Stålenhag 's most personal work yet, Swedish Machines explores masculinity, friendship, and sexuality in a queer science fiction tale about two young men stuck in the past – and in each other’s orbit. Their story spans decades, as fleeting moments become defining memories, and they set out to explore a mysterious forbidden zone together.
Set in his native Sweden and based in an alternate version of Mälaröarna outside of Stockholm, where he grew up and still lives today, Swedish Machines juxtaposes giant futuristic machines and vehicles against the inner turmoil of the characters facing a social dystopia.
The Kickstarter campaign for Swedish Machines concludes on September 5 at 3 PM EDT / 9 PM CEST.
PRESS CONTACTS
James Robinson and Ian E. Muller
ÜberStrategist, Inc.
freeleague@uberstrategist.com
Free League at PAX West
Free League is bringing our game line-up to PAX West in Seattle this coming weekend. Find us at booth #4213.
To keep up to date with Free League Publishing, be sure to follow us on X, Facebook, Instagram, and YouTube, and visit their official website at freeleaguepublishing.com.
About Simon Stålenhag
Simon Stålenhag (b. 1984) is the internationally acclaimed author and artist behind Tales From the Loop, Things From the Flood, The Electric State, and The Labyrinth. His highly imaginative images and stories depicting illusive sci-fi phenomena in mundane, hyper-realistic Scandinavian and American landscapes have made Stålenhag one of the most sought-after visual storytellers in the world.
Tales From the Loop was ranked one of the 10 Best Dystopias by The Guardian, along with such works as Franz Kafka’s The Trial and Andrew Niccol’s Gattaca. The narrative art book was turned into a multiple award-winning tabletop roleplaying game and a board game by Free League. In 2019, his book The Electric State was shortlisted for the Arthur C. Clarke Award and the Locus Award. A film adaptation of The Electric State, directed by Anthony and Joe Russo, will soon be released on Netflix. His first book, Tales From the Loop, was adapted into a TV show on Amazon Prime in 2020.
Free League Publishing is a game studio and publisher dedicated to speculative fiction based in Stockholm, Sweden. Voted Fan Favorite Publisher at the ENNIES in 2020, 2021 and 2023, Free League has published a wide range of award-winning tabletop roleplaying games and acclaimed art books set in strange and wondrous worlds.
Our upcoming releases include The Electric State Roleplaying Game based on the acclaimed narrative art book by Simon Stålenhag and The One Ring™ RPG: Moria™ – Through the Doors of Durin and The Lord of the Rings™ Roleplaying 5E: Moria – Shadow of Khazad-dûm™ based on the works by J.R.R Tolkien.
Our game portfolio includes the acclaimed fantasy RPG Dragonbane, the official Blade Runner RPG (winner of two Gold ENNIE Awards 2023), The One Ring™ RPG (Gold ENNIE winner 2022), the official ALIEN RPG (Gold ENNIE for Best Game 2020), the Gothic horror game Vaesen (winner of three ENNIE Awards 2021), the pitch-black fantasy RPG MÖRK BORG (winner of four ENNIE Awards 2020) and its two spin-offs CY_BORG and PIRATE BORG, the alternate '80s Tales from the Loop (winner of five ENNIE Awards 2017, including Best Game), the retro-fantasy Forbidden Lands (winner of four ENNIE Awards 2019), the postapocalyptic Mutant: Year Zero (Silver ENNIE for Best Rules 2015), the science fiction games Coriolis - The Third Horizon (Judge's Spotlight Award 2017) and Death in Space, the dark fantasy game Symbaroum, the weird-fantasy game Into the Odd Remastered, the new edition of the RPG classic Twilight: 2000 (Judges Award for Best RPG at UK Games Expo 2022), and the official The Walking Dead Universe RPG.
We have also published the art books Tales From the Loop, Things From the Flood, The Electric State, and The Labyrinth by the acclaimed visual storyteller Simon Stålenhag, as well as the illustrated editions of the Lovecraft classics The Call of Cthulhu, At the Mountains of Madness, and The Dunwich Horror by the praised artist François Baranger.