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Press release:

Istanbul, Türkiye – February 26, 2026 – Metaphor Games and Shoreline Games have today announced today that dice-based narrative RPG Celestial Return will launch on PC via Steam on May 7, 2026. Revealed as part of IGN Fan Fest, the new trailer showcases more of the choice-based and dice-driven gameplay that awaits players later this year.

In Celestial Return, players will step into the well-worn loafers of Detective Howard, and, armed with a pocket full of dice, a sentient smart-mouthed rose, and a rusty badge, they’ll take to the neon-washed streets of the Lovecraft-influenced Netherveil City to solve a string of mysterious, grisly murders. Not all is as it seems though – corpses won’t stay dead, secrets won’t stay buried, and the corruption oozing from Netherveil is set to blow.

Expanding the world of Celestial Return beyond its digital landscape, Metaphor Games has also released the first in a series of Webtoon comics that delve deeper into the seedy underbelly of Netherveil City, showcasing the stunning hand-drawn art used in game, that blends the iconic precision of manga with the raw nerve of American comics to create something wholly new. New comics will be released periodically in the run-up to launch, each showcasing a fragment of the story leading up to the start of Celestial Return.

For players wanting to take to the blood soaked streets of Netherveil City, there is a demo currently available on Steam that showcases around 45 minutes of the narrative driven adventure, just a taste of what awaits at launch in May.

Celestial Return Key Features:

Doomed Gameplay Loop: Earn and spend your dice while leveling up your own personality, to gain the edge needed to survive conversational combat. It’s sometimes violent, but always desperate.

Simple Currency: Dice aren’t just tools. They’re oxygen. Earn ’em, spend ’em, lose ’em. Hoard them too long, and opportunities vanish. Roll recklessly, and resources burn.

Welcome the Crossroads: Discover a vast sci-fi story, rich with twists, turns, mind-bending crossroads, and a branching narrative fully shaped by your decisions.

Sounds & Visuals to Bleed For: Immerse yourself in a completely hand-drawn world where manga’s precision meets the raw nerve of American comics

Choices Matter: Your choices are the weapons and your mind the battlefield. Decide the outcome with each small step. Just remember: Intelligence picks locks in silence. Virtue pleads for mercy. Foolishness laughs at the abyss.

To follow along for news and updates for Celestial Return, join the community on X (Twitter), Instagram, TikTok, and subscribe on YouTube.

About Shoreline Games
Shoreline Games is an independent publisher focusing on unique, eye-catching narrative-driven games developed by talented studios worldwide. Their catalog of indie titles ranges from the academia inspired Sanatorium: A Mental Asylum Simulator, to the wicked roguelike deck builder Dice of Arcana, and most recently, Cyberpunk-Noir Narrative RPG Celestial Return. For more information, please visit www.shorelinegames.com.

About Metaphor Games
Metaphor Games is the digital gaming partner of Metis Creative. While Metis continues its work in the TTRPG space, Metaphor Games is a dedicated studio for channeling that same expertise in narrative and world-building to digital experiences. Metaphor Games sees games as a unified art form, where visuals, writing, and music fuse into one living whole. This philosophy is at the heart of Celestial Return, their first digital title and a true passion project. Learn more at https://www.metaphorgames.com