The Korean developer and publisher NCSoft has released the figures for the third quarter of 2019. This includes the revenue from the MMORPGs Guild Wars 2, Aion and Blade and Soul, but also new games like Project TL and a significant investment in the West.
Where do the numbers come from? NCSoft has published the figures for July, August, and September. Overall, not much happened at the Korean company during these months. There were no major releases or innovations in the games.
All in all, the third quarter of 2019 is slightly weaker than the previous one, mainly due to small declines in the mobile sector and revenue from licenses.
The West Remains Stable
How are the games that have also been released in the West doing? The three MMORPGs Aion, Blade & Soul, and Guild Wars 2 are holding steady:
- Aion remains the weakest game, which is individually listed in NCSoft’s quarterly report. Compared to the previous quarter, it has at least slightly improved. The update 7.0 was released in the West at the end of July, which, however, is likely to have only a minor impact on the figures.
- For Blade & Soul, revenue also increased. The major engine update, which is scheduled to be released in Korea at the end of the year, could lead to a significant upswing in the upcoming quarter.
- Guild Wars 2 has experienced a slight decline in revenue. Here, the weakest value since the second quarter of 2017 was reached. Back then, revenues were at 12 million USD, currently at 13 million USD. The interim upswing is due to the expansion Path of Fire. This was released in September 2017 and is already two years old. No new expansion is currently in sight.
Lineage 2M in Focus, Project TL to Start Beta Soon
What is going well at NCSoft? In the third quarter, there was a slight increase for the long-running titles Lineage 2 and Lineage 1. The two MMORPGs are still strong even 16 and 21 years after their release.
Another guarantee for revenue for NCSoft is the mobile sector. Although revenue declined in this quarter, the next highlight is already on the horizon: Lineage 2M.
The new mobile game is also expected to be released for PC and enable crossplay. The release is scheduled for the fourth quarter of 2019. For the preparations for the new game, they even canceled their participation in the Korean game fair G-Star.
What is the status of Project TL? There has been very little news about the Diablo MMO Project TL, which was originally developed as Lineage Eternal, this year.
In May 2018, it was still said that the game was on schedule and a release was supposed to take place in 2019. The plans have now changed.
In the conference call for the quarterly report, NCSoft announced that closed beta tests are to take place in the first half of 2020. The reason for the delay is the quality of the game. This is expected to be improved up to the tests.
NCSoft Invests in the West – for Consoles and Mobile?
What is NCSoft planning for the Western market? NCSoft is currently apparently working on 4 new MMOs and MMORPGs for PC and consoles. Among them are:
- Project TL
- Project A2, possibly a new Aion
- Project LLL, about which nothing is known so far.
- an unannounced project that is likely being developed by NC West.
Especially the game from NC West could be interesting. In the conference call, the Korean publisher announced an investment of 120 million dollars in NC West. They are particularly focusing on console and mobile games, which, according to NCSoft, represent a significant part of the market in the West.
NC West is expected to collaborate more closely with the headquarters in Korea in the future. The restructuring that took place in the West at the beginning of the year was also briefly mentioned. During this process, ArenaNet laid off a considerable number of employees and others were transferred from the developer to NC West.
