Lee touts importance of Korean gaming as 'culture pillar' at roundtable
Published: 15 Oct. 2025, 19:15
![President Lee Jae Myung tours a game exhibition space during a K-game industry roundtable at PUBG Seongsu in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul, on Oct. 15. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/10/15/c63c3542-b849-442f-957c-9f83e175b2bb.jpg)
President Lee Jae Myung tours a game exhibition space during a K-game industry roundtable at PUBG Seongsu in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul, on Oct. 15. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]
President Lee Jae Myung on Wednesday underscored the importance of the gaming industry in turning Korea into a global cultural powerhouse, calling games “a vital pillar of the cultural industry” and pledging stronger government support for the sector.
Lee spoke with game developers at a roundtable at PUBG Seongsu in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul. PUBG Seongsu is an offline space created by Krafton, the developer behind the hit title PUBG: Battlegrounds, to let visitors experience the PUBG universe firsthand. Before the discussion, Lee toured PUBG Seongsu’s “Play Arena,” where he tried an AI-based life simulation game called inZOI.
At the event, Lee said, “The government’s goal is to make Korea a leading global cultural industry nation, and gaming is a crucial part of that vision.”
Lee additionally stressed that the government must learn from past mistakes in its treatment of the gaming sector.
“Gaming is one of the earliest forms of cultural industry, but it seems to have faced many challenges due to mismatched government policies,” he said, citing the Park Geun-hye administration’s designation of gaming as one of the nation’s four major addictions — alongside drugs, gambling and alcohol.
“Instead of supporting the industry, the government at the time suppressed it,” Lee said. “We were ahead of China back then, but that policy may have allowed them to overtake us quickly.”
Lee praised Krafton’s global success, noting that the company posted 2.7 trillion won ($1.9 billion) in sales last year.
“This is a major contributor to national wealth,” he said. “For a country like Korea — short on natural resources and dependent on exports — game exports represent the most genuine form of export.”
Lee also called for a shift in mindset toward potential side effects of gaming.
“Restricting gaming because of addiction concerns won’t solve the problem,” he said. “We should turn those challenges into opportunities.”
However, the president also emphasized the need to ensure fair treatment of workers in the industry.
“While it’s good news for business owners when a game succeeds and profits soar, my concern is whether the young employees involved in research, development and management share in those benefits,” Lee said.
“We must prevent situations where only business owners gain while young workers are treated as disposable and denied basic rights.”
![President Lee Jae Myung tries out Krafton’s new game inZOI during a K-game industry roundtable at PUBG Seongsu in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul, on Oct. 15. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]](https://koreajoongangdaily.joins.com/data/photo/2025/10/15/12412cc6-d701-4d4f-b73e-dcfcc898ad4c.jpg)
President Lee Jae Myung tries out Krafton’s new game inZOI during a K-game industry roundtable at PUBG Seongsu in Seongdong District, eastern Seoul, on Oct. 15. [PRESIDENTIAL OFFICE]
Addressing industry calls for more flexible work-hour systems, Lee said game developers face periods of intensive work around major updates or new releases, making flexibility necessary.
Still, he stopped short of declaring a policy stance, noting that “there are two sides to the issue” and adding, “We must find a wise balance between the conflicting interests.”
The Lee administration has been pursuing a four-and-a-half-day workweek as a national policy goal, but has not yet clarified its position on expanding the flexible work-hour system sought by employers.
The event was held as part of the Blue House’s designated cultural week activities.
This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.
BY YOON SUNG-MIN [[email protected]]
with the Korea JoongAng Daily
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