Today, KRAFTON Inc. (hereinafter “KRAFTON”), responsible for entertainment properties such as PLAYERUNKNOWN’S BATTLEGROUNDS (PUBG) and TERA, held an inauguration ceremony in Pangyo, Seoul Korea to appoint Changhan Kim as the new CEO. Kim gave his inaugural speech to KRAFTON employees and announced his key vision and focus on the company becoming “a true maker of masterpieces.”
“Creating a strong foundation that allows creativity to flourish”
During the inauguration ceremony, Kim touched upon the company’s vision of becoming a true maker of masterpieces, which was also an idea that KRAFTON was founded upon. Kim detailed how KRAFTON (formerly Bluehole Studios) set a goal of becoming a distinguished MMORPG developer and how that vision was manifested with the success of TERA.
While more games of various genres were released afterwards, Kim emphasized that the company’s commitment to game development craftsmanship remains intact and is a legacy worth carrying on. Kim followed-up by stating that the company will leverage the massive success of the PUBG IP as a foundation on which the company will continue to build upon.
Kim also unveiled plans to evolve KRAFTON’s collective of game development teams into an independent studio system. In this system, each development team will need to build up its own creative identity and will be given more autonomy to pursue their creative vision. Kim expects these changes to set the scene for continuous game development.
“Reaching our vision by innovating and overcoming challenges”
Kim stated that the company should take on bold challenges and push for changes to leap forward. Regarding game development, Kim called upon employees to:
– Develop with a “gameplay” first mentality as opposed to focusing strictly on the numbers
– Take on meaningful challenges where failures can provide valuable lessons
– Strike a balance between autonomy, accountability, and authority
– Cultivate a community where everyone is aligned on a common mission
Kim vowed,
“We will do our best to become a game developer that takes up challenges without giving up on new and ambitious goals that allow us to produce what gamers really want.”
“IP franchises will help further expand game content”
Kim also declared active investment in IP (intellectual property) franchises where KRAFTON will create different types of content (e.g., webtoons, tv dramas, movies, esports events, etc.). These investments will be based on titles that have potential for further expansion, like PUBG, while ramping up efforts to secure original IP to turn into games as well. Furthermore, Kim said that the company will continue the search for sustainable game IPs and capable development teams.
Kim continues:
I plan to lead KRAFTON in becoming a globally recognized company that is capable of creating more titles like PUBG. We will further strengthen KRAFTON’s reputation as a distinguished video game company by establishing an environment where masterpieces can be created through the cultivation of creativity and fostering of new and existing talent.”
Changhan Kim CEO of Krafton
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