Lie to futuristic billionaires so you can steal their stuff in Pentiment and Pratchett-inspired Better Than Us
My husband died in a horrible toilet accident. Also, I’m distantly related to Ronald Reagan and spend summers in an underwater chateau. These aren’t just very true facts about the author of this article, they’re things you can tell the reprehensible billionaires of the future in Better Than Us. It’s the latest work of Vampire Therapist developers Little Bat Games, and it’s set to arrive in 2026.
As you can see in the trailer above, Better Than Us casts you as a master thief whose goal is to infiltrate the swanky parties of the year 2200’s richest bastards and manipulate them into looking the other way as you swipe some of their stuff. There’s some stealthing, but as you might expect of a game that lists The Count of Monte Cristo, Pentiment, and the works of Terry Pratchett as prominently among its inspirations as Thief: The Dark Project, your words will be your most formidable weapon.
Lying is key, but you’ve got to do it properly. “Tell different stories to different people,” the game’s blurb reads. “Remember who you told what. Build a web of deception so intricate that even the powerful can’t see through it. But slip up once—contradict yourself, forget a detail—and everything unravels.”
For all its setting in futuristic floating cities built to save their wealthy inhabitants from the climate change-ravaged Earth below, Little Bat Games make clear that this isn’t a cartoonish flight of fancy. Better Than Us’ Steam description reveals that it’s been “developed in consultation with historians from Oxford, UC Davis, and the University of Florida”. The game “deals heavily with issues of extreme wealth inequality and faith. It explores philosophical underpinnings of class oppression, effects of climate change on underprivileged populations, and refugees. It also addresses sexual and gender issues, artificial intelligence, and faith in historical contexts”.
“Looking to the past is a helpful way of examining modern issues,” Little Bat creative director and voice actor Cyrus Nemati says of the studio’s approach. “Not only is the historical record inspiring, but dead people are less able to sue small game studios.” He and fellow Hades 2 alum Sarah Grayson – the pair voiced Ares and Selene respectively – lead Better Than Us’ cast.
As someone who loves a good bit of stealth and weaving wordly webs in the likes of Pentiment, if Little Bat can strike that balance in entertaining fashion while offering plenty of freedom in the way you go about prying the possessions from a set of faithfully-rendered fat cats, I can see myself having a ball with this one.
For now, Better Than Us has a 2026 release window and you can wishlist it on Steam, if you’re so inclined. You can also check out former RPSer Alice B’s verdict on and interview about Little Bat’s previous work, Vampire Therapist.