Masquerada: Songs and Shadows by Witching Hour Studios from Singapore is a beautiful piece of art. In this isometric RPG you’ve been thrust into the deep and captivating world of the Masquerada. In the walls of the Venetian inspired city of Ombre, a storm is brewing. Civil war between the long upstanding oligarchy and the impoverished lowerclass threatens to breakout.

In the midst of this political upheaval, you’ve been tasked with a mission. You play as Cicero Gavar, a disgraced former detective that has been called back for a clandestine mission to uncover the truth behind the kidnapping of an important diplomat. As other members of the Masquerada join Cicero‘s’ investigation, all having their doubts about one another within this culture of deception, their faith will be pushed to the limit as a deeper conspiracy lurks in the shadows of Ombre.

You play in a party system where you can control characters with different skills. Cicero and his four companions each have their own classes, of which there are three distinct types: the roguish Sicario, the monolithic Pavisierre, and the bardic Dirge. Each of Cicero’s companions specializes in one of these stances in combination with a specific element, while Cicero himself is able to choose his own element and swap between the stances at will.

Each character has four skills, with the first three being basic skills and the fourth being an ultimate attack that requires a long cooldown. Combat is dealt with in real-time but you can pause the action to queue up your heroes’ special moves. The difficulty curve is initially quite steep, but the game becomes plenty of fun once you find your rhythm.

Where the game shines the brightest has to be in its storytelling and professional-grade voice talent. Masquerada is a fully voiced tale with an amazing voice cast. Including Felicia Day (Dragon Age, Fallout), Dave Fennoy (The Walking Dead), Matthew Mercer (Fire Emblem, Overwatch),  Jennifer Hale (no introduction needed) and just about everyone else.

Masquerada: Songs and Shadows is out on PC, Mac and PS4 .

Recent update: The game has been released on Xbox One.