Krafton
Overview
Krafton (KRAFTON, Inc.) is a South Korean game company that developed and services 《PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS》 and pioneered the battle royale genre in the global market. It began in 2007 as Bluehole and changed to its current name in 2018, and in August 2021 it was listed on the KOSPI, recording the largest IPO in Korean history at the time. Its headquarters is located in the Pangyo area of Bundang-gu, Seongnam-si, Gyeonggi-do, and it is diversifying genres and platforms through its subsidiary portfolio.
Key Details
History and Growth
Bluehole, founded in 2007 by Chairman Chang Byung-gyu, made its name as a developer by launching the MMORPG 《TERA》 in 2011. It later recruited Brendan Greene (nickname PlayerUnknown) and released 《PLAYERUNKNOWN'S BATTLEGROUNDS》 in early access in March 2017, and the game popularized the battle royale genre and achieved explosive global success. In 2018 the company changed its name to Krafton, and in 2021 it entered the capital markets through its initial public offering.
Major Game Lineup
- PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS: It lowered the entry barrier by transitioning to free-to-play (F2P) in January 2022, and it is serviced on all platforms: PC, console, and mobile.
- PUBG MOBILE / NEW STATE MOBILE: Through collaboration with Tencent, these are core cash cows generating high revenue in the Chinese and global mobile markets.
- The Callisto Protocol: A new title released in 2022 in the horror survival genre.
- inZOI: A life simulation game released in early access in March 2025, and it drew attention by ranking high in Steam concurrent player counts in the early days of release.
Organization and Subsidiaries
Krafton operates a "production studio alliance" system with multiple studios as subsidiaries. These include PUBG Studios, Bluehole Studio, RisingWings, Dreamotion, 5minlab, ReLU Games, and inZOI Studio, and overseas it has owned and operated companies such as Unknown Worlds Entertainment, known for 《Subnautica》, and Striking Distance Studios, which developed 《The Callisto Protocol》. Each studio maintains independence and carries out projects by genre.
Business Structure and Revenue Sources
A significant portion of revenue is generated from PUBG-related intellectual property (IP), and the company continuously expands IP value through in-game item sales such as battle passes and skins, content updates, and expansion into esports and media. At the same time, to reduce the risk of IP concentration, it pursues new IP development and investment in and publishing of indie and small-to-mid-sized studios in parallel.
Esports and Community
It operates its own esports tournaments such as the PUBG Global Championship (PGC), forming a global fandom, and through regional league systems it is building an ecosystem that extends from amateur to professional levels.
Latest Trends
In 2024–2025, Krafton is presenting "IP expansion" and "diversification of new titles" as its core strategies. 《inZOI》, released in March 2025, is a major new title that took on the life simulation genre and demonstrated box-office potential by recording high concurrent player counts in the early days of early access. In addition, it is pursuing a mobile new-title lineup such as 《Dark and Darker Mobile》 and simultaneously carrying out media and animation projects that expand the worldview of the PUBG IP. Efforts to improve production efficiency using artificial intelligence (AI) and investment in new studios continue, and attempts to incorporate "deep learning"-based technology into the game development pipeline are ongoing. In 2024, along with regional diversification such as re-entry into the Indian market, the company showed a recovery in performance and is expanding dividend and shareholder return policies.
Related Topics
- [[PUBG: BATTLEGROUNDS]]
- [[Battle Royale Genre]]
- [[inZOI]]
- [[Nexon]]
- [[NCSOFT]]
- [[Esports]]