Nexon
The Nexon Co., Ltd. (Japanese: 株式会社ネクソン, Hepburn: Kabushiki gaisha Nekuson, Korean: 주식회사 넥슨; RR: Jusikhoesa Nekseun) is a South Korean–Japanese video game publisher that specializes in online games for PC and mobile. It maintains over 80 titles.[4] Nexon was founded in Seoul, South Korea in 1994 by Kim Jung-ju and Jake Song. In 2005, the company moved its headquarters to Tokyo, Japan. As of March 2020, it is the largest game company in South Korea and the third-largest game company in Asia outside Japan in terms of revenue and market capitalization, after Tencent and NetEase in China, ahead of Netmarble, 37 Entertainment, and NCSoft.[5]
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Native name | |
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Romanized name |
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| Type | Public KK |
| TYO: 3659 | |
| Industry | Video games |
| Founded | December 26, 1994 Seoul, South Korea |
| Founders |
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| Headquarters | |
Key people | Owen Mahoney (CEO)[1] Shiro Uemura (CFO)[2] Ji Won Park (COO) |
| Revenue | ¥253.7billion (2018)[3] |
| ¥98.3billion (2018)[3] | |
| ¥107.7billion (2018)[3] | |
| Owner | NXC |
Number of employees | 6,441 (Dec. 2018) |
| Subsidiaries | § Organization |
| Website | company |
History
Nexon Group was established in Seoul, South Korea on December 26, 1994, and is currently based in Japan. It also has offices located in South Korea, the United States, Taiwan and Thailand.[4] Nexon developed and published its first title, Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds, in 1996, which the company continues to service.[6] Many title releases followed such as Dark Ages: Online Roleplaying, Elemental Saga, QuizQuiz, KartRider, Elancia, and Shattered Galaxy;[7] some of which are maintained by a company spun off of Nexon, Kru Interactive.[8] In 2003, Wizet developed MapleStory in Korea, which later became one of their most successful titles and has been serviced for more than a decade.[9][10] The game was localized in many locations such as Japan, China, Taiwan, Thailand, Singapore, North America, Europe, Brazil, and Vietnam.[11] Nexon is also the developer of Dungeon & Fighter, through its wholly owned subsidiary, Neople.[12][13] Dungeon & Fighter is one of the most popular free-to-play online PC games in China.[13][14]
In April 2013, the programmer "DrUnKeN ChEeTaH" was sued by Nexon America for operating GameAnarchy, a popular subscription based cheat provider for Combat Arms. Nexon was awarded $1.4M in damages.[15]
Nexon went public on the Tokyo Stock Exchange on December 14, 2011, in an initial public offering, the largest in Japan for 2011 and the second largest by a technological company for 2011 worldwide.[16]
On March 9, 2016, Nexon acquired Big Huge Games, a mobile game developer in Maryland.[17]
On January 3, 2019, the Korea Economic Daily reported Nexon founder Kim Jung-ju and associates have put their 98.64-percent stake up for sale.[18] However on July 8, 2019, Reuters reported the plan was abandoned.[19]
On November 25, 2019, The Lego Group announced the acquisition of Bricklink, the world's largest Lego fan community from Nexon, for an unknown price, which is expected to finish before the end of 2019.[20]
On June 2, 2020, Nexon announced plans to invest $1.5 billion in listed entertainment companies.[21]
Organization
Nexon maintains various offices around the world that engage in the publishing and/or development of Nexon's games. Each region's local consolidated subsidiaries are independently managed and are responsible for developing their own strategy for their products and services.[22] The subsidiary that publishes a game does not necessarily indicate the region(s) that a game is available in. For example, some of Nexon Korea's games are published directly by Nexon Korea yet are available worldwide with no separate service published under the local consolidated company's portfolio.
