[Report] Waiting from Dawn Holding Son's Hand... Whole Family Game Festival G-Star

On the second day of the opening, the largest domestic game exhibition, ‘G-STAR 2023,’ held at BEXCO in Busan, was bustling with visitors. From students who rushed over after finishing the College Scholastic Ability Test (CSAT), to a 6-year-old child visiting G-STAR for the first time holding his father's hand, and office workers who took leave to enjoy the games, game lovers from all over the country gathered in Busan.

On the morning of the 17th, visitors waiting to enter 'G-STAR 2023' are lined up at BEXCO in Busan.

Waiting Only for G-STAR... Crowds from Early Morning

At 8:30 a.m., well before the 10 a.m. opening time of G-STAR, the BEXCO parking lot was already crowded with hundreds of visitors. All of them were there to participate in the G-STAR ‘open run.’ An open run usually happens at places like department stores where limited-edition items such as luxury bags are sold first to customers. However, for visitors to G-STAR, games were the luxury items. Visitors came to the venue from early dawn to be the first to try out new games.

At BEXCO in Busan, visitors are enjoying games at G-STAR 2023, the largest domestic game exhibition, which opened on the 16th. G-STAR 2023, which opened on the 16th, is held until the 19th with a scale of 3,328 booths from 1,037 companies in 42 countries.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Kwon Young-su (18), who arrived at the venue around 7 a.m., had just finished the 2024 CSAT the day before. Kwon said, “Even while taking the CSAT, I could only think about coming to G-STAR,” adding, “I heard that I would have to wait several hours to try the game demos, so I left home early in the morning.”

Visitors with young children were also seen here and there. Park, who visited G-STAR with his 6-year-old son, said, “Although my wife scolded me, it has always been my dream to play games with my son, so we came together,” adding, “I usually enjoy Lost Ark, so I’m most looking forward to the new Lost Ark Mobile.” In addition, various visitors such as office workers who took leave and came from Seoul, and visitors cosplaying as game characters, came to G-STAR early in the morning.

On the 17th, visitors are lining up to try the new game "Lost Ark Mobile" at the Smilegate booth during "G-Star 2023" held at BEXCO in Busan.

3-Hour Wait to Try ‘Lost Ark Mobile’

The biggest interest for visitors to G-STAR was game demos. Game companies set up demo booths where visitors could directly experience major new releases. Each demo booth attracted many visitors, requiring at least a 30-minute wait to try the games. Among them, the most popular was Smilegate’s new title ‘Lost Ark Mobile’ demo booth.

‘Lost Ark Mobile’ is a new MMORPG (Massively Multiplayer Online Role-Playing Game) under development that inherits Smilegate’s flagship IP (intellectual property) ‘Lost Ark.’ Lost Ark is a global game enjoyed by over one million users daily, with a strong fan base. Accordingly, interest in the new ‘Lost Ark Mobile’ was intense.

At the ‘Lost Ark Mobile’ demo booth, staff were seen turning visitors away. Even after a sign indicating a 2-hour wait was displayed, the line continued to grow, so the staff advised, “From here on, the wait time is over 3 hours, so please visit other booths first and come back later.”

At G-STAR, NCSoft operated demo booths for three new titles: the shooter ‘LLL,’ the brawler action ‘Battlecrush,’ and the collection RPG ‘Project BSS.’ Krafton set up a demo booth for ‘Dark and Darker Mobile,’ a new title independently developed by its creative studio Bluehole Studio. Netmarble provided 170 demo stations showcasing three titles: ‘Demis Reborn,’ ‘RF Online Next,’ and ‘The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin.’

On the 17th, Krafton is holding a cosplay event at the booth where attendees can meet characters from the game 'Dark and Darker Mobile'.

Transforming into Game Characters at G-STAR

A significant number of visitors cosplayed as game characters. Some cosplayed as the ‘Elf’ race with light green hair and pointed ears, while others wore full animal costumes mimicking monsters from the games.

As the number of cosplayers increased, on-site safety personnel became busier. This year, G-STAR strengthened safety regulations for cosplay participants, banning metal helmets and armor, as well as weapons that could be fired, such as replica guns. Consequently, some visitors dressed in military uniforms carrying BB guns or wearing ninja costumes with swords were stopped.

Cosplay events organized by each game company were also very popular. Krafton ran a cosplay event at the booth where visitors could meet characters from ‘Dark and Darker Mobile,’ capturing the attention of attendees. Webzen released cosplay photo collections for three titles: ‘I Want to Become a Dark Lord,’ ‘Ragnarok,’ and ‘Tervis.’

Now in its 19th year, the international game exhibition G-STAR opened on the 16th and ran for four days until the 19th at BEXCO in Busan. G-STAR featured 1,037 companies from 42 countries, with 3,328 booths, a 12.9% increase compared to the previous year. This is the largest scale ever, surpassing the previous record of 3,208 booths set in 2019.