[산업이지] A game like this in Korea? Trends read in G-Star

Krafton’s life simulation game ‘Enjoy’. A character who has settled in Dowon, a virtual city modeled after Seoul, is looking around the streets. Reporter Noh Do-hyun”/>

Demonstration screen of Krafton’s life simulation game ‘Enjoy’. A character who has settled in Dowon, a virtual city modeled after Seoul, is looking around the streets. Reporter Noh Do-hyun

The game festival ‘G-Star’, which comes every year along with the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), was held this year on the largest scale ever. A variety of new works provided fun to visitors gathered at BEXCO in Busan from all over the country and raised expectations for their official release. ‘G-Star 2024’, which provided a glimpse into the future of the domestic gaming industry, was organized into three keywords: artificial intelligence (AI), worldview, and multi-platform.

When games meet artificial intelligence (AI)

On the 15th, I experienced Krafton’s life simulation PC game ‘Enjoy’ at the G-Star site, which is scheduled to be released in early access in March next year. I was interested as I enjoyed the same genre of ‘Sims’ (developed by Maxis in the U.S. and distributed by EA) when I was young. It is said that it was submitted to a higher level of perfection compared to last year’s G-Star, when it was first introduced.

The first thing that catches your eye is the realistic graphics. After creating a character at a character studio with a variety of customization options for appearance, style, and temperament, we moved into a two-story building in Dowon, a virtual city modeled after Seoul. The house was located in a forest of buildings with signs for banks, dentists, hair salons, etc. Cafes, convenience stores, snack bars, subway station exits, management offices and circuit breakers at parking lot entrances have all been realistically recreated in downtown Seoul.

As I talked to passers-by, built relationships, and enjoyed the walk, my hunger level increased. After seeing the warning that it could be harmful to my health, I quickly pressed the ‘go home’ button. As soon as the character arrived home, he opened the refrigerator and took out some dumplings to eat.

A character who was very hungry eats dumplings as soon as he gets home. The cat shown on the right is the result of turning a 2D image into a 3D item using the ‘3D printer’ function. It was made bigger than expected. Reporter Noh Do-hyun

One of Enjoy’s features is the ‘3D printer’ function that maximizes user creativity using generative AI technology. When I entered a cat image showing only the front view, AI predicted the side and back sides and automatically created a 3D item. This means you can insert an image of an actual pet cat and place it in the space within the game. It is said that through AI technology, the game will be upgraded so that NPCs (characters not controlled by the player) do not only perform certain actions, but also act differently depending on the situation.

The ‘Magical Girl Luroofing’ booth of Relu Games, a subsidiary of Krafton, set up at the G-Star outdoor event held in BEXCO, Busan on the 15th. Reporter Noh Do-hyun

“With the throbbing power of the dark flames, I command you to become my iron bars forever!” An untimely ‘magic spell’ battle took place at the outdoor event venue. It was the ‘Magical Girl LuLooping’ booth developed by Relu Games, a subsidiary of Krafton. It is a unique game where the user becomes a magical girl and battles enemies by shouting spells into a microphone. Our self-developed AI voice recognition technology comprehensively evaluates voice volume, pronunciation, and emotion to calculate how much damage was caused to the other person. Those who overcome embarrassment can be victorious.

Build a ‘universe’ and increase platforms

The movement to expand the worldview of intellectual property (IP) also stood out. Among the five new games introduced by Nexon, ‘First Berserker: Kazan’ and ‘Overkill’ are action games that share the worldview of the company’s masterpiece ‘Dungeon & Fighter’. ‘First Berserker: Kazan’, which is confirmed to be released in the first half of next year, features Kazan, a character from Dungeon & Fighter. Overkill continues its worldview while establishing its own unique story line and implementing omnidirectional action in 3D graphics.

The ‘multi-platform’ strategy of providing games in a variety of ways, such as PC, mobile, and console (dedicated game consoles), rather than limited to just one platform, is also an industry trend. This is supported by the fact that Nexon’s Kazan and Pearl Abyss’ ‘Red Desert’, introduced at G-Star, are works that can be enjoyed alone on PC and console platforms.

Netmarble’s booth provides an opportunity to demonstrate the game of the same name using the intellectual property (IP) of the popular drama ‘Game of Thrones’. Provided by Netmarble

Netmarble Chairman Bang Jun-hyuk, who visited the site, said, “Multi-platform strategies are becoming common to the extent that 30-40% of games released these days are multi-platform,” and “70-80% of games developed by Netmarble are following a multi-platform strategy.” said.

Chairman Bang suggested ‘trans media’ as another strategy. It is a concept that refers to conveying a story through various media such as movies, games, and webtoons. At this event, Netmarble unveiled ‘Game of Thrones: King’s Road’, a new work using the IP of the American drama ‘Game of Thrones’, which was popular around the world. This game will also be released on multiple platforms, including mobile and PC.