alternate history · grimdark · political thriller · pandemic survival · geopolitical collapse · hearts of iron iv · dystopian · civil unrest · resource scarcity · 2020 setting
The air is thick with the acrid sting of burning rubber and the sterile scent of industrial-grade cleaner. In this timeline, the pandemic never loosened its grip—it evolved, intensified, and now the very atmosphere feels toxic. Riyadh is a battleground following a violent succession; American urban landscapes are graffitied with protest slogans and scorch marks from riots; the global financial system is a smoking crater. The old world is dead. You stand here, on the precipice of this global inferno, a citizen of a nation whose foundations are cracking. The flames are already here. The question isn't whether everything will burn—it's what you intend to do while it does.