South Korean game developers NC, Smilegate, Nexon, and Wemade are stepping up launches in China in 2026 as they look beyond a shrinking home market and Chinese approvals gradually rise.

NC, a South Korean game developer known for the Lineage series, signed a publishing deal with Shengqu Games in Shanghai on July 30 for Aion 2 in China, after launching Lineage 2M there in late June with Tencent Games.

Smilegate released Chaos Zero Nightmare in China in May, Wemade launched Mir M in January, and Nexon released Dave the Diver in February. Nexon is also preparing to launch Arc Raiders in China after obtaining a license.

The shift is notable because China stopped issuing new licenses for Korean games in 2017 amid the THAAD (Terminal High Altitude Area Defense) dispute.

China’s National Press and Publication Administration now issues the ISBN licenses needed for games to operate in China.

Even with approvals increasing, imported games remain a limited category, with 25 imported titles approved through the May 2026 batch.

South Korea’s usage rate measures the share of people aged 10 to 69 who played games in the previous year.

🔗 Source: Chosun Daily