Magework Studios proudly presents Nightmare - an open world MMORPG set in the mystical lands of Sylvenus.

Early Access will come to Steam October 18th. Official launch is anticipated for Christmas, 2019.

Nightmare is a free-to-play title, without zone or quest restrictions, and is currently available for Windows, Mac, & Linux OS.



An Open World
Explore a vast, open landscape rich in lore and history. The lands of Sylvenus are inhabited by various races and creatures that call it home. There are towns & villages filled with interesting characters, and dungeons waiting to be discovered.

A State Of The Art Engine
Navigate through a completely seamless world with ZERO load times. Nightmare is built on a custom engine written in C# (Similar to Unity) & can easily host thousands of players on a single server.

An overview of the world:


We will add more continents as time goes on. For now, the mainland of Sylvenus offers content up to level 45. 


Travel anywhere you like. Adventure and treasures await.


Cities and towns can be found throughout the realm.


There are tons of locations to explore.


Nightmare has a fluid, easy-to-use interface for an enjoyable role-playing experience.

Choose From 9 Playable Classes
When you create your character, you get to choose from 9 available classes. Each one has it's own magic skills, strengths and weaknesses. The classes are as follows:

• Paladin -  The tank with an edge. Able to attack multiple enemies at once, heal allies, and defend against the strongest opponents.
• Monk -  A formidable tank, and damage dealer. The Monk uses his senses to avoid danger, and boost his natural regeneration.
• Bard -  The singer of songs. Bards use their instruments and voice to both harm and heal.
• Berzerker -  The quick-tempered damage dealer. The Berzerker can throw axes at opponents, trap enemies in nets, and boost their strength by going into an adrenaline fury.
• Ranger -  A friend of the forest, the ranger makes use of bows to take out his opponent from long range. Equipped with incredible damage output and reasonable speed, they are hard to tame.
• Assassin -  The swift and stealthy attacker. The Assassin makes use of two weapons to deal precise and deadly hits.
• Spellblade -  The Spellblade channels the magic of Sylvenus into their blades. Masters of direct damage.
• Sorceror -  The bringer of storms. The Sorceror can harnass the power of the natural world to unleash powerful spells on their opponent. Excels in control and area damage.
• Trickster -  The trickster uses all sorts of gimmicks to trap, stun, and bewilder their foes. They are unmatched in the ability to control enemies.

A Paladin wearing plate armor

Level Up Your Character
As you defeat enemies your character will increase in level. A higher level means you can wield better weapons, wear better armors, and utilize more powerful magic skills.

Magic Skills are skills your character can learn as they progress in the game.

You also get stat points each time you level up to increase the stats for your character. The stat types are as follows:

• Power - Increase physical damage
• Defense - Increase physical defense
• Magic - Increase magic skill damage
• Magic Defense - Increase magic skill defense
• Speed - Increase attack & movement speed

Using a Magic Skill on a player

Collect Resources & Craft

On your travels you'll find resources such as trees, ores, and silk. Equip the appropriate tool, and you can acquire them. Enemies sometimes drop hides as well. Once you have obtained resources, you can then use them to craft valuables like weapons and armor.



Chopping down a Maple tree

Go On Epic Quests

Discover engaging quests, complete with in-depth lore, throughout the world of Sylvenus. Slay a dragon, rescue a princess, or join the Thieves Guild. While Nightmare does have a main story-line, we give you the freedom to choose your quests.



Getting a quest from King Ratticus in the central city of Odium

Equip More Powerful Gear

Whether you're slaying monsters, raiding dungeons, or just making friends you're sure to come across clothing, weapons, and accessories in your travels. You can wear this type of gear on your character. The 8 available gear slots are:

• Main - Swords, Maces, Axes, Staffs, and more
• Off-hand - Shields & Books
• Head - Helmets, Hats, & Masks
• Torso - Leather Armor, Plate Armor, Tunics, Robes, Jumpsuits, and more
• Feet - Boots, Sandals, & Shoes
• Neck - Amulets, Necklaces, & Brooches
• Finger - Rings, Bands, & Signets
• Back - Cloaks, Capes, Wings, and more

A Sorceror putting on gear

Discover Special Items

Like great RPG games of the past, Nightmare has Special Items that will interact with the world in a way most items cannot. Examples include:

• Grapple Hook - Used to reach otherwise impassable areas.
• Bomb Launcher - Blow up rocks that are blocking your path.
• Freeze Wand - Turn a lake into a sliding, icy floor.
• Ember Torch - Light a fire basin, so you can see in the dark.

Using a Grapple Hook to get across a river

Go On A Shopping Spree

Shops can be found in various cities and towns of Sylvenus. From Blacksmiths to Traders hiding out in caves. If the price is right, you can purchase the best items they have in stock.



Buying weapons from the Weaponsmith

Nightmare also has a color coded rarity system. Items you buy in a shop may or may not be as rare as ones you retrieve from difficult bosses, for example. An items rarity will also determine it's strength.

