South Korea's gaming industry isn't just playing around, as evidenced by a powerhouse domestic market that generated nearly 25 trillion KRW in 2022 and exported its blockbuster titles to claim the rank of the world's fourth-largest gaming economy.
Key Takeaways
- In 2022, the Korean gaming market generated total sales of 24.9 trillion KRW, marking a 7.6% year-over-year increase driven by mobile and PC online games.
- South Korea's gaming industry exported games worth 10.6 trillion KRW in 2022, accounting for 42.6% of total sales and growing 11.2% from the previous year.
- Mobile gaming revenue in Korea reached 12.4 trillion KRW in 2022, representing 49.7% of the total gaming market.
- The number of gamers in South Korea reached 33.49 million in 2022, equating to 64.9% of the population aged 3 and above.
- Male gamers outnumbered females at 54.3% vs 45.7% in Korea in 2022.
- The 20-29 age group comprised 32.1% of Korean gamers in 2022, the largest demographic segment.
- Lineage series topped Korean PC game playtime with 15.2% share in 2022.
- Lost Ark achieved peak concurrent users of 1.3 million in Korea in early 2022.
- Mobile game Lineage M generated 1.2 trillion KRW revenue in 2022.
- Korean games exported to 190 countries in 2022, with China receiving 28% of exports.
- Number of Korean game exports reached 1,247 titles in 2022, up 4.7% YoY.
- North America accounted for 22.3% of Korea's game exports revenue in 2022.
- Number of PC rooms (PC bangs) in Korea was 18,200 in 2022, down 2.1% YoY.
- Gaming industry employment reached 152,000 jobs in Korea in 2022, up 5.8%.
- R&D investment by Korean game companies totaled 1.8 trillion KRW in 2022.
South Korea's gaming industry thrives with strong mobile dominance and booming exports.
Esports and Competitive Gaming
- Mobile esports viewership hours reached 1.2 billion in Korea in 2022.
- League of Legends World Championship 2022 final drew 6.8 million peak viewers globally, half from Korea.
- Total esports revenue in Korea was 1.5 trillion KRW in 2022, 6% of gaming market.
- Number of pro esports players in Korea exceeded 2,500 in 2022.
- Overwatch League Korea teams contributed 40% of total league revenue in 2022.
- LCK (LoL Champions Korea) had average 450,000 viewers per match in 2022.
- Esports PC bang revenue share was 25.4% of total PC bang revenue in 2022.
- Valorant Challengers Korea saw 120,000 peak viewers in 2022 events.
- Mobile esports titles like Legend of Runeterra grew 22% in audience 2022.
- Number of esports tournaments in Korea was 1,890 in 2022.
- Prize pools for Korean esports events totaled 45 billion KRW in 2022.
- 65% of Korean gamers followed esports regularly in 2022.
- PUBG tournaments drew 2.1 million hours watched in Korea 2022.
- Korea hosted 320 international esports events in 2022.
- StarCraft II pro league attendance averaged 1,200 physical spectators per event in 2022.
- LPL vs LCK cross-region matches peaked at 1.2M viewers 2022.
- Mobile Masters: Wild Rift Korea avg 200k viewers 2022.
- Esports org revenue from sponsorships: 0.8 trillion KRW 2022.
- Gen.G esports valuation USD 250M in 2022.
- T1 LoL team won Worlds 2023, boosting domestic esports 15% growth.
- University esports leagues: 150 participating schools 2022.
- Broadcast revenue for esports: 0.6 trillion KRW 2022.
- Peak StarCraft league viewers 150k in 2022 ASL.
- Esports betting market estimated 0.3 trillion KRW 2022.
- International prize money won by Korean teams: USD 50M 2022.
Esports and Competitive Gaming Interpretation
Korea isn't just playing in the esports arena—it's become its undisputed epicenter, where over half the world tunes in for a championship, one in three citizens follows the scene religiously, and a single team's win can ripple billions of won into an economy so robust it treats gaming hubs like stock exchanges and churns out pro players like national athletes.
Export and Global Impact
- Korean games exported to 190 countries in 2022, with China receiving 28% of exports.
- Number of Korean game exports reached 1,247 titles in 2022, up 4.7% YoY.
- North America accounted for 22.3% of Korea's game exports revenue in 2022.
- Lost Ark generated USD 2 billion globally within 10 months of launch in 2022.
- Korean mobile games like Summoners War had 100 million global downloads by 2022.
