either way, her behavior towards humans appears more custodial than domineering for now. She does not rule openly. Instead, she relies on a network of paid-off politicians and CEOs. Many of them are not even aware that they work for her, instead believing that they are performing the will of some mysterious shadow donors. It's unknowable if they would retain their loyalties if Morgana’s true nature comes to light.

The only instances when Morgana seems to assert force are times when we ourselves assert force. All combat dispatchments linked to Morgana have been in response to organic human conflict. Beyond that, she is content to let us manage ourselves. So long as she can quietly sign off on the construction of more factories, more asteroid mining initiatives, and more power plants, she cares little. Nor do most people. Nobody is going to figure out who in the bureaucracy signed off on that new industrial park. Maybe she demolishes a few cozy neighborhoods to do it, but that's just life. Many would think their lives are ultimately better under Morgana. She effectively ended all war, after all. We still have our own little conflicts, people still go hungry, people still go cold — but there hasn't been any conventional warfare in over ten years. We haven't even seen a significant uptick in insurgencies. The world is just more peaceful. Fewer shots are fired, fewer bombs are detonated, fewer lives are thrown into the meat grinder.

So why, then, do we go through all of this trouble? It's a mixture of things. For some, it's pure ambition. It's a fact of life that those on top are generally immune to governments, and Morgana is a threat to their lawless indulgence. As for the rest of us, it comes down to just one question: When? When will Morgana see humans as irrelevant? When will her ambitions become unsustainable? When will her grand plans necessitate that we be removed from the equation? As it stands, nearly every electronic device on Earth has her firmware on it, and each one is just one more tool at her disposal. There's a shadow war going on, and for a few of the players, it's just self-interest. For the rest of us, it's a fight for self-determination. A chance to reclaim human destiny.

A chance to decide the future for ourselves.

// Introduction

Dollars and cents only take you so far, and in a global economy that has largely evolved past conventional means of value transfer, fiat currencies simply aren’t suited for the task. With modern technologies, counterfeit bills are simply too easy to create, and artificial inflation by state and national governments only put the exclamation mark on the problem of traditional monies.

Digitally secure currencies are the bread and butter of value transfer in the modern world, with hardcoded supply limits and triple entry accounting. The most successful of these, used by the general populace are known simply as Credits, and they can purchase anything in any country, as it is a universally accepted currency. Their more clandestine counterpart is the Shadowcredit, used to barter and acquire all manner of illegal contraband and gear.

// Ranked Rewards

Shadowcredits are a virtual currency used in-game in order to acquire various cosmetic skins, base customizations, digital loot, and more. At the end of each ranked season, the top ranked players will split a set amount of Shadowcredits and get a distribution, just rewards for climbing up the ladder. This system incentivizes player skill and sustainable growth of the competitive scene.

// Sponsorship

Guilds in Shadow War will be able to use Shadowcredits and sponsor players from all over the world, taking an active stake in their sponsored member’s development and progression as they journey through the ranked competitive ladder. Sponsored players will be able to split the rewards of their achievements with their Guilds, further amplifying team spirit and camaraderie.

// Arena

Arena is where the most ardent individuals will be able to test their mettle. Purchasing entry tickets with Shadowcredits, players will enter into a series of matches, winning rewards based on their win record through the series. An arena ticket is not a random roll of the dice, but a calculated bet on your own player skill.

// What Shadowcredits Are Not

Shadowcredits are not pay-to-win, as one can only acquire cosmetics using SCR. Shadowcredits are not able to be earned via gambling, loot boxes, or other predatory mechanics. Finally, more casual players wishing to interact with the game exclusively need not ever interact with Shadowcredits.

// Objectives are Key

Victory in Shadow War is always achieved by securing some sort of non-combat objective – it is not a deathmatch. All of your violence is simply a means to an end. These objectives can range from holding points, to planting bombs, to capturing flags.

// Thematic at its Core

Thematics are an essential element of player clarity in any game. In Shadow War, our goal is to ensure that all gameplay-relevant elements – operatives, factions, and maps – have themes which clearly communicate their gameplay to the player. This not only assists players in finding their main, but also makes it easier to figure out what an unfamiliar operative might do.

// Melee is Inevitable

All operatives, whether they be armored samurai or agile netscouts carry some sort of melee weapon. Given that the game is won by objectives, and given that you must get close to an objective in order to score it, players will often find themselves in close proximity to their enemies. When they are close to their enemies, it is desirable that they engage in melee combat.

// Win as a Team

Shadow War is a team game. Whether you choose to queue by yourself or with your friends, it is necessary that you cooperate with your team to succeed. There are few to no snowball mechanics, and operatives are designed to serve a specific purpose on a team.

// Decentralizing Intellectual Property

In the modern era, typical methods of value storage become as ubiquitous as water in the rain. Money has no inherent value, and is merely the standard by which we judge the real currency– attention. It is the reason so many things are given for free in the digital world, why content is engineered for engagement, and why value transfer between games and the people who play them is experiencing an inversion. Customers no longer pay for things with their wallet–they do so with their attention.

In the spirit of this shift, the studio aims to make the game and property as free-moving and easy to engage with as possible. Here is our promise:

Shadow War will be free to play.

Shadow War will never implement P2W (Pay to Win) mechanics that make the difference between winning and losing based on money spent.

Finally, Shadow War’s intellectual property will be free for those who wish to engage and get creative with it. That includes books, comics, music, fan art, and everything in between. Creating commercial works will also be permitted and completely free up until your first million dollars of revenue (with a very low royalty after), to allow for bright and burgeoning talent and studios to engage with the community and world in a low cost way.

Ultimately this world is not ours, but yours. We made all of this for you.

// Going Shadow in the Metaverse

Rather than taking a top-down approach to defining the metaverse ourselves, we intend to create tools and infrastructure which are player oriented and support their wants and needs–through this process we will arrive at digital spaces defined by the very community that supports the game. While people can and will play this game as lone wolf types, the vast majority of players in Shadow War should be meeting new friends, creating rivalries with enemies, and all things in between.

// The Metaverse

Shadow War will feature various player owned spaces, chief among these being the various PMC organizations players will be able to spend time in. These will include all eight of the main factions, allowing players to find their favorites and tailor their play experience.

// Homebase

Personalization is at the heart of Shadow War. Featuring individual bases, players will be able to customize and outfit their homebase via Base Modules, truly making their home in the world of Shadow War. Players will have the ability to invite friends to their Homebase to hang out, compete in minigames, or show off their collection. Flex your loot!

// Guilds & Headquarters

Guilds will be fully implemented and integrated natively into the client and game, with features such as banners, flags, icons, and sponsorships that actively allow guilds to do what they do best–fostering talent and supporting up and coming players. Guilds will be able to choose a base, with guild leaders being able to customize various parts of their guild. Further, guests and visitors outside of the guild headquarters will be able to browse and visit permanently online spaces if desired.

// Platforms

As part of our plan to proliferate the game and IP to as many people as possible, we intend to build for a multi-platform release. At launch, Shadow War will support PC, current generation PlayStation and Xbox systems, as well as next-generation PlayStation and Xbox. Additionally, we are taking a large amount of care in ensuring that the game can run on modest systems, thus ensuring the greatest number of players can enjoy the game. It’s known that gamers in some of the most competitive regions (South Korea, for example) do not have cutting-edge hardware – thus we will accommodate and optimize for this experience as well. The game runs on Unreal Engine 5.

We intend to release the game on Steam, EGS (Epic Games Store) as well as directly on our website with our own launcher and client globally.