# Shadows of the Dungeon — Press Kit

ZART GAMES · PC (Windows) via Steam · Single player · Dark fantasy tactical dungeon crawler

Online version: https://zartgames.com/shadowsofthedungeon/presskit
Download bundle (logos, screenshots, key art): https://zartgames.com/shadowsofthedungeon/presskit/shadows-of-the-dungeon-press-kit.zip
Press contact: info@zartgames.com

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## Fact sheet

| Field | Value |
|---|---|
| Title | Shadows of the Dungeon |
| Developer | ZART GAMES |
| Publisher | Self-published |
| Genre | First-person tactical dungeon crawler, dark fantasy RPG |
| Platform | PC (Windows), via Steam |
| Players | Single player |
| Release | TBA |
| Price | TBA |
| Demo | Free playable prologue: coming soon publicly on Steam (two full dungeon levels, character creation, boss encounter) |
| Languages | English, Italian |
| Engine | Godot 4 (.NET), gameplay code in C# |
| Ruleset | Based on the SRD 5.2.1, compatible with 5.5e |
| Party | 4 heroes created at start, up to 6 active from the camp roster |
| Content | 9 species, 12 classes, point-buy character creation |
| Studio | Independent core team and external contributors, founded 2026 |
| Website | zartgames.com/shadowsofthedungeon |

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## Descriptions

### One line (21 words)

Shadows of the Dungeon is a first-person tactical dungeon crawler where four condemned prisoners fight their way out of the fortress built to bury them.

### Short (about 60 words)

Shadows of the Dungeon is a first-person tactical dungeon crawler for PC. Build a party of four, explore hand-built 3D dungeons step by step on a 90-degree grid or in free movement, and fight in real time or with optional tactical pause under a ruleset based on the SRD 5.2.1. Torches burn down, wounded monsters run for help, and resting where you stand is a gamble.

### Full (about 180 words)

Shadows of the Dungeon is a first-person tactical dungeon crawler built by ZART GAMES alongside a circle of specialized external contributors. Four prisoners are stripped of their names and thrown into the pits beneath Torment Keep, and the only way out is down.

Players create a starting party of four with point-buy character creation across 9 species and 12 classes, then descend into hand-built 3D dungeons of crypts, sewers and collapsed halls. Exploration can be played the classic way — step by step, locked 90-degree turns, mapping as you go — or in free first-person movement, switched at any moment. Combat runs in real time or through an optional tactical pause on the 5th-edition action economy: actions, bonus actions, reactions, Weapon Masteries, saving throws, spell slots, Metamagic and Wild Shape, all under a ruleset based on the SRD 5.2.1.

Light is a resource and torches burn out. Companions found in the depths join the camp roster, where trust and conversation open up between rests — and where sleeping in an occupied dungeon invites an ambush. A free playable prologue covering two full dungeon levels will soon be publicly available to download on Steam for all players.

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## Features

- **Two ways to walk a dungeon** — Classic grid movement with locked 90-degree turns, or free first-person movement with 360° free-look — switched on the fly, mid-corridor.
- **Real-time combat & tactical pause** — Actions, bonus actions, reactions and Weapon Masteries on weapon-speed timers. Fight in responsive real time or pause at any second to plan spells and coordinate the party.
- **Party of four, up to six in battle** — Point-buy creation across 9 species and 12 classes, companions rescued in the depths, and a three-rank marching order where frontline tanks protect casters from frontal assaults.
- **Light you can run out of & Automap** — Torches burn down, an in-game minimap and full interactive automap reveal the labyrinth step by step, and secret doors stay secret until somebody searches for them.
- **Hand-built 3D levels** — Modular crypts, sewers and halls with dynamic lighting, positional audio, wall levers, pressure plates and spike pits — no asset-pack dungeons.
- **Camp, rest, and the risk of it** — Recover hit points and spell slots at the fire, swap the active party, hear companions talk — and accept the odds of being ambushed in your sleep.
- **Survival on top of the sheet** — Hunger, exhaustion, carrying capacity, attunement, and conditions from poison to blindness that change how a fight goes.
- **Monsters that behave** — Patrol routes, lethal ambushes, flank attacks that punish an exposed rear rank, and wounded enemies that break and run for reinforcements.

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## Story premise

Torment Keep, Kingdom of Varnath, year 412 of the Calendar of Ashes. Famine and rebellion grip the realm, and order is kept with scapegoats. The accused — scoundrels, deserters, agitators, or simply the unlucky — are dragged in chains to the fortress and struck from the record.

Four of them are stripped of their names and dropped into the sewers beneath the keep. A portcullis slams shut. The torches die, and when the flames catch again they burn an unnatural cobalt blue.

> "Discarded children of the light, welcome to the real darkness. Do not seek redemption — you will find none. This is my chessboard, and you do not know the rules."
> — The voice in the dark, opening cinematic

These are not heroes on a noble quest. They are condemned prisoners trying to stay alive: map the depths, disarm what is meant to kill them, free whoever else is still down there, and work out who is running the labyrinth from the shadows.

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## About ZART GAMES

ZART GAMES is an independent game studio founded in 2026. The studio name stands for Zolt Anim Round Table — a table with no head, reflecting a collaborative philosophy where the core team works alongside a trusted circle of specialized external contributors. Its debut game, Shadows of the Dungeon, is a first-person tactical dungeon crawler built in Godot 4 and C#.

Everything in the game is made for the game: 3D environments, weapons and creatures modelled and rigged in Blender, interface and portraits finished in Photoshop, an original dark-ambient score and positional sound effects produced in-house, and a modular C# codebase covered by an automated headless test suite.

**Team**

- Manuel "Anim" Del Bono — Co-founder — design, art direction, marketing
- Alessandro "Zolt" Pacifico — Co-founder — development, systems integration, engineering
- External Contributors — Specialized collaboration across 3D art, concept art, audio, music, and localization

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## Contact & Links

- **Website**: https://zartgames.com/shadowsofthedungeon
- **Press & general contact**: info@zartgames.com
- **Discord**: https://discord.gg/z9av2uMfb
- **Steam**: Coming soon
- **Kickstarter**: Coming soon
