In a stunning pivot from the gritty, post-Soviet extraction shooter that defined a generation, Nikita Buyanov, the visionary behind Escape from Tarkov, has unveiled the first teaser for COR3, a haunting sci-fi FPS plunging players into a devastated future on Mars. Dropped just yesterday amid massive online buzz, the trailer’s eerie visuals and cryptic lore have ignited speculation that this could be Buyanov’s boldest project yet, blending high-stakes shooting with interstellar apocalypse.
The cinematic trailer opens on a lone soldier navigating the skeletal ruins of a futuristic cityscape amid Mars’ crimson dunes, the camera pulling back to unveil orbiting carnage: shattered spaceships, frozen astronaut corpses drifting in zero gravity and a solitary space station standing vigil over the chaos.
A fleeting first-person clip hints at boots-on-the-ground combat in this forsaken world, setting the stage for what promises to be an immersive, atmospheric shooter. Complementing the footage is cor3.gg, an interactive retro-futuristic site doubling as an ARG (alternate reality game). Visitors “log in” to uncover lore fragments: It’s the year 2251, two centuries after humanity teetered on mutual annihilation. A shadowy group called “The Core” rallied survivors, forged alliances among fractured governments, and sparked a fragile revival, only for new cataclysms to strike.
At the helm is Nikita Buyanov, the Russian polymath who founded Battlestate Games in 2012 and has worn nearly every hat on Escape from Tarkov: game director, composer of its brooding soundtrack, and relentless updater through a decade of early access. Under his leadership, Battlestate transformed Tarkov from a 2017 closed beta curiosity into a streaming juggernaut, peaking with millions of Twitch hours and a full 1.0 release on November 15, 2025. Tarkov’s hardcore realism – realistic ballistics, permadeath raids, and brutal economy – forged a fiercely loyal community, often topping charts for concurrent viewers and inspiring copycats like Hunt: Showdown. It’s no exaggeration to call it a cornerstone of modern multiplayer gaming, with players still grinding its 2026 roadmap of new maps and mechanics like door-breaching gunplay.
While Battlestate hasn’t stamped COR3 with an official logo on their site, the project’s deep ties to Buyanov (via his personal teases and the unmistakable quality) point to his direct involvement, possibly as a passion project or new venture under the studio’s umbrella.
Fans are dissecting every frame for Tarkov-esque extraction elements: scavenging wrecks, high-risk space walks, or faction wars amid the debris. Platforms remain unconfirmed, but cor3.gg’s PC optimization and Buyanov’s track record scream Windows-first, likely via standalone launcher or Steam like its predecessor, no console whispers yet.
As the first major reveal post-Tarkov’s launch, COR3 signals Buyanov’s evolution from urban hellscapes to cosmic desolation, potentially rivaling the intensity that made Tarkov a phenomenon. Sign up at cor3.gg for lore drops, and keep eyes peeled, whatever horrors await on that blue-tinged Mars, Nikita’s delivering them unfiltered.