- Funding
- Market Opportunity
- The innovation of the games
- Growth Potential/Scalability
Here is our list of the top 10 Korean gaming companies
1. Nexon Korea
“It’s an honor to be named as the new CEO of Nexon Korea. Nexon’s biggest strength is its years of experience and expertise in the gaming business. I will work to maximize Nexon’s unique strengths to raise the firm’s competitiveness in the global market,” said Lee Jung-hun, CEO of Nexon Korea.Market Capitalization: $27 billion
2. NCSoft
“We are bringing the biggest change to Lineage that has built NCSoft for the past 20 years,” said CEO of NCSoft, Kim Taek-jin.Market Capitalization: $20 billion
3. Netmarble
Investments by Netmarble
Netmarble has also invested in NCSoft Corp. and HYBE. Both companies have done well during the COVID-19 crisis. The value of NC Soft shares owned by Netmarbel stands at around $1.5 billion. In addition, Netmarble is the second-largest shareholder of HYBE with 450,000 shares (Around 25% equity stake). They also own a 5.6% stake in Kakao Games and a 3.9% stake in Kakao Bank. Kakao Games, Kakao Bank, and HYBE. In addition, to companies, Netmarble has been investing in R&D regarding data infrastructures and AI technology.“The past two decades were all about rolling out landline and wireless internet network infrastructure, and the big question was how we could use that infrastructure to our convenience. But the next two decades will be about how we use data flooding from the infrastructure with the help of AI,” said the Chairman of Netmarble, Bang Jun-hyuk.Market Capitalization: $10 billion
4. Krafton Game Union
5. Pearl Abyss
“Our current plan is to have CCP continue operating independently from Pearl Abyss, but our aim is to open lines of communication between the two teams that will have us learning from each other. At some point in the future, our hope is to more closely align the teams to capitalize on each other’s strengths and successfully collaborate to take our games to new players around the world,” said CEO of Pearl Abyss, Robin Jung.Market Capitalization: $3.2 billion
6. Gamevil Com2us
Entering the Chinese Market
China has the world’s largest game market ($36.5 billion). Com2uS obtained a license from the Chinese government for a mobile game (Summoners War: Sky Arena) for the first time in close to 4 years. Market Capitalization: $2 billion7. GRAVITY
8. Webzen
“We are working on expanding our IP business, diversifying our portfolio and moving onto other game platforms. We are also in contact with developers from different countries as well as Korea to expand our game development to that of single-A tier games,” said CEO of Webzen, Tony Kim.Market Capitalization: $1.2 billion
9. Smilegate
“When everyone had their eyes on mobile games, we believed in the potential of online PC games and developed Lost Ark. Rather than rest on our laurels, we will continue to expand our base by entering more overseas markets and hosting esports competitions,” said CEO of Smilegate RPG, Chi Wongil.They are also known for their online hit, Crossfire which is the world’s top online FPS game with over a billion players on PC and mobile. It is considered the biggest free-to-play first-person shooter game in the world. Think of it as the Call of Duty of the East. Crossfire alone has generated over $10 billion in revenue for Smilegate. It is also launching a beta test of CrossFireX, a new version of the game for the Xbox One that Smilegate is working on with Remedy Entertainment. Market Capitalization: $1 billion
10. DoubleU Games
“We are excited and confident about DoubleU Game’s future as a global leader in social casino,” said CEO of DoubleU Games, Ga-Ram Kim.