Lineage, Guild Wars dev NCSoft promises to ease pay-to-win microtransactions while investing big into casual mobile games

NCSoft is moving away from MMORPGs, instead leaning towards casual mobile games as it faces harsh scrutiny over 2024's annual losses. The company is also making a pledge to ease the pay-to-win microtransactions in its online games.

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South Korean MMORPG-maker NCSoft has announced ambitious earnings targets and the plan it will take to get there. NCSoft promises to make 5 trillion won (about $3.4 billion) in revenue "with a 15% return" by 2030, and to make it happen, the company is making big investments into mobile games while also trying to improve its relations with fans and players.

NCSoft is already taking action with a major ownership stake purchase in German mobile games company JustPlay, with the Korean group buying a 70% stake worth $202 million. NCSoft will use JustPlay's expertise to fuel its mobile strategies. It's also been reported that the Korean live service giant purchased a 67% stake in another mobile games company, the Singapore-based Indygo Group, for $104 million.

As for its principal business, the MMORPG sector, NCSoft co-CEO Byung-moo Park says that the company will try to earn back players' trust by introducing more updates and content that eases the pay-to-win elements in its games, which include Lineage and Guild Wars.

"We have been thoroughly communicating with our users over the past one to two years and the games we are preparing will not rely heavily on pay-to-win elements. Earning the trust of players is the most important goal for a game company."

While NCSoft reported its first-ever operating loss in 2024, last year's earnings were profitable, but only by some $10.8 million or so. Investors are seeking greater returns, and NCSoft is now trying new things in order to pull in more revenue and, hopefully, more profit along the way.