NCSoft shifts to mobile casual games, targets 5 trillion won revenue by 2030
NCSoft, South Korea’s towering game developer, outlined a major strategic shift at its 2026 Management Strategy Briefing held at the Pangyo R&D Center in Seongnam. The company presented three core growth strategies, including a move away from exclusive reliance on big-budget titles toward data-driven mobile casual games, with a target to raise revenue to 5 trillion won by 2030 from last year’s 1.5069 trillion won.
The centerpiece of the plan is entering the global mobile casual game market, which the company notes now accounts for more than 30 percent of the world’s game market. Co-CEO Park Byung-mu said that in the past, the company’s results were highly tied to a few blockbuster releases and that roughly 70 percent of sales were concentrated in Korea, Taiwan and Japan.
To build this new business, NCSoft established a Mobile Casual Center last year and appointed Anel Cheman as its head. The company has also acquired Just Play, a German mobile casual rewards platform, to provide a core engine for its ecosystem as it scales the new business.
In parallel, NCSoft will pursue a two-track strategy: sustain cash flow from legacy IP such as Lineage and Aion—already producing about 1.5 trillion won in annual cash flow—while developing new IP across genres like shooting and subculture, embedded in the mobile casual framework.
The company described its goals as “predictable, sustainable growth.” It projects revenue surpassing 2.5 trillion won this year, rising to 5 trillion won by 2030, with a return on equity above 15 percent.
Beyond Korea, the move matters for U.S. readers because it signals a broader shift toward mobile-first, data-driven monetization among major Korean game makers. As NCSoft shifts resources toward mobile titles and global platforms, American partners, publishers, and investors may see changes in licensing, cross-border collaboration, and competition for global user acquisition and talent.
Context for non-Korean readers: NCSoft is best known for long-running series such as Lineage and Aion. Its Pangyo R&D Center is a flagship development hub located near Seoul. Just Play is a German-based platform focused on mobile casual rewards,whose acquisition helps NCSoft anchor its new ecosystem. The numbers cited are in won: last year’s revenue was 1.5069 trillion won, this year’s target is over 2.5 trillion won, and the 2030 goal is 5 trillion won, with ROE aiming for 15 percent or higher.