After the success of Stellar Blade and Lies of P, South Korea now wants to expand into the console market, with a five-year plan with incentives for local companies.
South Korea ‘s Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism has stated that it intends for the country to expand into the console market by 2028 with government investments, to revitalize the local gaming industry, mainly linked to mobile titles.
As reported by GamesIndustry.biz, South Korea is currently the fourth largest market on a global scale , with 16.2 billion dollars spent by players last year.
However, the country represents only 1.5% of the total console market , a sector that the country is now watching with great attention, with the aim of reaching gamers who play on consoles, who represent 40% of the total in the USA and Europe, at least according to ministry data.
Were Lies of P and Stellar Blade just an appetizer?
Vice Minister Jeon Byeong-geuk said the state will help local companies collaborate with major industry players , such as Sony, Microsoft and Nintendo, to make more console games. Help is also provided for independent developers.
According to Byeong-geuk, there is also a desire to reduce the great dependence on mobile and online games, which currently represent the bulk of local productions.
In short, the objective would seem to be to follow the path traced with Stellar Blade and Lies of P , respectively by Shift Up and NEOWIZ, both games that managed to penetrate the Western console market and obtain the appreciation of the public and critics, thus putting shows the potential of South Korea.