Smilegate is famous for such flagship franchises as Lost Ark (shown) and Crossfire. Absurd Ventures is an entertainment company founded by Houser, a renowned game producer who made the Grand Theft Auto series. Image courtesy of Smilegate
SEOUL, Aug. 7 (UPI) — South Korean game company Smilegate announced Thursday it would partner with Dan Houser’s Absurd Ventures to globally publish a new open-world, science-fiction action game, A Better Paradise.
Smilegate is famous for such flagship franchises as Crossfire and Lost Ark. Absurd Ventures is an entertainment company founded by Houser, a game producer who made the Grand Theft Auto series.
Smilegate noted that the upcoming video game is currently in early development directed by Houser and his team, including many long-time collaborators like Lazlow and Michael Unsworth.
Smilegate plans to fully support the project, providing development funds. The deal occurred after the Korean company made an equity investment in Absurd Ventures last year.
“This new game is an opportunity to go somewhere entirely different and to take players on an entirely new adventure,” Houser said in a statement.
Smilegate CEO Sung Joon-ho also expressed high hopes for the project.
“Through our partnership with Absurd, we will fully support the A Better Paradise game project and [will] do our utmost to help create a new title that will be loved by players around the world,” Sung said.
“Smilegate will leverage its extensive experience and success in global markets to ensure the project becomes a beloved success worldwide,” he said.
Created by Houser, A Better Paradise will be a fictional universe for stories that span multiple types of media like games books and movies.