NCsoft has made a “strategic equity investment” in Texas-based studio Empty Vessel.

The South Korean developer and publisher made the investment through its North American subsidiary, NC West.

It marks the beginning of a “long-term partnership” including the publishing rights for Empty Vessel’s upcoming first-person shooter title Defect.

“We’re excited to partner with NCsoft,” said Empty Vessel CEO and game director Emanuel Palalic. “From the start, they’ve understood our goal – not just to build a game, but to build a better environment for the developers behind it.

“NCsoft’s support and expertise will help us take Defect and Empty Vessel to the next level.”

NCsoft co-CEO Byung-moo Park added: “Empty Vessel is an AAA development studio established by game art and sound experts with successful experience and fandom in the global major genre of shooting games.

“We will continue to invest in securing new global IPs and building a genre-specific cluster pipeline.”

This announcement marks the latest investment from NCsoft. Last July, the firm funded Stockholm-based Moon Rover Games with a $3.5 million investment.

Empty Vessel was founded in March 2024 by former Naughty Dog, Id Software, and Activision developers.

Overseen by CEO and game director Palalic, the studio is led by COO and general manager Garrett Young.

It raised an initial seed funding round led by Sisu Game Ventures, in addition to Raptor Group, Bill Munk, and Dan Bunting.