Cutthroat Kingdom

A story-driven pirate action RPG

Somebody poisoned the King.He's a parrot now.

Take a ship, find the poisoner, and decide what every pirate captain in the kingdom deserves. The King is coming with you. He has opinions.

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In development for Windows PC · Coming soon to Steam and itch.io

Set sail

Official trailer

See it in motion.

Cutthroat Kingdom — Official Trailer (1:30)
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The story

Long live the King. He's a parrot now.

  1. King Redbeard on his throne at the royal feast, his six captains standing round the tables

    One feast

    King Redbeard conquered Cutthroat Kingdom with six pirate captains. Then he stopped paying them, and invited them all to a feast.

  2. Green witch-fire flares round King Redbeard on his throne at the toast

    One cup

    Somebody poisoned his wine. Luckily, his witch had given him a ring that turns a murdered king into an animal instead. Unluckily, it worked.

  3. Hagatha the witch beside her cauldron of green witch-fire in her tower room

    One deal

    Hagatha can't change him back until someone finds out what was in that cup. You need a ship. The King needs a detective. He's coming along, disguised as your parrot.

Now find out who did it.

The suspects

Six captains. One cup. Somebody's lying.

All six were at the table. All six wanted their money. Each one is waiting for you on an island of their own.

  • for questioning

    Captain Tallow

    Wine merchant, tax collector, master of disguise. Only two of those are true.

    Last seen Barnacle Key, dressed as a barrel

  • for questioning

    Captain Marsh Spratelli

    Bought a whole village's debts to build the biggest seafood buffet in the kingdom on top of it.

    Last seen Greenmaw, with his mother

  • for questioning

    Captain Wade

    Hired a city of sea monkeys to build him a palace. Hasn't paid them a single banana.

    Last seen Kaminnow, insisting he isn't

  • for questioning

    Captain Nock

    Runs a floating prison. Keeps immaculate books.

    Last seen Gallows Water, behind bars (yours)

  • for questioning

    Captain Snell

    Poured the King's cup. Says anybody could have.

    Last seen Wherever something's free

  • for questioning

    Pyre of Cinderholm

    Holding a closing-down sale. Everything must go.

    Last seen Cinderholm, on the crater rim

Reward: one kingdom (negotiable)

The Sea Chart

The Scattered Isles

Every island is a chapter, and every chapter is a different kind of trouble. Follow the King's own sea chart from the harbour to the volcano.

The Sea Chart of the Scattered Isles, with the course between its islands

Choose an island to open its chapter. Five secret charts lead to five forts that aren't on this map. You'll have to find those yourself.

The castle square of Cutthroat Kingdom in the rain, with townsfolk waiting with jobs

Prologue & finale

Cutthroat Kingdom

Where it all starts.

The castle city on the harbour: the feast, the Pickled Parrot, a ship of your own, and a throne room that's waiting for you at the end.

Barnacle Key's market at night: bunting, a bonfire and a stall selling food that is 'totally unpoisoned'
The Smugglers' Gut's emporium: a red carpet leading to the Lucky Dip claw machine
Tallow's wine cellar: the Great Tun, carved with his own face

Chapter I · Cutthroat Harbour & Barnacle Key

Barnacle Key

Follow the wine.

The feast wine came in through the Smugglers' Gut, where Scarface Jack runs a shop in which everything is stolen and everything has a price, the bridges included. The trail leads on to Barnacle Key, where Captain Tallow is hiding in plain sight in some truly terrible disguises, leaking a trail of his own coins.

  • The Smugglers' Gut
  • Tallow's terrible disguises
  • The wine cellar
  • Your first rival at sea
Skull Rock on Greenmaw's treasure trail
A giant horned creature waiting at the back of a torchlit cave in Bartholomew's caves
Bartholomew's galleon in the lagoon cave, its deck heaped with treasure

Chapter II · Jungle, caves & a seafood empire

Greenmaw

There's gold in the jungle.

Marsh Spratelli has bought up a whole village's debts so he can build the biggest seafood buffet in the kingdom on top of it. The village kids, the Lagoonies, have gone up the island after a dead pirate's treasure to save their homes. Follow the biscuits.

  • The Lagoonies' treasure hunt
  • Skull Rock
  • Bartholomew's caves
  • The Flume
Kaminnow's booking deck on its stilts in the rain: ORDERS TAKEN
Otoh Monkey, the sea monkeys' city on the seabed, with its shops and lamps
Wade's palace hall: a red carpet across a chequered floor to a golden statue

Chapter III · Kaminnow & Otoh Monkey

Kaminnow

Under the sea, under budget.

On a storm-lashed platform on stilts, some very polite clerks mistake you for the Crown. Captain Wade would rather sink your ship than answer a single question. Down on the seabed, the sea monkeys he never paid have a city, a grudge and an army.

  • Wade's six platforms
  • Otoh Monkey, the sea monkeys' city
  • Wade's palace and arena
  • A new ship, from the seabed
Nock's patrol boats cut across the bow in Gallows Water, guns smoking

Chapter IV · Gallows Water & the Penitent

Gallows Water

Rob a prison. From the inside.

Captain Nock's patrols run you down, and you wake up in Cell 12 with no weapon, no kit and no parrot. You have one night to win a crew at the prison's own crooked gaming tables, and rob the place from the inside.

