Nexon's 'Dungeon & Fighter Mobile' Captivating China: What's the Secret?

370 Billion KRW Sales in China Over One Month
Game Quality, Marketing, and Original Work Nostalgia Prove Effective

Nexon's mobile game, Dungeon & Fighter Mobile, has gained immense popularity in China, reportedly reaching the number one spot in global mobile game revenue rankings. Notably, the revenue generated within one month of its release in China last month is estimated to have surpassed the revenue earned in South Korea over the past two years. Analysts attribute this success to Nexon's China-friendly marketing strategy and the nostalgia it evoked among Chinese gamers.

According to app market research firm Sensor Tower on the 27th, Dungeon & Fighter Mobile recorded approximately $270 million (about 370 billion KRW) in revenue in the Chinese market during the one month period from its release on the 21st of last month until the 20th of this month. This figure exceeds the cumulative revenue generated in South Korea over two years and three months.

The revenue from Dungeon & Fighter Mobile in China is the highest not only among Korean games released in the Chinese market but also compared to popular local Chinese games. Sensor Tower analyzed that when comparing the revenue of the top 10 mobile games in the Chinese iOS market over two years with the revenue generated in their first month of release in China, Dungeon & Fighter Mobile's first-month revenue in China was the highest.

Game market research firm Niko Partners estimated that Dungeon & Fighter Mobile earned $140 million (about 194.6 billion KRW) in revenue during its first week after the China release. Mobile market research agency AppMagic also analyzed that Dungeon & Fighter Mobile ranked first in global game app revenue for five consecutive weeks from the 20th of last month to the 16th of this month, and ranked second overall in app rankings, just behind TikTok.

There were ups and downs before Dungeon & Fighter Mobile established itself in the Chinese market. Nexon initially planned to release Dungeon & Fighter Mobile in China in 2020 and even conducted pre-registrations, but abruptly canceled the service a day before the scheduled release. This was due to China's strict gaming regulations. At the time, Nexon explained, "Prior to the China service of Dungeon & Fighter Mobile, an upgrade to the game's over-immersion prevention system was necessary, leading to an unavoidable delay in the service schedule." The over-immersion prevention system restricts minors' gameplay time to one hour per day only on Fridays, Saturdays, Sundays, and holidays, while blocking game access on weekdays. Nexon postponed the service schedule and eventually abandoned the China release, only obtaining the necessary license and resuming service in China four years later.

This achievement of Dungeon & Fighter Mobile highlights the importance of intellectual property (IP) power in overseas expansion. According to the Sensor Tower report, the word most frequently mentioned by Dungeon & Fighter Mobile players in reviews in the Chinese market was "nostalgia." Dungeon & Fighter originally launched as a PC version in November 2007. By successfully implementing the original game's fun elements into the mobile version, it stimulated local fans' nostalgia and succeeded in attracting early users again. Dungeon & Fighter Mobile has also been praised domestically for faithfully capturing the original's sentiment with 2D dot graphics, side-scrolling action, and manual action gameplay.

China-friendly marketing also played a key role. A Nexon official said, "We put a lot of effort into marketing by appointing the famous Chinese actress Dilraba as the official model and adding collaboration content with Bruce Lee. Familiar games, familiar models, and familiar content seem to have eliminated Chinese users' resistance to new releases."