Lineage Dominates Again This Year... 2022 Mobile Game Review

Lineage Series Tops Sales for a Year
Lineage Faces Challenges in 2023, Fierce Competition Expected
Users' Voices Loud This Year, Game Companies Initiate Changes

[Asia Economy Reporter Seungjin Lee] This year, the domestic mobile game market ended once again under the reign of the ‘Lineage’ series. Various types of games were released to break the fortress of the Lineage brothers, but none managed to overcome the stronghold.

Lineage Series Tops Sales Throughout the Year

According to Mobile Index, a mobile big data platform, the Lineage series held the number one spot continuously from January to November this year. Based on Google Play’s monthly sales, Lineage M and Lineage W alternated in holding the top position, and on this day, the top two games by Google Play sales were also Lineage M and Lineage W.

There were games that threatened the Lineage series. The most formidable was Kakao Games’ ‘Odin: Valhalla Rising’ (hereafter Odin). Right after its release in July last year, Odin surpassed Lineage M to claim the number one spot on Google Play sales. This was the first time in four years since 2017 that the Lineage series had dropped from first place. However, Odin’s hold on the top spot did not last long.

Odin took the number one position from the Lineage series during major updates in February and May this year, but these were short-lived. Subsequently, Nexon’s ‘HIT 2’ and ‘Dungeon & Fighter Mobile’ also reached number one shortly after their release but soon gave way back to the Lineage series.

Lineage Losing Momentum, Mobile Game Competition to Intensify Next Year

Next year is expected to be different from this year. Lineage M and Lineage 2M, released in 2017 and 2019 respectively, have seen steady declines in sales. Lineage W, the youngest of the Lineage brothers released in 2021, has entered a sales stabilization phase after surpassing its first year since launch. Meanwhile, NCSoft is focusing on console and PC game development next year, which weakens its competitiveness in the mobile game market.

Nexon, which has announced the termination of service for its flagship title ‘KartRider,’ will release the sequel ‘KartRider Drift’ in January next year. KartRider Drift will be a full cross-platform game available on mobile, PC, and consoles. Kakao Games has started global pre-registration for its new title ‘Eversoul,’ scheduled for release in January next year. Netmarble plans to launch ‘Modoo Marble: Meta World’ in the first half of next year and intends to release new titles based on mobile, PC, and consoles in the second half as well.

Chinese game companies are also expected to accelerate their entry into the domestic market. Currently, four of the top 10 highest-grossing games in the domestic mobile game market are from Chinese developers. ‘Goddess of Victory: NIKKE,’ serviced by Level Infinite under Tencent, China’s largest internet company, demonstrated its gaming capabilities by surpassing the Lineage series to claim the number one spot shortly after its release.

KartRider Drift

A Tumultuous Game Market, Revenue Model Changes Expected

This year was notable for the strong voices of users directed at game companies. In Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province, where major game companies are located, ‘truck protests’ and ‘carriage protests’ were held to voice complaints against game companies. NCSoft’s Lineage 2M was embroiled in controversy over undisclosed YouTuber advertisements, and Kakao Games faced harsh criticism from users due to poor management of ‘Uma Musume: Pretty Derby.’ Users also actively encouraged game companies. Players of Netmarble’s ‘Fate/Grand Order,’ Neowiz’s ‘Idolry Pride,’ and Kakao Games’ ‘Eternal Return’ sent coffee trucks to game companies to support better service.

Unlike in the past, users are now actively voicing their opinions and taking action, prompting game companies to respond with changes. Nexon introduced a new business model (BM) with HIT 2. HIT 2 completely eliminated probability-based items and allowed players to set rules themselves, enabling organic enjoyment of game functions, which earned positive reviews from users. Consequently, major game companies have begun researching changes to their revenue models and plan to apply business models reflecting user demands in new releases next year.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.