NCSoft pivots to mobile casual growth, targets 5 trillion won revenue by 2030
NCSoft unveiled its 2026 management strategy at a briefing at the Pangyo R&D Center in Seongnam on March 12, outlining a broad pivot from a MMORPG-heavy lineup toward new genres and a stronger mobile casual business as the main growth engine. Co-CEO Park Byung-mu said the company aims to reach 5 trillion won in annual revenue by 2030 and to maintain a return on equity above 15% by that year.
The plan centers on three growth pillars: legacy IPs such as Lineage, Aion, Guild Wars, and Blade & Soul; newly developed IPs; and a rapidly expanding mobile casual segment. NCSoft currently generates about 1.5 trillion won in annual revenue and intends to lift that to 5 trillion by 2030 through a diversified mix of games across genres and platforms.
Analysts have long noted NCSoft’s revenue volatility tied to a few blockbuster MMORPGs and its heavy regional concentration in Korea, Taiwan, and Japan. The company also faced profitability pressure, posting a loss in 2024 for the first time in its 26-year history, after years of shrinking profits. Park said the firm spent the past two years laying the groundwork for sustainable, predictable growth and that a genuine turnaround would begin this year.
A key part of the strategy is to treat mobile as a core source of growth. NCSoft established a Mobile Casual Center in August last year to fuse development, publishing, data, and technology into a single ecosystem. The company has acquired mobile studios abroad, including Vietnam’s RiHuHu and Korea’s Spring Comes, and most recently Germany’s JustPlay, to broaden its portfolio and speed to market. It aims for mobile casual to account for about one-third of next year’s total revenue.
NCSoft described a two-track approach to new IP, combining in-house development with publishing external IPs. The firm has earmarked more than 10 self-developed titles and at least six publishing titles in its current slate, and it has established governance structures such as a game-design evaluation committee and a progress-tracking task force to prevent schedule slippage.
The company signaled continued external investment and M&A activity even as market conditions for game-studio deals have tightened amid global uncertainty. Park noted that many game companies are cash-rich and cautious about acquisitions, and that NCSoft intends to pursue contrarian opportunities when they arise. Investments announced this year include minority stakes in outside studios, with Japan-focused subculture studios identified as nearing completion.
For U.S. readers, the shift matters because mobile gaming remains a global growth engine, and NCSoft’s diversification could bring Western distribution and collaboration opportunities for its IP. If NCSoft successfully scales mobile casual titles and broadens its international footprint, the move could influence competition with major global players in mobile and live-ops ecosystems, affect how Korean IPs are licensed or published abroad, and shape partnerships with U.S. publishers, platforms, and investors seeking diversified, data-driven development models. The emphasis on data analytics, live operations, and rapid prototyping aligns NCSoft with prevailing industry trends toward mobile-first, live-service titles in the United States and Europe.