NCSoft makes strategic equity investment in FPS studio Emptyvessel

South Korean publisher and developer NCSoft completed a strategic equity investment in the Austin, Texas-based development studio, Emptyvessel.

Founded by veteran developers from Activision, Disney, id Software, Microsoft, and Naughty Dog, Emptyvessel is a triple-A game studio currently developing the cyberpunk squad-based, tactical shooter Defect on Unreal Engine 5.

The studio unveiled its YouTube reveal trailer in 2024, quickly amassing 1.9 million views.

Emptyvessel’s team has collectively worked on several global hits including first-person shooters (FPS) and action-adventure games such as DOOM, Quake, Call of Duty, The Last of Us, Borderlands, Tomb Raider, and Uncharted.

“We started working on Defect with a simple belief, that great games come from focused, passionate teams who are empowered to take creative risks,” said Emptyvessel Game Director Emanuel Palalic. “That’s why we’re excited to partner with NCSoft. From the start, they’ve understood our goal, not just to build a ...