Void Interactive is the latest video game studio to fall victim to a hacking incident.
As reported by Insider Gaming, while the studio has yet to confirm they were affected by a data breach, Insider Gaming received proof of the hack, being shown the contents of the hacked data themselves.
Over 4 TB of data was taken and it included the source code for Void Interactive’s tactical shooter, Ready or Not, as well as console builds and performance tests. They saw images of the game running on a PlayStation 4 test kit, as well as evidence for builds being made for Xbox One, Xbox Series X|S, and PlayStation 5. There appears to be no user information, or any personal staff information, that was compromised in the breach.
Insider Gaming has chosen not to identify the hacker group, and this may be for the best. It can be argued that identifying the hackers in the case of the Insomniac hack had bad consequences to its final outcome. Sony chose not to pay the ransom the hackers demanded, and subsequently a treasure trove of insider information about Insomniac Games, PlayStation, and the industry in general, would become public.
Ready or Not first got famous when it released on Early Access, all the way back in December 2021. It became the best-selling game upon that release, even though it was not on sale, and it came out in the middle of a Steam Winter sale.
The title is a tactical military shooter, similar to the SWAT series of video games. You play a member of a police tactical unit, tasked with taking on simulations of criminal cases that would require their intervention, such as drug busts.
Even back in its Early Access release, the game courted controversy, with criticism leveled at the tone by which Void Interactive handled their seriously thematic video game simulation. They negotiated, but ultimately failed, to get the title published by Team17.
While Ready or Not clearly still has a loyal, active fanbase, it’s also clear that it could have been elevated to a bigger title with a major publisher. Void Interactive’s work is not lacking in polish, especially its stellar graphics and much vaunted realism.
That may also be the very reason that Void Interactive was targeted by hackers. They’re not working with a big publisher now, but hackers may have sensed that the management at Void were particularly vulnerable to coercion.
Unfortunately, we may get confirmation of this hack if the hackers leak their data. We hope Void Interactive’s silence is because they are working with law enforcement, the same they portray in their game, and that they can bust these hackers soon.
