Sumerian Six

Lore & Background

During the interwar period, a group of scientists discover a powerful substance called Geistoff, but one of their members, Hans Kammler, betrays them. In 1944, Sid Sterling attempts to rescue his sister, Isabella, from Kammler, who is now attempting to turn Geistoff into a doomsday weapon for the Nazis. Sumerian Six is a stealth-based real-time tactics game where players must avoid detection by enemies, using cones that indicate line of sight, the environment for cover, and hiding corpses. Different missions can unlock playable characters, each with special abilities: Isabella can briefly turn invisible, and Sid can possess enemies.

Artificer, a Polish studio, previously made Showgunners, a turn-based tactics game. In February 2024, Devolver Digital, their parent company, laid off 18 people at Artificer, with another 10 planned to be laid off after development completed. Devolver released Sumerian Six for Windows on September 2, 2024.

Reader's Guide

Sumerian Six received positive reviews on Metacritic. Eurogamer compared it to Shadow Tactics and Shadow Gambit, and though they encountered some bugs, they called it 'an inventive, richly conceived take on the genre'. Shacknews likened it to 'Indiana Jones [gone] sci-fi' with copious violence, finding the start rocky mostly due to what they felt was boring dialogue, but stating that the tactical aspects were very fun, especially when levels afforded players creative freedom. These levels, according to Shacknews, raised it above a clone of its influences. Despite some issues with the controls on a preview release, Hardcore Gamer praised the gameplay and characters. The game's significance lies in its inventive take on the stealth tactics genre, blending sci-fi elements with World War II history, and its ability to offer creative freedom in level design that distinguishes it from its influences.

Did You Know?

• Sumerian Six was developed by Artificer, a Polish studio that previously made Showgunners.
• The game's story involves a substance called Geistoff discovered during the interwar period.
• Isabella Sterling can briefly turn invisible, while Sid Sterling can possess enemies.
• Devolver Digital laid off 18 people at Artificer in February 2024, with 10 more planned after development.