  • A one-night prison heist
  • Four crooked gaming tables
  • The evidence room
  • Magistrate Gavel
Green fire racing across Rimeback Bay at night
Red's army gathered round its fire in the snow below the Wall
Rimeback in the snow: braziers burning on two towers either side of a stone stair

Chapter V · Rimeback & the Glasshold

Rimeback

The kingdom goes to war.

The King declares war on whoever poisoned him, and the whole fleet sails north into the snow. The captains you spared fight beside you. The ones you didn't, don't. Hold the beach, march on the Wall, and break into a fortress made of ice.

  • The Battle at Rimeback Bay
  • The Brotherhood Without Blankets
  • The Battle for the Wall
  • The Glasshold
Slagport's street, plastered with posters for Pyre's closing-down auction: EVERYTHING MUST GO
Pyre's amphitheatre on Cinderholm's crater rim, set for the auction

Chapter VI · Cinderholm & the Kiln

Cinderholm

Everything must go.

A volcano, a closing-down auction and four wagons full of the King's own stolen gold. Stop the wagons, outbid everyone, and find out exactly what your choices have bought you.

  • The Gold Road
  • Pyre's closing-down auction
  • The Kiln
  • The Battle of the Crater

What's aboard

Sail it. Fight it. Live with it.

Take the helm

Take the helm

Sail between the islands yourself. Trade broadsides, ride out squalls and waterspouts, and board anything that's still afloat.

Hire your rivals

Hire your rivals

The three heroes you didn't pick are out there, captaining ships for the other side. Beat them on your own deck, then hire them, set them loose or walk them off the plank.

Dungeons with a sense of humour

Dungeons with a sense of humour

A smugglers' cistern run like a shop. A wine cellar guarded by a sabre-swinging sommelier. A whirlpool you have to jump into on purpose. Every dungeon has its own look, traps and puzzles.

Battles that remember you

Battles that remember you

Spare a captain and they turn up with their crew when the war starts. Hand them over, and they'll still turn up. On the other side.

Four heroes for hire

Pick your cutthroat.

Choose who you play. The other three are still out there, and you'll meet them at sea as rivals. Some of them are for hire.

Shade, Brand, Avery and Queen, the four heroes, side by side
Shade in a fight

The Rogue

Shade

Speed & dirty tricks

Fast daggers, throwing stars and a habit of vanishing. Happy to save the kingdom, as long as the kingdom pays.

Brand in a fight

The Swordsman

Brand

Might & melee

Sturdy, eager and as dry as a ship's biscuit. Swords, axes or a boarding spear: whatever ends the argument.

Avery in a fight

The Archer

Avery

Range & standards

A deadly shot with very high standards. Bows and crossbows keep the riff-raff at a respectable distance.

Queen in a fight

The Mage

Queen

Spells & attitude

Staff magic, fierce loyalty and no patience whatsoever. When the crowd closes in: "Not today!"

Red: King Redbeard, now a parrot

Red

Your parrot. Formerly the King.

Still thinks he's in charge, still expects to be paid first, and takes the credit for everything you do.

Pickle, a monkey wearing the King's crown

Pickle

A monkey. Currently the King.

Stole the crown and won't give it back. Throws bananas at Red whenever he gets the chance.

Your choices

Play it straight… …or play it cutthroat.

Every captain you catch ends up in your hands. What happens next is up to you, and the kingdom remembers.

A captain is at your mercy. What now?

The Ledger

Captain ________ awaiting your decision

Every ruthless choice goes in the Ledger. At the end, each page is stamped PAID IN FULL or CUTTHROAT, and your rank decides prices, who'll deal with you, who comes hunting for you and which endings are still open.

Your rank

  1. The Honest Fool
  2. Mostly Decent
  3. Fair Game
  4. Dread Pirate
  5. Scourge
  6. The Last Cutthroat

Restore the King. Steal the crown, fairly. Crown the bird. Or be the last cutthroat standing.

Brand, Shade, Avery and Queen on a lantern-lit pier under the Cutthroat Kingdom banner, with Red the parrot and Pickle the crowned monkey

Set sail

Your ship's waiting.

The King is getting impatient. He's been a parrot for days.

Subscribe on YouTube

Coming soon to Steam and itch.io

Before you set sail

Questions, answered.

What is Cutthroat Kingdom?

A story-driven, single-player pirate action RPG. The King has been poisoned and turned into a parrot; you sail six islands to find out who did it, fighting, plundering and deciding the fate of every pirate captain along the way.

When can I play it?

Cutthroat Kingdom is in development for Windows PC. The release date, price and store pages will be announced here, on YouTube and on our store pages as soon as they're ready.

Which platforms is it coming to?

Windows PC. Steam Deck, Linux, Mac and consoles have not been confirmed.

Is there multiplayer or co-op?

No. It's a single-player adventure: choose one of four heroes and meet the other three during the story.

Can I play with a controller?

Controller play is built in, including rebinding, but some menus and prompts are still being finished, so full controller support isn't confirmed yet.

Do my choices really change the ending?

Yes. Who you spare, who you hand over and what you keep for yourself all go in the Ledger, which decides your allies in the big battles, how the world treats you and which endings you can reach.

Is it voiced?

Yes. The story is told with a voiced cast and a narrator, in English.

What can I adjust?

Four difficulty levels; rebindable controls; interface and dialogue text size; brightness and screen shake; separate voice, music, effects and ambience volumes; and graphics settings including resolution scaling, shadows, mist and depth of field.

Is it suitable for younger players?

It hasn't been rated yet. Expect cartoon combat and a great deal of pirate mischief. Nobody swears.