| Region | Company name[23] |
|---|---|
| Japan | NEXON Co., Ltd.; gloops, Inc.; PURERO, Inc |
| Korea | NEXON Korea Corporation; BLOCKCHAIN ENTERTAINMENT LAB Co., Ltd.; NEOPLE INC.; Nexon Networks Corporation; NEXON GT Co., Ltd.; NEXON COMMUNICATIONS Co., Ltd.; Nexon Space Co., Ltd.; Thingsoft Inc.; BOOLEAN GAMES; NEXON RED Corp.; N Media Platform Co., LTD.; JoongAng Pangyo Development Co., Ltd; Ngine Studios; NAT Games Co., Ltd.; 10Years Co., LTD. |
| China | Lexian Software Development (Shanghai) Co., Ltd. |
| North America | Nexon America Inc.; NEXON M Inc.; Rushmo America, Inc.; Nexon US Holding Inc.; Big Huge Games, Inc; Pixelberry Studios; NEXON OC Studio |
| Other | NEXON Europe GmbH; NEXON TAIWAN LIMITED; Nexon Thailand Co., Ltd.; Embark Studios[24] |
Games
List of PC games
| Game Name | Nexon Korea | Nexon Japan | Nexon America | Nexon Thailand | Nexon Taiwan | Nexon SEA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ArcheAge 2013 (Korea) | Yes (channeling with XLGames) | No (already serviced by GameOn) | No (already serviced by Trion Worlds) | No (already serviced by XLGames) | No (already serviced by Playwith Taiwan) | No (already serviced by XLGames) |
| Asgard 2001 (Korea) | Yes | Closed | No | No | Closed (previously serviced by GameCyber) | No |
| Closers 2015 (Korea) | Yes (in cooperation with Bandai Namco)[25] | No (already serviced by Naddic Japan, previously as HappyTuk Japan) | No (already serviced by Naddic Games, previously as En Masse and Bandai Namco) | No (already serviced by Naddic Games) | No (already serviced by HappyTuk Taiwan) | No |
| Counter-Strike Online 2008 (Korea) Released 2014 in the western markets as Counter-Strike Nexon: Studio (previously as CSN:Zombies) | Yes | Closed[26] | Yes (published by Nexon Korea, previously as Nexon Europe) | Yes (available as CSN:Studio, but not published by Nexon Thailand, previously serviced by PlayFPS Thailand) | No (already serviced by Beanfun) | Yes (available as CSN:Studio, but not published by Nexon SEA, previously serviced by IAH Games and Megaxus) |
| Crazy Arcade BnB Known in North America as PopTag 2001 (Korea) | Yes | Closed | Closed | Closed (previously serviced by Playpark Thailand) | No (already serviced by Beanfun) | No |
| Crazyracing Kartrider 2004 (Korea) | Yes | Closed | Closed | Closed (previously serviced by GoodGames Thailand) | No (already serviced by Beanfun) | No |
| Crazy Shooting Bubble Fighter 2008 (Korea) | Yes | No | No | No | Closed (previously serviced by Beanfun) | No |
| Cyphers 2011 (Korea) | Yes | No | No | No | Closed (previously serviced by Beanfun) | No |
| Dragon Nest 2010 (Korea) | Yes (transferred to Actoz Soft; now channeling with pupugame) | No (already serviced by Hange Japan) | Closed (transferred to Eyedentity) | No (already serviced by Playpark Thailand) | No (already serviced by Beanfun,[27] previously as Gameflier[28].) | No (already serviced by Eyedentity, previously as Cherry Credits) |
| Dungeon Fighter Online Known in Asia as Dungeon & Fighter 2005 (Korea) | Yes | Yes | Closed (now serviced by Neople) | No | Closed (previously serviced by Beanfun and Garena Taiwan) | No |
| Elancia 1999 (Korea) | Yes | Closed | No | No | No | No |
| Elsword 2007 (Korea) | Yes | Yes (channeling with KOG Games) | No (already serviced by KOG Games) | No (already serviced by Playpark Thailand) | No (already serviced by Beanfun) | No |
| FIFA Online 4 2018 (Korea) | Yes (in cooperation with EA Sports) | No | No | No (already serviced by Garena Thailand) | No | No |
| Final Fantasy 14 2013 (Global) | Yes (in cooperation with Square Enix; channeling with ActozSoft) | No (already serviced by Square Enix) | No (already serviced by Square Enix) | No (already serviced by Square Enix) | No (already serviced by Square Enix) | No (already serviced by Square Enix) |
