[Click e-Stock] "NCSoft Anticipated to See Explosive Initial Success with Aion 2"

On October 24, IBK Investment & Securities raised its target price for NCSoft from 235,000 won to 280,000 won, stating that considering both domestic and international momentum ahead of the release of "Aion 2," the company is expected to see a significant improvement in performance starting early next year. This outlook is based on a return to profitability in the fourth quarter of this year, combined with the success of new titles and the effects of past cost reductions. The investment opinion remains "Buy."

NCSoft's third-quarter sales are expected to reach 363.4 billion won, down 9.6% year-on-year, with an operating loss of 21.7 billion won. This is projected to fall short of market expectations (sales of 369.8 billion won and an operating loss of 6.3 billion won), due to the absence of new game releases and the occurrence of one-off expenses.

Lee Seunghoon, a researcher at IBK Investment & Securities, commented, "Major mobile games such as Lineage M and Lineage W, as well as PC games, saw a decline in sales due to the off-season and aging of the games." He added, "However, we expect solid sales from Lineage 2M, as its performance in Southeast Asia after its second-quarter launch will be fully reflected." While the recent launch of new servers with a low-spending model for Lineage IP games has limited the sales rebound, traffic has remained robust, which is seen as extending the games' life cycles.

On November 19, the company will unveil its highly anticipated title, "Aion 2." At G-Star 2025, scheduled for next month, NCSoft will showcase a lineup of new titles including "Aion 2," "Breakers," "Time Takers," and "Cinder City," maintaining momentum for new releases through next year.

Lee noted, "By moving away from the traditional pay-to-win model and introducing a business model focused on skins, memberships, and battle passes, the company has reduced the burden on users to spend." He continued, "Although initial sales for these new titles may be relatively modest compared to previous Lineage IP games, the sequential release of three new titles and four IP spin-offs in 2026 is expected to drive solid quarterly profit growth and improve investor sentiment."

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