This article was published on the ChosunBiz RM Report website at 10:22 a.m. on Feb. 3, 2026.
The Korea Fair Trade Commission is conducting an on-site inspection of game developer Nexon, according to reports on the 3rd. The move aims to determine whether there were potential violations of the e-commerce law in the sale of paid items in connection with a controversy over probability-related errors in the mobile game "Maple Training."
According to the industry, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC)'s Seoul office recently sent a Researcher to Nexon's headquarters and is securing materials on the paid item sales structure and probability disclosure methods of "Maple Training." The game informed users that, in the process of resetting character stats using in-game items purchased with money, a maximum value could appear at a certain probability, but allegations were raised that, in reality, that result did not appear for a certain period.
Nexon acknowledged the error late last month and said it would refund the full amount paid by users since the launch of "Maple Training." However, the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) is said to be verifying the facts separately as to whether there were any illegal aspects in the transaction behavior, apart from the refund measure.
Article 21 of the e-commerce law prohibits businesses from informing consumers of false facts or engaging in transactions through deceptive methods. The Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) is reportedly focusing its investigation on whether there was a discrepancy between the disclosed probabilities and the game's actual operation, and whether information provided to consumers after the error was recognized was appropriate.
In 2024, Nexon was previously ordered by the Korea Fair Trade Commission (FTC) to pay a penalty surcharge of 11.6 billion won after false and deceptive acts were acknowledged in connection with sales of probability-based items in "MapleStory." The case was recorded as the largest penalty surcharge imposed for an e-commerce law violation.