"Big Hit If It Explodes" Game Companies Eyeing Dramas and Movies (Comprehensive)

Domestic game companies are enthusiastically expanding into content businesses such as dramas, movies, and webtoons. They are increasingly crossing over from game business models to grow their intellectual property (IP) and actively attempting to leap into comprehensive entertainment companies.

Com2uS Ambitious About ‘Content’

According to the game industry on the 25th, Com2uS is one of the most proactive companies in expanding its content business. On this day, Com2uS announced that it would acquire management rights of the media content company ‘WYSIWYG Studios.’ Com2uS invested 160.7 billion KRW to acquire 11.27 million common shares of WYSIWYG. Following the acquisition of 5 million shares (45 billion KRW) in March, this investment secured a total of 38.11% stake, making Com2uS the largest shareholder.

WYSIWYG is a production company that has created various domestic and international films and dramas, including Netflix’s ‘Space Sweepers,’ using world-class computer graphics (CG) and visual effects (VFX) technology. Through its prominent subsidiaries, it is a media content company involved in everything from animation and web novel production to distribution and circulation. Its subsidiary ‘NP’ also possesses high-level virtual convergence reality (XR) content production capabilities linked to the metaverse. Com2uS stated, "By securing WYSIWYG’s production capabilities, we will accelerate growth into a ‘global comprehensive content company.’" They plan to create a solid IP value chain through a transmedia strategy by producing WYSIWYG’s various works such as movies, dramas, and web novels into global games, and expanding Com2uS’s popular games into diverse content.

Com2uS is particularly expanding its influence through investments in promising content companies. After Song Byung-jun, chairman of Gamevil and Com2uS, stepped down from the CEO position and shifted to a ‘chairman system,’ the company has shown bold moves in mergers and acquisitions (M&A) and investments. They have invested in Skybound Entertainment, famous for the drama ‘The Walking Dead,’ Mstoryhub, Clevery&M, MediaCan, and established Korea’s largest webtoon production companies Kenaz and Jungle Studio, accelerating expansion into digital content businesses beyond games. Com2uS’s ‘Summoners War’ is considered a representative IP that crosses over into games, animation, and other fields.

Game Companies Transforming into ‘Content Companies’

Netmarble recently partnered with Studio Dragon, a production company famous for dramas like ‘Crash Landing on You,’ to jointly develop IP. The two companies plan to plan and develop stories and universes to produce games or dramas and create webtoons, movies, and digital content. Lee Seung-won, CEO of Netmarble, said, "We will present content with future competitiveness through creative collaboration." This move is analyzed as Netmarble turning its attention to the entertainment business after gaining significant returns from investing in HYBE, the agency of BTS. The current value of HYBE shares, which Netmarble acquired in 2018 for 201.4 billion KRW, now exceeds 2 trillion KRW.

There is also a game company that hit the jackpot with a drama. Smilegate’s drama ‘Chun Wolhwa Seon,’ produced using its flagship game ‘Crossfire,’ set record-breaking numbers in China. The drama surpassed 1.92 billion cumulative views on Tencent Video. Riding on the success of the drama and other achievements, Smilegate surpassed annual sales of 1 trillion KRW for the first time since its founding last year. Smilegate is preparing to enter Hollywood movies by signing a distribution contract with Sony Pictures. It plans to expand its entertainment business in earnest by establishing a joint venture (JV) with the film production company Realize Pictures. Krafton, which went public on the 10th, also announced its goal to become a content company by expanding its business areas from ‘Battlegrounds’ to webtoons and web novels. Krafton recently released the short film ‘Ground Zero’ starring Ma Dong-seok and recruited famous Hollywood producer Adi Shankar.

Experts interpret that game companies are transforming into ‘content companies’ as they reach growth limits. Although the game industry itself has grown, there is a perspective that game companies’ complexes about still not being as respected as movies or dramas are reflected. Professor Wi Jeong-hyun of Chung-Ang University, president of the Korea Game Society, said, "As the game industry reaches its limits, major game companies tend to look for other fields. Positively, it can be seen as game companies transforming into content companies, but it is regrettable that they focus investments on unrelated areas rather than developing sequels."

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