Seismic Squirrel today released the fifth behind-the-scenes developer diary for Aether & Iron, offering players a closer look at how the team defined the game’s distinctive visual style. Titled “Creating the Visual Identity of the Game”, the video features Tyler Whitney, Narrative Lead at Seismic Squirrel, as he walks through the artistic journey that shaped the look and feel of the studio’s upcoming narrative-driven RPG.
In the episode, Whitney explains how the team started with a foundation of 1930s New York and a noir tone, but explored several visual directions before landing on the final look. Early concepts leaned more heavily into steampunk influences, with sci-fi elements, robots, and a more stylized, anime-inspired character design. As the project evolved, the team shifted toward a more grounded, alternate-history aesthetic, drawing inspiration from classic illustration and pulp comics. The result is a distinctive visual style that balances grit with a bold, modern edge – helping define Aether & Iron’s unique decopunk noir identity.
Aether & Iron launches on Steam on March 31, 2026, featuring full English voice acting and text localization support for English, Spanish (Spain & Latin America), French, German, Polish, Russian, Brazilian Portuguese, and Simplified Chinese – Play the demo and wishlist Aether & Iron now on Steam!
About Aether & Iron:
Set in an alternate 1930s New York transformed into a vertical city by the discovery of “aether”, a key component to newfound anti-gravitational technology, Aether & Iron follows Gia, a smuggler navigating crime syndicates, political conspiracies, and fragile alliances. Players shape Gia’s story through meaningful decisions, with every choice influencing relationships, outcomes and the fate of the city itself. The game features writing talent with credits on Mass Effect, Far Cry, and Sovereign Syndicate, with an original score composed by two-time Grammy Award winner Christopher Tin and Grammy nominee Alex Williamson, best known for their work on the Civilization series.
