Will NC Soar... 'The Last Lineage' Launches Tomorrow

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Nahum] The release of NCSoft's new mobile massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) 'Lineage W' is just one day away. Attention is focused on whether this game, called the 'last Lineage,' can wash away the company's previous sluggish performance with its success.

According to NCSoft on the 3rd, the new Lineage W will be playable from midnight on the 4th in 12 countries including South Korea. Pre-download started the day before, and users can currently pre-download the Lineage W client through Google Play and the Apple App Store.

Lineage W is NCSoft's global new game developed with the concept of worldwide, inheriting the authenticity of the PC MMORPG Lineage. Its features include ▲‘Global One Build’ service ▲full 3D-based quarter view ▲real-time artificial intelligence (AI) translation function.

In particular, NCSoft CEO Kim Taek-jin emphasized that it is a game into which the company has put great effort, calling it "the last work of Lineage that consolidates everything accumulated over 24 years."

The current atmosphere is not too bad. NCSoft has been conducting a global pre-registration promotion since August 19, and about two months after the promotion started, on the 18th of last month, it attracted 13 million users. This is the highest pre-registration record ever in the MMORPG genre.

NCSoft desperately needs the success of Lineage W. Not only have all the major games released this year failed to succeed, but the existing top-grossing titles Lineage M and Lineage 2M have suffered the humiliation of being overtaken by Kakao Games' 'Odin: Valhalla Rising.'

The recent slump of new releases and the stagnant atmosphere within the company stem from controversies over probability-based items. Excessive spending has alienated loyal users known as 'Linjeossi' (Lineage + ajeossi, meaning middle-aged men). This is why NCSoft announced it would not introduce the fatigue system called the ‘Einhasad System’ in Lineage W and has restructured its business model.

While there is interest in whether NCSoft will regain its position as a 'blue-chip' stock that once exceeded 1 million won per share, market outlooks are somewhat bleak. Without a considerable level of success, poor performance is inevitable. According to financial information analysis firm FnGuide, NCSoft's consolidated earnings forecast for the third quarter of this year is 562.3 billion won in sales and 127.9 billion won in operating profit. Compared to the same period last year, sales are down 3.90%, and operating profit has fallen 41.25%.

Jung Hoyoon, a researcher at Korea Investment & Securities, said, "If Lineage W succeeds in a situation where the formula for NCSoft's growth has collapsed, it means NCSoft has found a new answer. However, since it is still cautious to hold an optimistic view that it will do well unconditionally as in the past, a conservative perspective will be maintained until the actual performance of Lineage W is confirmed."

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