Fourteen Years of Flames, a story-driven first-person shooter from Chinese developer and publisher Fenghu Studio (烽火工作室), appeared on Steam on December 4, 2025 with a reveal trailer showcasing a grounded historical FPS covering China’s struggle during the Second Sino-Japanese War from 1931 to 1945. Players embody 7 key characters across 16 authentic battles recreated from actual historical events, experiencing a conflict that killed between 20 and 25 million Chinese civilians and soldiers but rarely appears in video games. The game has no announced release date beyond coming soon, with mature content warnings for violence. The reveal generated immediate interest on Reddit’s Games forum, with commenters noting that outside the grand strategy genre, there are basically zero games examining this theater of World War II despite its massive human cost and historical significance.
Why This War Matters
The Second Sino-Japanese War began with the Mukden Incident on September 18, 1931, when Japanese forces invaded Manchuria, and escalated into full-scale conflict after the Marco Polo Bridge Incident on July 7, 1937. The war merged into the broader Pacific Theater of World War II after Japan attacked Pearl Harbor in December 1941, continuing until Japan’s surrender in August 1945. The fourteen-year timeframe gives the game its title and reflects how Chinese historians view the conflict as beginning in 1931 rather than 1937, providing more recognition for the role of northeast China in the War of Resistance.
Unlike Japan, China was unprepared for total war and had little military-industrial strength, no mechanized divisions, and few armoured forces when full-scale invasion began in 1937. Within the first year, Japanese forces captured most major Chinese cities including Beijing, Tianjin, Shanghai, and Nanjing. The Battle of Shanghai alone lasted over three months with Japan committing over 300,000 troops, and Chinese forces suffering approximately 250,000 casualties. The fall of Nanjing in December 1937 led to the Nanjing Massacre, where Japanese troops perpetrated mass executions and tens of thousands of rapes, killing an estimated 200,000 to 300,000 Chinese civilians and prisoners of war.
The Representation Gap
Western World War II games overwhelmingly focus on the European Theater (D-Day, Battle of the Bulge, Stalingrad) or the Pacific Island campaigns (Iwo Jima, Guadalcanal, Okinawa) where American, British, and Soviet forces fought. The Second Sino-Japanese War, despite its massive scale and horrific civilian casualties, is virtually absent from the FPS genre. Call of Duty, Battlefield, Medal of Honor, and other blockbuster franchises have produced dozens of games covering European battles repeatedly while ignoring the Chinese theater entirely.
Grand strategy games like Hearts of Iron IV include the Second Sino-Japanese War as part of their comprehensive World War II simulations, but those games appeal to niche audiences who enjoy managing economics, logistics, and diplomacy rather than experiencing combat firsthand. Fourteen Years of Flames represents one of the first attempts to bring this conflict to the mainstream FPS audience with story-driven narrative gameplay comparable to Call of Duty campaigns or Battlefield’s War Stories mode. The decision to create an authentic, grounded shooter rather than sensationalized action suggests the developers are taking the subject matter seriously.
The 7 Characters and 16 Battles
While specific details remain scarce pending more information from the developer, Fourteen Years of Flames promises players will embody 7 key characters across 16 authentic battles spanning 1931 to 1945. This structure suggests the game will cover major engagements including the defense of Shanghai, the Battle of Taierzhuang (China’s first major victory), the defense of Changsha, and potentially guerrilla operations by communist forces in northern China. Each character likely represents different military units, regions, or perspectives within the Chinese resistance against Japanese invasion.
The authentic battles claim indicates Fenghu Studio researched historical records, veteran accounts, and battlefield geography to recreate these conflicts accurately rather than inventing fictional scenarios loosely based on the war. This documentary-style approach to historical FPS design has precedent in games like Battlefield 1’s War Stories and the later Call of Duty: WWII campaign, which attempted more grounded portrayals of historical battles compared to earlier arcade-style entries. Whether Fourteen Years of Flames achieves similar production values remains to be seen, but the ambition to cover fourteen years of conflict through sixteen missions suggests significant scope.
