Gaming giant NC (formerly NCSoft) has announced unprecedented record quarterly earnings, driven by the phenomenal success of its latest massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) launches, Aion 2 and Lineage Classic.
The Korean gaming powerhouse disclosed on Wednesday impressive first-quarter financial results: 557.4 billion won ($373.9 million) in sales and 113.3 billion won in operating profit. These figures represent a substantial year-over-year increase of 55 percent and an astonishing 2,070 percent, respectively, underscoring the company’s robust financial health.
NC achieved its highest-ever quarterly PC game sales, reaching 318.4 billion won. This remarkable 210 percent year-on-year surge is directly attributed to the blockbuster launches of Aion 2 in November and Lineage Classic in February. The sustained popularity of these new MMORPG titles further propelled PC game sales to a strong 69 percent quarter-over-quarter growth.
Highlighting the longevity of its flagship titles, Hong Won-jun, NC’s Chief Financial Officer, stated during a recent conference call, “The core player engagement and traffic for Lineage Classic remain exceptionally strong.” He further added, “Following the successful new server update on April 22, Lineage Classic recorded its highest-ever daily sales, reinforcing our confidence in the game’s enduring long-term success and appeal.”
Beyond its core MMORPG strengths, NC’s strategic investments in casual mobile game developers like Lihuhu and Springcomes are also yielding significant returns. The 35.5 billion won generated from these ventures underscores NC’s commitment to a sustainable growth model through successful business portfolio diversification, expanding its presence in the competitive mobile gaming market.
NC’s global reach is expanding, with overseas sales now contributing a substantial 42 percent to total revenue, a 7 percentage point increase year-over-year. Capitalizing on this growing international demand, NC is strategically planning the global launch of Aion 2 in key markets including North America, South America, Europe, and Japan during the second half of 2026, anticipating further worldwide growth.
NC co-CEO Park Byung-moo affirmed during the conference call that these impressive results are “not merely a one-time success confined to the first quarter.”
He expressed strong confidence, stating, “We are certain that we will achieve continuous, quarter-over-quarter growth in both sales and operating profit.” While the company publicly targets 2.5 trillion won in total revenue for the current year, internal aspirations are set even higher, aiming for substantial surpassing of this ambitious sales goal.
Looking further ahead, NC has a long-term strategic vision to achieve 5 trillion won in annual sales by 2030, supported by the launch of approximately 20 new game titles across diverse global markets, solidifying its position as a leading entertainment software provider.
hwkan