| FreeStyle 2 2014 (Korea) | Yes (channeling with Smilegate) | No | No (already serviced by JoyCity) | No | No | No |
| KartRider: Drift Also available on Xbox One 2020 (Global) | Closed Beta | No | Closed Beta | Closed Beta (published by Nexon Korea) | Closed Beta (published by Nexon Korea) | Closed Beta (published by Nexon Korea) |
| KurtzPel 2019 (North America) | Yes | No | No (already serviced by KOG Games) | No | No | No |
| Legend of Darkness Known in North America as Dark Ages 1999 (Korea) | Yes | Closed | No (already serviced by Kru Interactive) | No | No | No |
| Mabinogi 2004 (Korea) | Yes | Yes | Yes | No | No (already serviced by Beanfun) | No |
| MapleStory 2003 (Korea) | Yes | Yes | Yes | Closed (previously serviced by Playpark Thailand and Nexon Thailand[29]) | No (already serviced by Beanfun) | No (already serviced by Playpark Singapore) |
| MapleStory 2 2015 (Korea) | Yes | Closed | Closed | No | No | No |
| Moonlight Blade 2015 (China) | Yes | No | No | No | Yes | No |
| Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds 1996 (Korea) | Yes | Closed | No (already serviced by Kru Interactive) | No | No | No |
| Sudden Attack 2004 (Korea) | Yes | Closed[30] | Closed (previously serviced by GameHi Global and Nexon America) | Closed (previously serviced by PlayFPS Thailand) | Closed (previously serviced by Gamon and Beanfun) | Closed (previously serviced by PlayFPS Singapore) |
| TalesRunner 2005 (Korea) | Yes (channeling with Smilegate)[31] | Closed (previously serviced by NEETS and RHAON Japan) | Closed (previously serviced by gPotato and OGPlanet) | No (already serviced by Playpark Thailand, previously as TOT) | No (already serviced by FunTown) | Closed (previously serviced by Winner Online Singapore) |
| Talesweaver 2003 (Korea) | Yes | Yes | No | No | Closed (previously serviced by GameCyber) | No |
| Tree of Savior 2015 (Korea) | Yes | Closed (transferred to IMCGames)[32][33] | No (already serviced by IMCGames) | Closed[34] | No (already serviced by Macrowell OMG) | No (already serviced by IMCGames) |
| Vindictus Known in Asia as Mabinogi: Heroes 2010 (Korea) | Yes | Closed[35] | Yes (co-publishing with Nexon Korea) | Closed (previously serviced by Garena Thailand) | Yes (transferred from Garena Taiwan, previously serviced by Beanfun) | No |
List of mobile games
| Game Name | Nexon Korea | Nexon Japan | Nexon America | Big Huge Games | Pixelberry | Nexon Thailand | Nexon Taiwan | Nexon SEA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arcane Showdown Also available on PC[36] 2020 (Global) | No | No | No | Yes | No | No | No | No |
| AxE (Alliance x Empire) 2017 (Korea) | Yes | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No |
| Choices: Stories You Play 2016 (North America) | No | No | No | No | Yes | No | No | No |
| Counterside 2019 (Korea) | Yes (in cooperation with Square Enix) | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Crazy Arcade BnB M 2018 (Korea) | Yes | No | No | No | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No |
| Dark Avenger 3 Known globally as Darkness Rises Known in Japan as Dark Avenger X 2018 (Korea) | Yes | Closed[37] | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No |
| DomiNations 2015 (North America) | Transferred to and now published by Big Huge Games | Transferred to and now published by Big Huge Games[38][39] | Transferred to and now published by Big Huge Games | Yes (transferred from Nexon) | No | No | Transferred to and now published by Big Huge Games | No |
| Dynasty Warriors: Unleashed 2017 (Global) | Closed[40] | Yes | Closed | No | No | Closed | Closed | No |
| FIFA Mobile 2016 (Global) 2020 (Korea) | Yes | Yes | No (already serviced by EA) | No | No | No (already serviced by EA) | No (already serviced by EA) | No (already serviced by EA) |
