Webzen Reports Operating Profit of 51.8 Billion KRW Last Year, Down 24.8% Year-on-Year

Release Targets for the First Half of the Year: 'R2 Mobile' and 'Mu Ignition 2'

[Asia Economy Reporter Jin-gyu Lee] Webzen announced on the 7th that its operating profit last year was 51.8 billion KRW, a decrease of 24.8% compared to the previous year.

Last year's sales amounted to 176.1 billion KRW, down 19.6% from the previous year, and net profit was 42.2 billion KRW, a decrease of 15.9%. Webzen explained, "Domestic sales declined due to the poor performance of new games released in Korea last year, but the diversification strategy in overseas markets in the second half of the year yielded results, offsetting the decline."

Webzen plans to achieve steady performance growth and business expansion both domestically and internationally, starting with the domestic release of the directly developed 'R2 Mobile (tentative name)' this year. R2 Mobile is a mobile game based on Webzen's PC game 'R2.' To properly implement the original content and fun, the core developers of R2 are directly leading the project. The game is being developed with the goal of unveiling and releasing it in the first half of this year.

They have also started direct development of strategy games (SLG) and collection-type games with high market potential both domestically and internationally. These genres have been under development since last year, and information about these games will be disclosed to the market after the second half of the year.

Overseas sales, which surpassed domestic sales last year and helped defend overall revenue, will continue to grow by diversifying release and business regions this year.

Webzen's 'MU' intellectual property (IP) business is expanding its scope both domestically and internationally. Webzen plans to release the web game 'MU Ignition 2,' which was announced for domestic release in the first half of the year, and is reviewing the schedule to release the new mobile game 'MU Archangel' domestically as early as the first half of the year. MU Archangel is a spin-off of the MU series, which includes the currently released PC game 'MU Online' and mobile games 'MU Origin 1 and 2.'

They have secured a collection-type game favored by Japanese gamers and are coordinating the schedule for entry into the Japanese market in the second half of the year. The game, currently in development under the tentative title 'Project A,' is a collection-type action role-playing game (RPG) with a vast scenario, animation, and action direction comparable to console games. A leading Japanese sound company has been involved from the early stages of game production, aiming for success in Japan, where demand for collection-type games is high. Webzen plans to release Project A first in Japan and separately finalize the service schedule for Korea and global markets before disclosing game information.

Kim Tae-young, CEO of Webzen, said, "This year, the domestic and international game markets are expected to undergo more rapid changes and fierce competition than ever before in terms of game technology and market environment," adding, "From a business perspective, we will establish a solid growth foundation by securing game development and service technologies and releasing the new titles we have invested in."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.