Novaquark

Novaquark is a Paris-based video game development studio founded in 2014 by Jean-Christophe Baillie. The company's primary product is Dual Universe, a massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) set in a continuous, single-shard sci-fi universe. This proprietary "CSSC" technology allows all players to interact in the same world simultaneously, without separate servers or loading screens.

The central premise of Dual Universe is its player-driven nature. The game's environment is fully editable, built upon a voxel-based engine that allows players to build everything from vehicles and space stations to entire cities. The in-game economy, political systems, and warfare are emergent, shaped entirely by player actions and interactions rather than by non-player characters (NPCs). Players take on specialized roles such as miners, builders, traders, or pirates, contributing to a dynamic, player-created society. The business model for the main MMO was subscription-based. However, in July 2025, Novaquark announced the official MMO server would shut down on August 27, 2025. The game will continue through a standalone, player-hosted version called "myDU," which allows users to host their own private servers. The company is also exploring a potential open-source model for the game's client and server.

The concept for Dual Universe originated with Baillie in 2011, and Novaquark was formed with veterans from companies like Ubisoft and Sony. The project gained initial traction through a successful Kickstarter campaign in 2016, which demonstrated market interest to later investors. Over the years, Novaquark secured significant funding, including an $11.2 million round in 2019, bringing its total raised capital to over $22 million by that time. The game launched globally in September 2022 after a multi-year beta period. Despite its ambitious technology, the game received mixed reviews and struggled to maintain a large player base, which ultimately led to the closure of the official servers.

Keywords: single-shard MMO, sandbox game, player-driven economy, voxel-based building, sci-fi universe, emergent gameplay, space simulation, massively multiplayer, virtual economy, procedural generation, player-created content, CSSC technology, myDU, open source game, Jean-Christophe Baillie, Nouredine Abboud, Guillaume Gris, voxel engine, space exploration, player-run organizations, sandbox MMORPG, online community game.