NCsoft set to relaunch Lineage series in China

NCsoft, a leading online game developer in Korea, will likely see progress in its China business this year thanks to the expected relaunch of its two best-selling online games in China, JP Morgan said yesterday.

NCsoft is an online gaming company with a focus on multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) genre. Its three key MMORPG games, Lineage, Lineage II and Aion, account for more than 90 percent of the company’s total revenue.

The likely relaunch of Lineage and Lineage II in China this year will help boost NCsoft’s business in the world’s largest online gaming market, the investment bank said.

Tencent Holdings, China’s No. 1 Internet company by revenue, signed an agreement last year to publish the Lineage series. Tencent is widely known for running the world’s third-largest instant messenger program QQ.

Lineage and Lineage II were previously run in China by Shanda Interactive Entertainment, a Shanghai-based operator of online games.

Shanda earlier announced that it was terminating its service of the Lineage series.

Yonhap