Beyond Lineage, NCSoft Sets Its Sights on the 'Otaku' Crowd... This Time, a Subculture Experiment [IT Item of the Day]

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[Financial News] NCSoft is now targeting the 'otaku' market. Long known as a powerhouse in MMORPGs, the company is accelerating its experiment with genre diversification through its first subculture title, LIMIT ZERO BREAKERS.
According to the industry on the 20th, NCSoft said it will hold a prologue test for its new subculture title LIMIT ZERO BREAKERS from June 11 to 15. Users can join the test through Steam and mobile platforms. The prologue test will be the first time the game's world and core content are revealed. As the name suggests, it is meant to let users meet BREAKERS before launch, just as a prologue begins the story before the main work.
BREAKERS is an animation action RPG published by NCSoft and developed by BigGameStudio. Industry attention is focused on the project because it marks NCSoft's first serious challenge in the subculture genre.
NCSoft plans to actively reflect a wide range of user feedback from the test in development, with a global launch targeted for later this year.
Recently, NCSoft has been working to broaden its business portfolio beyond its existing mobile MMORPG-centered structure. In fact, looking at first-quarter results this year, the company has been reshaping its revenue base so that new PC games and casual businesses are spreading out the sources of sales, unlike the past when Lineage M accounted for more than 30% of total revenue. The share of NCSoft's flagship title Lineage M fell to 20% in the first quarter. Mobile casual revenue was also reflected in earnings for the first time. Mobile casual sales came to 35.5 billion won, and revenue from Rihuhu and Springcoms was included in consolidated results for the first time this quarter, marking the company's first step toward portfolio diversification. The numbers are beginning to show a shift away from a single mobile MMORPG structure centered on Lineage M toward PC, casual, and new genres.
Given the nature of the subculture genre, NCSoft is also looking to build a fandom around BREAKERS that can expand into merchandise purchases and derivative fan works. The company is also preparing to work with KADOKAWA in Japan to release a light novel and a serialized comic based on the BREAKERS IP. Its continued presence at global subculture events such as Tokyo Game Show (TGS), Paris Games Week, and Nico Nico Chokaigi ahead of launch is also part of that strategy.
However, competition is expected to be fierce, as South Korea's game industry is also stepping up efforts to target the subculture market. Webzen is increasing the share of its subculture lineup with titles such as the 2D collection RPG Terbision, which is under development, while Lionheart Studio, a subsidiary of Kakao Games, is also developing the subculture life simulation Project C.
Long-running hit IPs such as Nexon's Blue Archive and Shift Up's Goddess of Victory: Nikke still dominate the field. Blue Archive ranked first in revenue on Japan's App Store after an update marking the game's fifth anniversary of service in Japan earlier this year. Nikke also recently topped revenue rankings on Google Play and the App Store in both South Korea and Japan following its 3.5th anniversary update.
yjjoe@fnnews.com Jo Yoon-joo Reporter