Fallen London is an open-world, free-to-play browser RPG. It's a text based web of stories that has been weaving for nearly fifteen years with no signs of stopping!
I've been playing this game for almost four years now. Though I take some breaks from it, everytime I return it invades and engulfs my brain like a mirror-dream of snakes. Try as I might, I can never forget about it. It lies dormant in my brain, and I always return.
Visit my character by clicking on the picture above. If you already play the game or wish to start, drop me a calling card and I'll be happy to help with any social interactions or patronage.
Forty years ago, London was stolen by bats. Who were they? Where did they come from? On whose orders did they act, and what did they want with the city? All these answers can be found, as long as you are willing to look for them.
Currently, the former capital of the British Empire finds itself in 1899 (for the third year running - don't think too hard about it), in a large underground cave populated with devils, squidpeople, talking animals, and at the mercy of the Bazaar and her emmissaries. While technically not rulers of London, they do control every inch of the city's commerce, with a particular interest in romance and love stories. Most people never interact directly with these creatures, calling themselves the Masters, but certain notable residents might be able to worm a little closer to their circle. It is generally agreed upon, however, not to invoke their wrath, unless one is very mighty or has a great many mighty firends.
Forty years on from The Great Sink, Londoners have managed to go about almost as normal. The Empress and her family never leave the palace, but otherwise life goes on. The Church, struggling somewhat with the new proximity to Hell and its residents, is still involved in London's affairs. Sure the maps are wrong and clocks can no longer be trusted, but people have always made do. They open black skeleton markets, study the strange laws of reality that govern their new home, and find ways to entertain themselves. Whether that be the dreaming honeydens of Veilgarden or the illegal deathfight rings of Watchmaker's Hill is up to you.
Death is not as permanent as it once was, and can be escaped through a few games of chess with the Boatman. However, this comes at a price. Residents of Fallen London and the surrounding areas - called the Neath - can never see the sun again, dying quick and permanently if they do. London was not the first city of the Neath and, alarmingly, it may not be the last. But the Neath is much vaster than the city of the stolen river, even if most adventurers that set out to see it never return.
I'll be honest, this game is a fucking beast. After four years playing there's still so much I have yet to uncover, so many mysteries still to unravel. There's next to no actual gameplay, some truly repetitive girinding at points, and a lot of reading. So you might be asking yourself, why the hell do I play this so ardently, let alone try and convince others to join me?
For starters, as a native Londoner with a deep affinity for the Victorian aesthetic and the darker side of fantasy, this game could have been tailor made for me. It has some of the deepest, richest lore I've ever encountered, and the further you get the more you realise you have left to discover. The community, while pretty small, is so friendly and the wiki is a gift from the gods.
The sheer wealth of options mean there really is a story there for everyone. Political intruige? Slutting around? Stealing? Murder? Slowly destroying everything you have worked for to uncover a secret that means almost nothing to anyone else? All that and more!
The actions mechanic of the game mean it is super easy to dip in and out, and because it's a browser game it's also very good for procrastination at work of while studying lol. In short, you have nothing to lose, and a tantilising new obsession to gain. Come and join me. It's marvellous down here.
Fallen London still has a dock, except instead of leading to the continent and Atlantic it faces the Zee, a pitch black lake roughly the size of Europe, filled with vicious monsters, strange islands, and their curious inhabitants.
Click the ship to explore the zee...
