벼랑 끝 카카오게임즈의 승부수: ‘오딘Q’와 경영진 교체로 여는 제2의 도약 > K-wave Trends

The crisis that Kakao Games is facing is due to structural stagnation beyond short-term poor performance. After Odin, profitability deteriorated sharply as new product launches were delayed without securing a clear cash cow, and even shareholder return measures such as dividends or treasury stock cancellation that could improve shareholder value are missing. In this situation, the rise of LAAA Investment, an investment company invested by Line Yahoo, to the largest shareholder with a large-scale fund infusion of 300 billion won means more than a simple change in shares. This is interpreted as a result that reflects a strong will to secure the stability of the financial structure and at the same time begin full-scale expansion into the global market, which has been limited within the Kakao Group.

A change of management was also carried out to fundamentally change the structure of the organization. Kakao Games plans to appoint Kim Tae-hwan, vice president of Line Games, and current Kakao Games CBO Si-woo Lee as co-representatives through an extraordinary general shareholders' meeting on the 22nd. Vice President Kim Tae-hwan is an expert who has led global business and investment strategies at Nexon and other companies, and specializes in developing overseas markets and establishing corporate growth strategies. On the other hand, CBO Lee Si-woo is a person familiar with the internal circumstances who has led Kakao Games' mobile business since its founding, and is evaluated as the right person to take responsibility for the stability and practical execution of the organization. In this way, the two-horse system that combines external strategists and internal business experts appears to be a stepping stone to simultaneously achieve aggressive global expansion and strengthen the organization's internal stability.

The key to the performance rebound in the second half of the year is definitely ‘Odin Q’, which is being developed by Lionheart Studio. This new work, which inherits the legitimacy of Odin, which dominated the mobile game market in 2021, is aiming to dominate the market once again with overwhelming 3D graphics and a seamless open world based on Unreal Engine 5. However, considering the different market conditions from then, we are focusing on reducing fatigue by designing a balanced system of cooperation and competition between users rather than simply relying on a charging model. This is a strategic choice to meet the expectations of recent users who demand transparency in game operation, and it is expected to be a test bed to demonstrate a new ecosystem design beyond following the successful grammar of the previous work.

In addition to OdinQ, Kakao Games is diversifying its growth engines by diversifying its lineup. ‘Goblin’s World’ developed by Supercat plans to maximize casual accessibility by combining the differentiated visuals of 2.5D dot graphics and Korean folk tales, and in the fourth quarter, new global games targeting PC and console platforms such as ‘Archeage Chronicles’ and ‘God Save Birmingham’ are waiting. In addition, Lionheart Studio is also continuing its efforts to break away from the MMORPG-oriented structure through training simulation ‘Project C’ and shooting genre ‘Project S’. Expansion of these genres and platforms is an essential process to reevaluate corporate value by reducing dependence on the domestic market and increasing market share in the global market.

Meanwhile, the change in Kakao Games' largest shareholder and reorganization of the board of directors are read as signals foreshadowing future structural changes beyond a simple transfer of management rights. Changes in the composition of the board of directors, such as the appointment of other non-executive directors with nine-month terms, suggest the possibility of a more fundamental corporate reorganization, such as a future merger or restructuring. Industry experts warn that the success or failure of future stock price rebound will depend on the specific global synergy strategy proposed by the new management and the success of new products to offset the dilution of stock value due to the paid-in capital increase. Ultimately, the future of Kakao Games depends on how sustainable the new games become as IP in the global market, rather than just being a means of generating sales.