The creators of The Mage’s Tale, inXile Entertainment, announced today that they’ve not only secured $4.5 million in funding from gumi Inc., but the investment is a combined total in the form of part equity in the company and part investment in the next VR game, which is based on an existing franchise. All we know about the game right now is that it’s an “open world survival RPG” VR game. This new game is not related to the new fully-funded Oculus game that’s in the works.

“We’ve had incredible feedback from our first [VR] game, The Mage’s Tale, and we want to continue to build on our experience and reputation. I’ve always been fascinated by the social dynamics of the open world survival genre and experiencing that in virtual reality will create powerful and terrifying moments. We’ll also be bringing our storytelling and RPG experience to the table to help enrich the genre,” said Brian Fargo, CEO, inXile Entertainment.

The Mage’s Tale has earned its reputation as one of the longest and most in-depth fully-featured VR games on the market so far. Since we know this new VR game is based on an existing franchise it could take place in that same universe again, but it would be even more exciting if it were a Wasteland VR game. The Wasteland series is one of inXile’s most popular and shares a lot of similarities to that of the Fallout franchise. Since we know this new game is open world with survival mechanics, it could certainly be the case.

Interestingly Fargo also mentions “social mechanics” and “powerful and terrifying moments” which reminds us of survival titles like ARK: Survival Evolved, H1Z1, and Rust — all of which certainly share thematic similarities to Wasteland. I’ve always been a proponent of those types of games getting more VR support. Fingers crossed that’s the IP they’re working on!

“Brian is a legend in the games industry, and inXile Entertainment has a track record for creating ground-breaking PC and console games that feel AAA in scope and size using their creativity, ingenuity, and ambition. Over the past year, they’ve brought in very talented and experienced members as they shift their strategy from single player to multiplayer online games as a service, and we look forward to seeing how they approach the space,” gumi Inc. CEO Hironao Kunimitsu, who is also now on the inXile Entertainment board. “Since breaking into VR, we believe they’ve already delivered the best VR RPG game to date with The Mage’s Tale. We’re honored to become a strategic investor and partner with inXile, and delighted for the opportunity to work together on the next VR title with such a masterfully skilled team.”

What do you think this new IP could be? Let us know your thoughts down in the comments below!

Update: Added some clarifications at the beginning.