Why Chinese Developers Are Making This
Chinese game developers have obvious cultural and historical motivations to tell stories about Chinese resistance during World War II that Western studios ignore. The Second Sino-Japanese War occupies central importance in modern Chinese national identity and education, comparable to how Americans view the Revolutionary War or British view the Battle of Britain. Creating games about this conflict allows Chinese developers to celebrate national heroism, commemorate sacrifice, and educate younger generations who know the history primarily through textbooks rather than lived experience.
The domestic Chinese gaming market is enormous, with over 700 million players generating more revenue than any other country. A historical FPS covering the War of Resistance Against Japan has built-in audience appeal that Western publishers chasing international sales can’t replicate. Fourteen Years of Flames launching with Chinese and English descriptions on Steam suggests Fenghu Studio hopes to reach both domestic and international audiences, introducing global players to battles and perspectives they’ve never encountered in AAA World War II games.
Technical and Release Details
The Steam page lists Fenghu Studio as both developer and publisher, indicating this is an independent production without major publisher backing. The game supports Windows only with 64-bit architecture required and mature content descriptors for general violence. No release date has been announced beyond the vague coming soon designation, and no pricing information is available yet. The Steam page includes social media links to Bilibili, Douyin (Chinese TikTok), and YouTube, showing the developer is building communities across Chinese and international platforms simultaneously.
The reveal trailer’s production values appear modest but competent, suggesting a mid-budget indie project rather than AAA spectacle. This positions Fourteen Years of Flames somewhere between asset-flip shovelware and blockbuster franchise entries, likely comparable to games like 1971 Project Helios or other small-studio historical shooters. Whether the final product can execute on its ambitious premise of covering fourteen years of warfare through compelling gameplay and storytelling will determine if this becomes a cult classic historical shooter or a forgotten footnote.
FAQs
What is Fourteen Years of Flames?
Fourteen Years of Flames is a story-driven first-person shooter developed by Chinese studio Fenghu Studio covering the Second Sino-Japanese War from 1931 to 1945. Players embody 7 key characters across 16 authentic historical battles.
When does Fourteen Years of Flames release?
The game has no announced release date. The Steam page lists it as coming soon with a reveal trailer published December 4, 2025. No pricing information is available yet.
What is the Second Sino-Japanese War?
The Second Sino-Japanese War (1931-1945) was a conflict between China and Japan that began with Japan’s invasion of Manchuria and escalated into full-scale war in 1937. It killed 20-25 million Chinese civilians and soldiers, making it one of World War II’s deadliest theaters.
Why are there so few games about this war?
Western developers focus on European and Pacific Island campaigns where American and British forces fought, ignoring the Chinese theater. Grand strategy games include it, but Fourteen Years of Flames is one of the first FPS games covering these battles.
Who is developing Fourteen Years of Flames?
Fenghu Studio (烽火工作室), a Chinese independent developer and self-publisher, is creating the game. They have social media presence on Bilibili, Douyin, and YouTube but limited public information about their team size or previous projects.
What platforms is Fourteen Years of Flames on?
The game is announced for Windows PC via Steam only. No console versions have been announced, and the Steam page indicates 64-bit architecture is required.
Is Fourteen Years of Flames historically accurate?
The developers claim to recreate 16 authentic battles from the Second Sino-Japanese War, suggesting historical research and accuracy are priorities. How faithfully the game portrays events won’t be clear until release.
Conclusion
Fourteen Years of Flames represents a significant attempt to fill a massive representation gap in historical war games. The Second Sino-Japanese War killed more people than the entire European Theater east of Germany, yet Western gamers know almost nothing about it because Call of Duty and Battlefield never bothered telling those stories. Whether Fenghu Studio has the resources and talent to execute an ambitious fourteen-year narrative spanning sixteen battles remains uncertain, but the fact that someone is finally trying deserves recognition. Chinese developers have both cultural motivation and market incentive to create games about their own history rather than waiting for Western studios to care, and Fourteen Years of Flames could inspire more projects exploring underrepresented conflicts. At minimum, it will introduce international audiences to battles they’ve never heard of, and at best, it could become the definitive FPS covering this forgotten theater of World War II. We won’t know which until the game actually releases, but the reveal trailer generated enough interest to suggest there’s appetite for something beyond the hundredth D-Day landing.