| FIFA Online 4 M 2018 (Korea) | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| Godzilla Defense Force 2019 (Global) | Yes | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No |
| High School Story 2013 (North America) | No | No | No | No | Yes | No | No | No |
| Hollywood U: Rising Stars 2014 (North America) | No | No | No | No | Yes | No | No | No |
| KartRider Rush+ 2020 (Global) | Yes | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) |
| The Kingdom of the Winds: Yeon 2019 (Korea) | Yes | No | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| MapleStory M 2017 (Korea) | Yes | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No |
| OVERHIT 2018 (Korea) | Closed[41][42] | Closing on February 25 2021[43] | Closed | No | No | Closed | Closed | No |
| Runway Story 2019 (Korea) | Yes | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No | No | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No |
| Traha 2019 (Korea) | Yes | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | No | No | No | No | No | No |
| V4 Also available on PC[44] 2019 (Korea) | Yes | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes[45] (published by Nexon Korea) | No | No | Yes[46] (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) | Yes (published by Nexon Korea) |
| World of Dragon Nest 2020 (Southeast Asia)[47] | No | No | No | No | No | Yes | No (already serviced by Beanfun) | Yes (published by Nexon Thailand) |
2021 and beyond
- Dave the Diver (Mobile) [48]
- Dungeon & Fighter 2D mobile (Mobile) [48]
- Dynasty Warriors 9 Mobile (Mobile) [49]
- FINAL FANTASY XI R (Mobile) [50]
- Gwanggateo the Great (Mobile)[51]
- Hero Sky (Mobile) developed by InnoSpark[52]
- HEXIA (Mobile) [48]
- Magia (Mobile) [48]
- Mabinogi Mobile (Mobile) [48]
- Project BBQ (PC) [53]
- Re: Tree Of Savior (Mobile, known as Tree Of Savior: Mobile Remake) [54]
- TALESWEAVER M (Mobile) [50]
- 4 Towers (Mobile) [49]
See also
References
- Eric Johnson (February 12, 2014). "Nexon Names New CEO: Ex-EA Exec Owen Mahoney". Re/code.
- Chris Shimamoto (May 15, 2014). "Nexon Surges as Online Game Maker Plans Share Buyback". Bloomberg News.
- "Consolidated Financial Results for the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2016 [IFRS]" (PDF). Retrieved February 10, 2017.
- Bruce Einhorn (August 21, 2014). "Nexon, Asia's 'Freemium' PC Game Pioneer, Gets More Mobile". Bloomberg Businessweek.
- "Top 25 gaming companies". Newzoo.com. 2015. Retrieved September 16, 2015.
- Bruce Einhorn. "What is Nexus?". Nexus Atlas. Retrieved December 21, 2014.
- "Nexon Holdings history". KoreanGameWatch.com. Archived from the original on October 5, 2011. Retrieved October 5, 2011.
- "Kru Interactive Profile". Kru Interactive. Archived from the original on September 30, 2011. Retrieved June 28, 2011.
- John Gaudiosi (May 23, 2012). "Nexon Celebrates Seventh Anniversary Of MapleStory Game With Continued Success". Forbes.
- "Nexon Holdings(NXC)". Korea Game Watch. Retrieved December 20, 2014.
- "Maplestory". Nexon Korea Corporation. Archived from the original on June 28, 2011. Retrieved June 28, 2011.
- Forbes Staff (April 24, 2013). "What Next for Kim Jung-Ju and Korean Online Gaming Company Nexon?". Forbes.
- Lulu Yilun Chen and Jungah Lee (May 28, 2014). "Tencent $1 Billion Game Shows Global Hunt for Mobile Hits". Bloomberg News.
- Xu Lin (February 7, 2014). "Top 10 free online games with highest revenues". China.org.cn.
- "Nexon America Inc et al v. Gameanarchy LLC et al".
- Kyt Dotson (December 7, 2014). "Despite Setbacks Nexon Sets $1.2 billion IPO for Dec. 14". SiliconANGLE.
- "Nexon acquires DomiNations developer Big Huge Games". VentureBeat. March 10, 2016. Retrieved March 11, 2016.
- "Nexon founder to sell controlling stake in gaming company's holding..." Reuters. January 3, 2019.
- "Nexon founder scraps what could have been $16 billion gaming deal:..." Reuters. July 9, 2019.
