With the Chuseok holiday, one of the biggest periods in the second half of the year, the game industry has prepared a variety of events.
◇ Chuseok events "catch the eye"… complete missions and get items
According to the game industry on the 3rd, Nexon is holding Chuseok events in 12 of its popular online games and six mobile games. Nexon rolled out the first major update for Mabinogi Mobile at the end of last month, adding a new region, combat system, main quests, and more. In this game, a giant moon will be installed in Dunbarton Square through the 16th. Users can obtain various items through the "Confusing Full Moon Box" by completing dungeon or hunting ground missions.
NCSOFT is also running Chuseok events across 10 games. The online game Lineage W will open the event dungeon "Feast of the Full Moon" through the 15th. Users can defeat monsters in the dungeon and acquire various event currencies. The mobile game Lineage M is holding the "Moon Rabbit's Treasure Box" event through the 15th of this month. Users can open the "Moon Rabbit's Treasure Box," given as a reward for clearing the event trial dungeon, to additionally receive one rabbit-related relic card based on probability. Aion will hold the "PC bang Chuseok special gift" event through the 29th. Users can enjoy Aion at a PC bang and obtain tiered rewards based on accumulated play time.
Kakao Games is also rolling out a new region update and large-scale events for the PC and mobile title Ares: Rise of Guardians to mark Chuseok. The new region Erask serves as the backdrop for Act 7 of the story, adding a new field in the area along with various missions and new affinities, "light" and "darkness." Through the 9th, five restoration tickets—one each for weapons, armor, relics, modules, and special equipment—will be granted, and various items will be provided for seven days of check-ins. A limited-time event dungeon will also open during this period, allowing users to exchange songpyeon items obtained by hunting monsters for various rewards.
Riot Games, which operates League of Legends (LoL), the No. 1 game by PC bang share, is running a LoL Chuseok event through the 12th. Users who complete various daily missions can obtain Chuseok pouches and purchase three random skins at a 30%–50% discount. Pearl Abyss has also prepared events for Black Desert and Black Desert Mobile. Through the 8th of this month, logging into the game will grant the "Bountiful Chuseok Box" containing various items, and a hot-time event that provides an experience boost will run through the 15th. In Black Desert Mobile, users will receive a "Black Shrine admission ticket" upon completing missions, and a "Chuseok commemorative shop" will open from the 6th until 9 a.m. on the 14th.
◇ Chuseok holiday "opportunity" as user inflow rises
Offline events are plentiful as well. Nexon will hold the "Chuseok N Museum" event at its Nexon Computer Museum from the 3rd to the 12th. During this period, online coupons offering up to 50% off museum admission will be distributed. In the museum's experience zone "Chuseok N Game Talk," visitors who share stories about their game of a lifetime will receive gifts. At the Cafe MapleStory goods store, purchases over 50,000 won will let customers experience Jeju's traditional yutnori, "Neokdoongbaegi."
According to the game industry, during the holiday period, PC bang usage is estimated to increase by about 5 percentage points on average compared with weekdays. During this period, all games tend to benefit regardless of genre. The massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) genre, which is well-suited for long, immersive play, sees a significant rise in user activity over the extended holiday. The increase in new and returning users is also expected to maximize the impact of large-scale updates.
Casual games perform strongly during the holiday season because they are easy to enjoy on the way to visit family and suitable for playing with relatives. Last year, Royal Match and WOS: Whiteout Survival ranked at the top in revenue, and Luck-Based Game with Tons of RNG also climbed from outside the top 10 into the top five. Web board games are also considered traditional "holiday powerhouses." Titles such as Hangame Poker and Pmang Poker have seen their revenue rankings rise every year as Chuseok event rewards were added.
A game industry official said, "This year's long Chuseok holiday will make competition for attracting new users and retaining long-term users fiercer than ever."