Grasshopper Manufacture has officially launched the Steam page for Romeo Is a Dead Man, the studio’s first entirely new project in several years. Known for its distinctive blend of eccentric storytelling and hyper-violent gameplay, the developer is returning with a bold action-adventure that promises to push its creative style further into science fiction territory.
The game follows Romeo Stargazer, a man suspended between life and death who is resurrected through advanced technology and recruited by the FBI’s Space-Time Police. The central conflict emerges from a catastrophic event that fractures the universe, forcing Romeo to adopt the mysterious Deadgear mask as he pursues cosmic criminals and searches for his missing girlfriend Juliet. The disappearance of Juliet appears deeply tied to the unraveling of space-time itself, providing a personal layer to the overarching apocalyptic narrative.
Gameplay centers around brutal third-person combat, with Romeo switching seamlessly between swords and firearms. According to Grasshopper, the mechanics aim to deliver “a new kind of bloody action.” Players can absorb enemy blood to activate the devastating “Bloody Summer” attack, while weapons evolve through upgrades and modifications as the story progresses. Missions are structured across multiple chapters, each offering both core objectives and optional side content to encourage varied play styles.
The Steam listing highlights the game’s mature themes, including nudity, sexual content, violence, and gore. Despite the scale of its vision, the system requirements are surprisingly modest for a 2026 release. Minimum specifications call for Windows 10, an Intel Core i5-8400 processor, 16GB of RAM, and an NVIDIA GeForce GTX 1060 graphics card. No release date has been confirmed.
Directed by Ren Yamazaki and co-written with studio founder Goichi Suda, Romeo Is a Dead Man represents a return to original IP development for Grasshopper Manufacture following years of other projects. It is currently planned for PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X/S, and PC.
