KRAFTON, Nexon, and several other gaming companies from South Korea have undertaken business optimization, reports ChosunBiz. It is suggested that they have decided to focus more directly on games amid challenging market conditions.

The South Korean company Smilegate, known for Lost Ark and Crossfire, has made strategic investments. It has invested in Absurd Ventures — the studio of Rockstar Games co-founder Dan Houser.

Chinese fans of the mobile RPG Epic Seven raised $6 thousand for a truck that was supposed to drive around the office of the publisher Smilegate in South Korea for eight hours a day for a week. They wanted to put psychological pressure on the company and force it not to change the pumping system in the game.

Last Tuesday, Amazon announced a partnership with the British independent game studio Glowmade. The developers are planning an online cooperative game, but there are no details yet.

Korean gaming company SmileGate announced a plan to liquidate a branch in Berlin. It opened last February and has been in operation for a little over a year. SmileGate explained their decision by restructuring the business.