[Market Focus] NCSoft Surges Over 10% on Expectations for New Title "Aion 2"

NCSoft's stock price is showing a double-digit increase for the first time in a while. This appears to reflect heightened expectations for the release of new titles.

As of 9:30 a.m. on June 2, NCSoft's stock price was up 10.4% from the previous trading day, reaching 168,350 won.

This is believed to be due to the release of information about "Aion 2," a PC and mobile massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) scheduled for launch in the fourth quarter of this year. This game is the sequel to NCSoft's globally successful title, Aion. The original Aion, launched in 2008, maintained the No. 1 spot in domestic PC bang market share for 160 consecutive weeks, demonstrating its strong brand loyalty.

Additionally, the fact that new titles such as LLL and Timetakers are lined up for release through 2026 is also seen as a positive factor.

Lee Changyoung, a researcher at Yuanta Securities, explained, "Aion 2 inherits the world and key gameplay elements of its predecessor, but is expected to avoid excessive monetization, feature graphics powered by Unreal Engine 5, and offer diverse combat and high degrees of freedom. Considering the game's performance within a streamlined cost structure due to workforce reductions, as well as the subsequent results from titles like LLL, a target price of 310,000 won is achievable."