Nexon brings team-based shooter Ghost in the Shell Online to the West before worldwide launch

This ghost didn’t die.

South Korean free-to-play game publisher Nexon announced that its upcoming licensed title Ghost in the Shell Online will debut in the West first before launching worldwide. While initial testing is taking place in South Korea, Neople confirms that the online first-person shooter will debut in the U.S., Europe, Latin America, and Australia later this year. This is good news for patient series fans as the game was initially announced back in 2012. This move is yet another effort from Nexon to strengthen its position in the Western online games business, a market that is expected to hit $30 billion by 2017.

This game is based on the hit Japanese franchise of the same name, and more specifically on anime series Ghost in the Shell: Stand Alone Complex. The studio behind this television animation, Production I.G., have supported Neople on the game’s creation, making sure it gets the franchise’s science fiction setting just right.

Ghost in the Shell Online was originally slated for a 2014 release, but both Nexon and Neople have been silent on release details until now. Aside from the 2015 timeframe for the Western release, no specific dates or details were given.