The two gaming giants Nexon and Electronic Arts are presenting a new game this week. It could be an MMO, but it’s probably a football simulation.
In April 2012, representatives from the US gaming giant Electronic Arts and the Korean MMO giant Nexon met. Just this meeting caused a stir. From the outside, it was thought: Nexon wants to buy EA. “Rumors” circulated. As a result, EA’s stock price soared – all because two companies met.
Nexon and EA – First meeting sparked huge rumors
Two weeks later, it came to light: This was not a merger discussion, but EA and Nexon want to collaborate. They planned to release a game together. In December 2012, the football simulation “FIFA Online 3” was released in Korea with Nexon as publisher. The FIFA Online series is like “FIFA” as an online version for the Asian market.
Five years later, there’s another date for Nexon and Electronic Arts. They will present a “joint project” at G-Star 2017. They are keeping it mysterious, calling it “Secret Project.” Nexon is the main sponsor of G-Star, but is keeping its lineup secret. That’s why it’s such a big deal and attracts a lot of attention: What kind of game is this and why is Nexon keeping such a huge secret about it?
There is already a countdown running (Link to Nexon’s countdown page), it will be on November 2nd – around 2 AM our time, Nexon will reveal what they are brewing together with EA.
Probably a football simulation for the Asian market
It is currently unclear what kind of game this is. There are various theories:
- The obvious one is “This is FIFA Online 4” – a football simulation for the Asian market that won’t concern us much in the West because we all play FIFA here, but will bring in a lot of money in Asia. In line with the 2018 World Cup, FIFA Online 4 could be a license to print money.
- There are also other theories about an MMO project, on which top talents like former WildStar man Stephen Frost are working, who moved from Blizzard to Nexon. But that seems unlikely – it’s still too early for that.
Dark alliance between EA and Nexon attracts a lot of attention
In any case, it’s interesting what comes out of it when two giants like Nexon and Electronic Arts collaborate, and what waves it will create. It leads to wild speculations in international forums.
Both Electronic Arts and Nexon have built a certain reputation in local gaming markets: When they come together, it feels like a dark alliance.
In a few days, we will know more. G-Star 2017 itself takes place in mid-November. There we can expect a lot of news about MMOs from Asia. A big showcase of Lineage 2 Revolution is expected:
Conan O’Brien is advertising for Lineage 2 Revolution, has no idea
Update: It is FIFA Online 4
By now, it’s clear what the project is. It is as expected “FIFA Online 4.” The game is supposed to enter closed beta in December in South Korea. The launch will then take place in 2018, before the World Cup in Russia.
One can assume that we in the West will have nothing to do with the game, just as little as with its predecessor FIFA Online 3.