- "The Lego Group acquires bricklink, the world's largest online LEGO® fan community and marketplace to strengthen ties with adult fans". November 25, 2019. Retrieved November 25, 2019.
- Leung, Ruby. "Korean Gaming Giant Nexon To Spend $1.5 Billion On Global Entertainment Companies". Forbes. Retrieved June 6, 2020.
- "Consolidated Financial Results for the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2017" (PDF). NEXON Investor Relations. Retrieved July 17, 2018.
- "Consolidated Financial Results for the Fiscal Year Ended December 31, 2018 [IFRS]" (PDF). NEXON Investor Relations. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
- Patrick Söderlund (July 2019). "Some news from Embark". Retrieved July 25, 2019.
- "Korean Anime Action MOARPG Closers First Closed Beta Comes This August". 2P. Retrieved June 23, 2014.
- "「カウンターストライクオンライン」サービス終了のお知らせ | Nexon（ネクソン）".
- "【新龍之谷】帳號轉移申請中！". Retrieved October 21, 2019.
- "《新龍之谷online》官方網站". Retrieved October 21, 2019.
- "MapleStory : ประกาศยุติการให้บริการ". Retrieved February 5, 2020.
- "【重要】『サドンアタック』サービス終了のお知らせ". Retrieved August 6, 2019.
- "Tales Runner". NEXON. Retrieved December 20, 2014.
- "【重要】『Tree of Savior』サービス変更のお知らせ". Retrieved October 20, 2019.
- "Tree of Savior – Nexon drops publishing duty of Japan server back to IMC Games @ MMO Culture". Retrieved October 20, 2019.
- "Tree of Savior [ประกาศ] ยุติการให้บริการ Tree of Savior ประเทศไทย". Retrieved October 21, 2019.
- "「マビノギ英雄伝」サービス終了のお知らせ | Nexon（ネクソン）".
- "Arcane Showdown on Steam". Retrieved February 7, 2020.
- "【重要】サービス終了のお知らせ". Retrieved January 20, 2020.
- "ドミネーションズのサービス移管につきまして". Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- "サービス移管に関するご案内-日程と詳細のご案内". Retrieved January 16, 2020.
- "01/08(Wed) [Service Termination Notice]". Retrieved January 8, 2020.
- "오버히트 서비스 종료 예정 안내 : 네이버 카페". Retrieved September 10, 2020.
- "Overhit - Nexon is shutting down Korean server of UE4 mobile RPG @ MMO Culture". Retrieved September 24, 2020.
- "【重要】サービス終了のお知らせ". Retrieved December 17, 2020.
- "V4 – Nexon announces PC version of Unreal Engine 4 mobile MMORPG @ MMO Culture". Retrieved November 27, 2019.
- "V4 - Nexon announces cross-platform mobile MMORPG for worldwide audience @ MMO Culture". Retrieved June 25, 2020.
- "V4 - Nexon Thailand hints at global launch of Unreal Engine 4 MMORPG @ MMO Culture". Retrieved February 6, 2020.
- "World of Dragon Nest – Southeast Asia server gets official launch date for mobile MMORPG @ MMO Culture". Retrieved December 18, 2019.
- "Q1 2019 Investor Presentation" (PDF). NEXON Investor Relations. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
- "Q3 2018 Investor Presentation" (PDF). NEXON Investor Relations. Retrieved December 21, 2018.
- "Nexon Korea revealed upcoming games in G-Star 2014". YuushaExa.com. Retrieved December 20, 2014.
- 김미희 기자 risell@gamemeca.com (August 12, 2014). "넥슨 모바일 '히어로스카이' 구글 플레이 순위 고공행진 게임메카, 대한민국 1등 인터넷 게임신문". Imbc.gamemeca.com. Retrieved June 12, 2016.
- QuintLyn. "Nexon Announces New Dungeon Fighter Online ARPG "Project BBQ"". MMOBomb. Retrieved July 25, 2019.
- "Re: Tree of Savior - Nexon Thailand reveals new title for upcoming mobile MMORPG @ MMO Culture". Retrieved February 6, 2020.
External links
- Nexon corporate website (in Japanese and English)
- Official website (in Japanese, Korean, and English)
Major video game companies | |
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Annual revenue of over US$1 billion as of 2019 | |
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