SKT-Distributed 'Neovers' Becomes First Korean Indie Game to Launch on Xbox

Neoverse Game Title

[Asia Economy Reporter Seulgina Cho] A domestic indie game distributed by SK Telecom has made its first entry into Microsoft (MS)’s ‘Xbox’.

On the 21st, SK Telecom announced that it has released ‘Neoverse,’ a card action game by domestic game company Tino Games, on Xbox consoles and cloud gaming. As a result, Xbox users can now purchase and download Neoverse from the online store. More than 15 million Xbox Game Pass users worldwide can also enjoy Neoverse.

Before Neoverse, there were two Korean games included in Xbox Game Pass: Pearl Abyss’s Black Desert and PUBG’s Battlegrounds. Neoverse is the third and the first from a domestic indie game company. Tino Games, consisting of four employees, has focused on developing Neoverse for the past three years. Neoverse is a turn-based strategy game where gamers select unique characters to engage in battles, strategically complete their skills, and achieve victory. Players combine hundreds of cards and skills to devise strategies and enjoy battles against monsters.

SK Telecom plans to discover about three domestic games next year and introduce them to the global market through Xbox. The three titles are Action Square’s ‘Project GR (tentative),’ Sunnyside Up’s ‘Little Witch in the Forest,’ and Alive’s ‘Vapor World.’ Except for Action Square, the other two companies are also indie game developers. This collaboration between domestic indie game companies and SK Telecom is evaluated as a ‘win-win’ model because large corporations can supplement the lacking marketing and planning capabilities of small and medium-sized game developers.

Jae-yu Cho, head of games at SK Telecom, said, “Although Korea is the world’s fourth-largest gaming powerhouse, it is only now knocking on the door of the Xbox platform,” adding, “We plan to accelerate global expansion using Xbox by expanding cooperation with competitive domestic game companies.”

SK Telecom and MS are providing a subscription-based monthly service called ‘Xbox Game Pass Ultimate,’ one of the Xbox Game Pass options, based on cloud technology (SK Telecom 5GX Cloud Game). Users can enjoy about 140 games on mobile and about 270 games on consoles.

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