NCSOFT has announced a significant internal restructuring of its studios. The Korean publisher has created four wholly-owned subsidiaries: three independent game studios and a team dedicated to AI development. The three independent game studios are Studio X (the former Throne and Liberty team), Studio Y (which is making Project LLL, an open world MMO shooter reminiscent of The Division), and Studio Z (developer of TACTAN, a strategy game).
NCSOFT mentioned that Throne and Liberty has demonstrated its competitiveness in the global market (it reached three million users in its first week when it launched earlier this month) and will grow into a respected global IP with the help of Studio X. Both Project LLL and TACTAN are also believed to have great potential in the global market.
As for the last off-shoot, NC Research is also being spun off into NC AI. This company will specialize in advancing NCSOFT’s proprietary AI technologies, including VARCO LLM, and applying these innovations to game development as well as exploring new business opportunities.
It wasn’t all good news in the announcement, though. Two games have been canceled: BATTLE CRUSH, a multiplayer action brawler that launched earlier this year on early access for PC, mobile, and Switch, and the interactive narrative game Project M, which was highly reminiscent of Quantic Dream’s games. As a result, some members of those teams will be reassigned to the remaining studios, while others are expected to leave the company with the newly established voluntary retirement program. NCSOFT has struggled with profitability for a few quarters, partly due to the weak Korean launch of Throne and Liberty; in the last quarter, sales were down 16.1% year-on-year, while operating profit crumbled by 75%. Following this restructuring, the publisher believes efficiency will be improved going forward.
By the way, the four new entities mentioned above will be officially established starting February 1, 2025.
