Sayart.net
Jack Lee, wangjb77@gmail.com
Nexon's casual racing game "KartRider: Drift" is entering the global console game market beyond Korea.
NEXON announced on the 1st that "KartRider: Drift," which is being piloted as an ambitious work in 2023, will support the console platform environment by starting its official global service on March 9.
This means that NEXON will expand its game service area from PC and mobile platforms to console platforms such as PS4 and XBox One.
"KartRider: Drift," which launched a pre-open service in Korea on January 12, is currently only available in PC and smartphone environments.
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| ▲Screenshot image of 'Kartrider: Drift' / courtesy of NEXON |
NEXON is confident that "KartRider: Drift" will also be popular enough in North American and European markets, where the proportion of console platforms is high, as its previous work "KartRider" has been highly popular not only in Korea but also around the world for more than 15 years.
"KartRider: Drift" is NEXON's first cross-platform game to include mobile, PC and console. In fact, Nexon has been constantly striving to enter the global console game market, which is constantly growing every year.
Because the console game platform is forming a huge market in North America and Europe, it is judged that it cannot become a true global game powerhouse without increasing its market share.
NEXON's submission of new console games such as "First Descendant", "Dave the Diver", and "Mabinogi Mobile" at the Busan International Game Exhibition "G-Star 2022" in November last year also showed the company's strong commitment to entering the console game market.
As such, NEXON is focusing its development power on increasing the completeness of "KartRider: Drift" to actively target the console market.
Accordingly, the development team continues to update the game based on the play data of domestic and foreign users accumulated during the pilot service of "KartRider: Drift."
On the 16th of this month, it will carry out major updates such as adjusting the detailed stages of the license, adding a ray signature change function, and establishing a random track function in a custom mode.
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| ▲The large electronic display board of "Kartrider: Drift" installed in Gangnam, Seoul. / courtesy of NEXON |
NEXON plans to introduce various contents in the game in time for the regular season opening on March 9. Among them, the most notable game mode is Grand Prix Mode, a competitive content that competes for racing skills. The mode will be divided into speed and item rounds.
NEXON also plans to add a cart body upgrade system that can improve detailed performance such as acceleration of the cart body (vehicle) that players have and booster duration.
The company plans to upload all new content, including eight popular-themed tracks loved in the original works such as "World" and "Factory", and racing passes for the new season.
Director Cho Jae-yoon said, "the regular season, which starts on March 9, will complete a full cross-play environment that can run freely on all platforms, from PCs, mobile and consoles on one track. I ask for a lot of expectations and support from the racers."
NEXON decided to inherit the original Kartrider e-sports competition. The company announced on the 1st that it has signed a strategic partnership with AfreecaTV, Korea's largest personal broadcasting platform, for e-sports and joint content production.
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| ▲The title image of "Kartrider: Drift" / courtesy of NEXON |
As the first collaboration, the two companies plan to create various e-sports competitions in the future, starting with co-hosting the "Preseason Tournament" of "KartRider: Drift" in March.
In addition, AfreecaTV plans to increase its global viewership and discover streamers by supporting e-sports stadiums, platforms, and contents.
"KartRider: Drift" players expect the game to expand its territory to a console platform and create a more exciting racing environment with more users through various e-sports events.
