You may remember an earlier post in which we discussed new online world developer Mindfuse raising $1 million, and the fact that though the press release announcing the investment claimed that their first game has yet to be announced, but that with literally seconds of nosing around (by which we mean "visiting Mindfuse's website") you could find that their first title was to be the deeply intriguing Victorian-themed casual game Gatheryn.

Well, less than a month later they've decided to go the whole hog and announce it officially, with a release set for some time in 2009. The release details Gatheryn is "set in a fantasy world where steam powers everything from vehicles and mechanical monkeys to dirigibles meandering through the clouds," though it never specifically drops the "s-bomb" ("steampunk") in its description, instead intending to concentrate on the concept that the title "embodies the detailed Victorian aesthetic depicted by classic writers such as Jules Verne and Arthur Conan Doyle."

Players are to be able to personalize the experience with everything from character creation to decoration of in-game apartments, and will be able to play "some of the most beloved casual titles of all time" to advance the story and raise gold to purchase accessories, pets, vehicles and more. Whether that means more "re-skinned Bejeweled" we don’t know.

“With Gatheryn we’re creating a very accessible world appropriate for gamers looking for a mature and enjoyable pastime,” said Joseph Walters, CEO of MindFuse and Lead Designer on Gatheryn. “We’re very interested in the detailed aesthetics of the steam-powered genre, and our aim is to draw players into a romantic, vibrant world where story, community and puzzle-solving are the focus. Gatheryn provides an alternative to gamers who crave immersion and social interaction, but not the violence associated with similar games currently available.”