Merchants of Rosewall makes you the shopkeeper in an ever-changing high fantasy world

There are so many games out there that they start to look alike at times. However, once in a blue moon, a game hits your radar that wants to break the mold a little. Merchants of Rosewall is looking to take the “be the NPC” trope and create an entire multiplayer game around the concept.

There are countless games out there that let you set up a shop, customize the look of it, and figure out what you want to sell. But, one thing that you don’t see too often is the ability to help also shape the entire economy of a multiplayer game as a player. We got to check out the game a little early and listen to a preview before the game was officially announced, hosted by the game’s director, Kevin Hovdestad.

Merchants of Rosewall is trying to be something new and different.

Merchants of Rosewall, set in a high fantasy realm unlike your everyday Lord of the Rings or Warcraft, offers a world of opportunity to make your own business that other people may need to utilize. 

Merchants of Rosewall Developer Big Blue Sky Games is a small 15- to 16-person team, dedicated to inclusivity and being an all-around great studio to work with. They work remotely to allow any of their teammates to work where they want, no matter where they are, which is really helpful with their LGBTQAI+ staff. This inclusivity also plays well into the actual gameplay of Merchants of Rosewall, which we’ll get into a little more later.

Like most tycoon games, Merchants of Rosewall centers around hiring artisans for your business from an array of character archetypes to make different types of goods and products. Interestingly, you have the offline side of the game that focuses on visual novel-esque gameplay and offers resources for those looking to build up their business.

But, then, you take the game onto multiplayer where your goods may be a necessity for other business owners. If you’re looking to specialize, you may make yourself even more useful for those who need a lot of a specific item or ingredient.

Your shop, your vision, your economy

You can have up to six wings in your shop, each dedicated to a different craft or need. But, you get to customize how your shop looks, down to the details, as well as hire specific people for specific jobs.

Merchants of Rosewall goes even deeper, though. The weather may impact your business, how you can obtain resources, and so on. They have a career meteorologist on the team who offers thoughts on the science behind the weather itself. For instance, how can the weather affect things like crop growth or prices of ingredients? 

Big Blue Sky Games has come up with a robust economy that works online with other people. Every item in the game, no matter if it’s a raw ingredient or a fully crafted product, is given a dynamic price based on the supply and demand at that moment. For instance, if the climate is affecting it, it may go up or down.

One concern we had when we first learned about it is that people may try to game the market. But, Merchants of Rosewall’s director, Kevin Hovdestad, assured that there are constraints at play to keep people from doing that. He didn’t elaborate on what the constraints were, but he explained that items will never be priced beyond playability, even when things are so fluid due to weather or other people.

Hovdestad went further and detailed that they brought in real-world economists and statisticians, and even they couldn’t break the game. So, maybe they have a good system in place.

Companions and artisans make the world go round

As mentioned, there will be plenty of companions to hire to work for your shop. They range from a vast assortment of options, all with different skills and attributes. Tied directly into how the economy works, you may want specific artisans or masons for doing specific types of work. You may have recipes and decide to make your shop entirely focused on that.

But, it’s about diversifying as well. You may focus on having a chef but also want to have a mason doing work in a separate wing to be able to pay to keep your main business going. 

Your companions gain levels, which can eventually be capped, at launch at least. Each companion has a branching skill tree, which will help them be more proficient in their skills. Through pure willpower of playing, you can eventually unlock every companion and recipe, but that may take quite a while to do.

In addition, you get to customize your own character in Merchants of Rosewall as well. Hovdestad explained that he tried to do the math out and found that the options allow for millions of variations, so no two player characters are likely to be identical.

The world of Merchants of Rosewall is incredibly unique.

Big Blue Sky Games has set out to design a game around their own experiences but with a twist. They looked at how high fantasy is always about war and falls into the same type of setting over and over. Instead, they offer a setting focusing more on everyday life instead of constant warring peoples. You’re likely to still see orcs, dwarves, elves, and so on, but unlike the usual tropes you’d find in Dungeons and Dragons. 

They wanted to bring more inclusivity to Merchants of Rosewall, offering concept art of a lesbian couple made up of a giant and a gnome, for instance, who can be seen in the trailer together. The people of Rosewall have genuine feelings, emotions, and concerns about the world (such as climate change), making the world feel lived in and more realistic. 

I asked Hovdestad how magic works in Merchants of Rosewall since it is high fantasy after all. He explained that magic isn’t the usual wizards or fireballs of other games. Magic is more elemental, such as offering the ability to have electricity or shelf-stable foods. Since the elements themselves are invested in the safety of the world, it’s not focused on warring tribes or getting better at fighting to raid dungeons.

When can you get Merchants of Rosewall?

Merchants of Rosewall doesn’t have a release date as of yet. But, you can watch the official announcement trailer. Once it comes out, the game will launch at a fixed price. They do plan to offer free content updates at the least, with the possibility of paid DLC at some point. 

Check out our interview with the game director for Merchants of Rosewall, Kevin Hovdestad, about what to expect from the game.

If you’re into fantasy games, Potions: A Curious Tale is set to come out this week. We also interviewed the game’s developer, Renee Gittins, who went into detail about her game.