Escape From Tarkov has been Battlestate Video games’ life for nearly a decade now. From bringing the primary recreation to Steam, lastly launching model 1.0, and releasing its PvP-focused spinoff EFT Area, Battlestate has poured every little thing it has into Tarkov and its group. Whereas there’s nonetheless ongoing assist and DLC deliberate for the extraction shooter, it seems that the studio’s head honcho, Nikita Buyanov, is teasing one thing new. Because of the elaborate nature of the cryptic teasers he is been posting not too long ago, and a newly found web site teeing up an area sci-fi universe, it appears like we may very well be getting a primary glimpse at an all-new recreation. Thrilling stuff. Nevertheless, there’s a likelihood we could also be left disillusioned.
For the final week or so, Buyanov has been incessantly posting unusual riddles, puzzles, and cyphers to his X account. Initially, I and plenty of others suspected it may very well be pointing to an easter egg in Escape From Tarkov, or a touch at some upcoming content material for the FPS recreation. Nevertheless, it turned clear that this was about one thing far larger (and weirder) than that. Then yesterday, Tuesday January 13, he reposted a picture from an uncommon account referred to as ‘CORE Corp,’ and instantly the floodgates opened. This picture featured an internet tackle, cor3.gg, which is internet hosting tons of details about a brand new sci-fi universe.
While you first go to the web site, you are met with a web page telling you that the 12 months is 2251. “200 years in the past, humanity was in a position to stand on the brink of darkness, survive, and reverse mutual whole destruction,” the web page reads. “The group that secretly proclaimed itself because the Core was in a position to collect the remnants of every little thing human and switch again the tide of destruction, by convincing and uniting the governments of the world.”
You’ll be able to then proceed to an interactive scene that appears to throw you into some form of workshop or bunker. You’ll be able to hover your cursor over gadgets to see their names and descriptions, resembling an armor plate vest referred to as the Darkhound Oppressor Modular Platecarrier, which is made by a “legendary firm identified all through the photo voltaic system.” You additionally see gear tied to a “colonial” group referred to as CCS. This appears to tee up a world with at the least two or three massive companies working throughout presumably our personal photo voltaic system, which is giving me Outer Worlds and Starfield vibes for certain.
On the centre of the scene is a CORIE terminal, with CORIE standing for Company Interspace Surroundings. Strolling as much as it permits you to get entry to masses extra info. By inputting your e-mail tackle, you may then be despatched a one-time passcode that offers you a person ID to open up the terminal’s information. Now, once I tried to do that, I by no means obtained my code, so there is likely to be a difficulty with sending these out in the meanwhile. Nevertheless, loads of others have gotten in and rummaged by means of all the information buried inside.
Insider Gaming’s Grant ‘Nukov’ Taylor-Hill is one such sleuth, and he is produced a useful video showcasing all the knowledge which you’ll be able to take a look at beneath. Information embody mission logs and studies from numerous dates over the 200-year interval described firstly. One file additionally seems to disclose that your character is a “non-public investigator” for a gaggle generally known as Historical past Unfolded. You additionally participate in a dialog with a lady referred to as Aurana Strogova, who has employed you to undergo paperwork and extract essential info.
The terminal additionally seems to offer you a brand new job to finish each day, with credit and day by day bonuses awarded to you for each you tick off. So it clearly desires you to maintain coming again and uncover extra info progressively.
So, is that this teeing up a grand sci-fi universe for a model new Battlestate recreation? Perhaps. The quantity of effort that is gone into this makes me suppose it genuinely may very well be, however there are a few different avenues. First, whereas there are at the moment no concrete indicators that that is a part of the identical timeline and universe as Escape From Tarkov, this might find yourself being some eccentric narrative train to indicate what occurs to humanity a whole lot of years after the occasions of EFT.
The second, and doubtlessly extra troubling state of affairs, is that this is not a recreation in any respect and is getting used to drum up curiosity for some form of cryptocurrency. Sure, this might have some crypto ties. Buyanov truly filed a trademark for Cor3 again in 2024, and you may nonetheless view it on the USPTO web site proper now. Nevertheless, should you look beneath the Items and Companies part, which pertains to the supposed makes use of of the product you are trademarking, nearly all of makes use of relate to cryptocurrency. One use case does point out “offering on-line pc video games,” however that is the one factor pointing in the direction of it being tied to something gaming associated.
That is an uncommon state of affairs, as I can not see Buyanov whipping up this a lot hype for one thing and making it appear and feel like a tease for a brand new recreation, solely to then reveal that it is some form of crypto platform or foreign money. I might like to see this turn out to be a planet-hopping shooter the place it’s important to pledge an allegiance to one of many many companies and factions which might be talked about within the terminal’s information, however till we hear formally from Buyanov and Battlestate about what it’s, we are able to solely speculate for now.
