When it comes to intriguing conflict, there's nothing quite like an age-old rivalry motivated by revenge. The Hatfields fought the McCoys, the Montagues couldn't get along with the Capulets, and now, developer Fatshark (Lead and Gold) has announced War of the Roses, a new game that will take players back to 15th century England and have them choose sides in the historical conflict between two rival branches of the House of Plantagenet--the House of Lancaster and the House of York--as they battle for ownership of the throne.

The game will focus on team-based multiplayer combat from a third-person perspective, and while that isn't exactly a gameplay rarity these days, War of the Roses looks to infuse some newness by taking a medieval and melee-focused approach. Broad swords and battle axes, anyone? (Melee-focus aside, it's worth noting that the time period in question was one that saw the introduction of gunpowder.)

Despite the focus on team-based multiplayer, War of the Roses will include a story-driven single-player campaign as well, which will provide direct rewards for players to use in multiplayer battles. Persistent character progression in multiplayer is also in the mix, promising that players can rise through the ranks "from filthy peasant to unstoppable armored killing machine."

The initial release of War of the Roses will be PC-only, and it's not entirely clear at this point whether or not other platforms are being considered. This could have something to do with Fatshark's desire to facilitate battles with large numbers of participants. "The game will support as many players as we can possibly support," notes the press release. "Because it is in the early stages of development, we can't say exact numbers as yet, but it will be a lot!"