Dungeon Crawler Carl meets The Finals in this wild new FPS

Like or Die is an upcoming FPS game from Korean developer NC, revealed for the first time during Gamescom 2026’s Opening Night Live showcase. My first thought was that it looks a lot like Embark Studios’ The Finals — from the environmental destruction and the abilities on show, such as zip lines and jump pads, to the fact players explode into pixelated cubes. It certainly wears its inspiration on its sleeve, that’s for sure.

Another similarity is that in The Finals, you’re fighting in an arena on behalf of sponsors, with a colossal audience watching from afar. Meanwhile, the premise of Like or Die is that you’re streaming your matches, with the goal of getting the most likes on a platform known as Quaya. Also watching the stream are potential sponsors. The more appreciation you get for your gameplay, the more gifts you may receive from these sponsors.

At Gamescom, I was shown a video of Like or Die behind closed doors. This delved deeper into the game’s mechanics, but it notably ended with a zoom-out shot of a black hole in space. Of course, I had to ask about that, so I spoke with Kim Hwan, the head of IP at NC.

“In this alternate universe of Seoul, it’s not just humans watching the stream,” Hwan explained. “It’s all kinds of creatures and aliens, and [the black hole] was the representation of the galaxy watching the stream. Space creatures are traveling and keeping an eye on the game.”

So, to all intents and purposes, it’s akin to the premise of Dungeon Crawler Carl. Countless entities across the universe are watching you try to survive, and the better you do, the more rewards you’ll reap. That said, there are no plans to visualize these creatures in-game.

Like or Die also has an AI disclaimer on its Steam page, stating that “generative AI tools were utilized for auxiliary purposes in the production of some assets,” but “these assets were modified and supplemented by professional art personnel and were finally applied to the game.” It has no confirmed release date, but the team is aiming for a “closed test before the end of the year.”