Item Rarity & Colors:

• Common - White
• Uncommon - Gold
• Rare - Blue
• Epic - Red
• Legendary - Purple

Take On Challenging Bosses
Bosses found in caves and dungeons have a chance to drop rare loot after they have been slain. But, they are not easy to kill. Sometimes you will want to party with friends to take them down.



Encountering a Meteor Parasite in Meteor Valley

Solve Complex Puzzles

Nightmare game-play isn't just about killing monsters endlessly. Dungeon exploring incorporates interesting mechanics like activating switches to unlock doors, lighting fire basins to see in the dark, and elaborate puzzles one must solve to advance.



A switch in Transylvania Mansion

Play Mini-Games

Mini-Games can be found throughout the world, giving your character a break from the every day routine of slaying beasts and rescuing damsels.



Playing "Pick A Chest" at the Carnival

Engage In Night-time Player vs Player

Nightmare has a persistent day & night cycle. When the clock strikes twelve, players can transform into a werewolf and participate in PvP (Player vs Player). Werewolves have their own unique magic skills & strengths.

There are two PvP leader boards in Sylvenus: 

• The King & Queen leader board for humans
• The Alpha Wolf leader board for werewolves

Players receive prizes for reaching 1st, 2nd and 3rd rank. More prizes are unlocked by staying 1st for consecutive days.

If you want to opt out of PvP you can. Safe zones, such as towns & werewolf dens, allow the player to avoid being attacked by other players and monsters at night. Houses are also safe from PvP.

Players may fully customize their Werewolf form by utilizing cosmetics and fur dyes.



A Werewolf & Human do battle



Long ago, in a faraway realm, there lived an ancient race known as the Dracons. Winged, scaled creatures who have ruled the heavens from time immemorial.

The Dracons were masters of magic and extraordinary scholars. They dwelt in peace, and prospered in their homelands, until one day a great war break out between them. 

Two powerful Dracon, Tiamat & Apsu, rebelled against the leaders of their realm and led a resistance against them. In a war that lasted millions of years, ultimately the resistance was defeated. Afterwards, Tiamat & Apsu were cast to the earth - exiled from their homelands for eternity.

Here, in the lands now known as Sylvenus, Tiamat & Apsu gave birth to more Dracons and they ruled over the known world; being more powerful than the Elves, Dwarves, and Orcs that also call these lands their home.

There was an elven wizard named Marduk, who dwelt in the deep, dark forests of Sylvenus. When he saw the size of the Dracons, and the magic they possessed, he decided to pay them tribute.

He went to the edge of the known world, and waving his magical rod over some clay near a shoreline, he magically formed the first humans. Then he tied them together with a rope, and brought them before Tiamat & Apsu as a sacrifice.

They were pleased with Marduk's offering, but had no desire to eat human flesh. So, instead, they made the humans their servants. The Dracons also took wives from among the humans, who would give birth to giant creatures with supernatural powers. These creatures would eventually be revered as the gods of Sylvenus, and become the kings and queens of the land.

One day Marduk, in his loneliness, decided to create a female companion. After forming her from clay, he named her The Oracle, and gave her with the ability to call on the gods at will. She would live to serve Tiamat & Apsu, and spread their message throughout the world - "Serve Mother & Father, or perish".

For millions of years the humans have served the Dracons, and their divine offspring. Mining gold for their palaces, offering them food and wine, and serving in their temples. The humans, however, got very little in return for their labor. So one day the humans revolted against the gods. They went into their sacred temples, their pyramids, and their castles and began protesting.

Tiamat, hearing all the noise, woke up from her slumber and in a fit of rage summoned a meteor from the sky. When the meteor hit the ground, a plague in the form of a dark shadow washed over the lands. So devastating was this plague, that to this day it is known as the Great Darkness.

It was during this time that a group of rebels formed an alliance, calling themselves Brave Blood. Led by Skar, a former soldier in the royal court, their mission was to destroy the gods at all costs.

The rebels clad themselves in their best weapons and armor. They traveled far and wide through caves, forest, jungle and desert slaying every god they encountered. Until at last they arrived at Tiamat's watery abyss. There they fought her into the night; only to collapse to the ground from exhaustion.

It was then that The Oracle emerged from a portal and spoke to the brave warriors:

"Mother & Father are displeased with your lives. You have failed to serve the gods of this world, and so now you must suffer the consequences. From this day forward, when the moon shines bright in the night sky, you will turn into werewolves and all who gaze upon you will want to take your life."

Ever since that time, the humans have been at war with the werewolves. And the werewolves have sought vengeance with the gods.

Join our community

Kickstarter: https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/mageworkstudios/nightmare-a-retro-mmorpg
Website: https://mageworkstudios.itch.io/nightmare
Discord: www.discordapp.com/invite/VU7KRjF

We also live stream development work live now at www.twitch.tv/mageworkstudios