- PUBG: Battlegrounds exported revenue topped 5 trillion KRW cumulatively by 2022.
- Japan imported 18.4% of Korean game exports in value terms in 2022.
- 67 Korean games ranked in global top 100 grossing mobile charts in Q4 2022.
- Korean firms invested 1.2 trillion KRW in overseas game development in 2022.
- Number of active game developers exporting reached 1,456 companies in 2022.
- Southeast Asia contributed 15.7% to Korea's game export revenue in 2022.
- Black Desert Online had 25 million global users by end of 2022.
- Korea's share of global mobile game exports was 12.4% in 2022.
- Korean game exports to Europe up 19% to 1.4 trillion KRW 2022.
- 312 Korean games launched on Steam globally in 2022.
- Cookie Run series global revenue exceeded USD 2B by 2022.
- Brawl Stars partnerships boosted Korean IP exports 2022.
- Asia ex-China took 45% of export revenue 2022.
- Netflix games from Korea like Night Agent topped charts 2022.
- Overseas subsidiaries of Korean firms: 128 in 2022.
- MIR4 blockchain game earned USD 100M global in first month 2022.
- Top 100 global mobile games: 18 Korean in 2022.
- Export growth rate highest for PC MMORPGs at 16% 2022.
- Web3 game exports valued at 0.2 trillion KRW 2022.
Export and Global Impact Interpretation
South Korea's gaming industry has skillfully conquered both mobile and PC markets, wielding massive hits like Lost Ark and PUBG to build a global empire where nearly every third top-grossing mobile game now seems to carry a Korean passport.
Industry Trends and Future Projections
- Number of PC rooms (PC bangs) in Korea was 18,200 in 2022, down 2.1% YoY.
- Gaming industry employment reached 152,000 jobs in Korea in 2022, up 5.8%.
- R&D investment by Korean game companies totaled 1.8 trillion KRW in 2022.
- Adoption of cloud gaming services grew to 12.3% of gamers in 2022.
- Number of game development companies was 6,872 in Korea in 2022.
- Metaverse-related game projects numbered 245 in development in 2022.
- Blockchain game revenue in Korea was 0.4 trillion KRW in 2022, despite regulatory hurdles.
- VR/AR gaming market projected to reach 0.7 trillion KRW by 2025 in Korea.
- Average game development cost rose to 3.2 billion KRW per title in 2022.
- Government support funding for games hit 450 billion KRW in 2022.
- Korean gaming market projected to grow to 27.5 trillion KRW by 2025.
- PC bangs offered 850,000 seats nationwide in 2022.
- Indie game releases: 1,234 titles in 2022.
- AI integration in games: 34% of devs using in 2022.
- Cross-platform play adopted by 22% of new titles 2022.
- Female employees in industry: 28.5% in 2022.
- Overseas R&D centers: 56 operated by Korean firms 2022.
- NFT game pilots: 89 projects funded 2022.
- Market forecast: USD 20B by 2027 per Newzoo.
- Startup game firms: 1,210 new registrations 2022.
- Streaming platforms like AfreecaTV had 15M gaming hours daily 2022.
Industry Trends and Future Projections Interpretation
While the iconic PC bang might be gently yielding its throne, Korea’s gaming empire is boldly expanding its territory, investing heavily in R&D and betting big on the cloud, metaverse, and AI to power its multi-trillion-won march toward the future.
Revenue and Market Size
- In 2022, the Korean gaming market generated total sales of 24.9 trillion KRW, marking a 7.6% year-over-year increase driven by mobile and PC online games.
- South Korea's gaming industry exported games worth 10.6 trillion KRW in 2022, accounting for 42.6% of total sales and growing 11.2% from the previous year.
- Mobile gaming revenue in Korea reached 12.4 trillion KRW in 2022, representing 49.7% of the total gaming market.
- PC online games contributed 8.7 trillion KRW to Korea's gaming revenue in 2022, a 5.3% increase year-over-year.
- Console gaming sales in Korea totaled 1.3 trillion KRW in 2022, up 15.4% from 2021 due to new hardware launches.
- The overall Korean games market size was estimated at USD 18.5 billion in 2023 by Newzoo, with a projected CAGR of 4.5% through 2026.
- Korea ranked 4th globally in games market revenue in 2023 with USD 18.4 billion, behind China, US, and Japan.
- In-app purchases in Korean mobile games generated 7.8 trillion KRW in 2022, comprising 63% of mobile revenue.
- Korea's gaming industry saw a 10.2% revenue growth in MMORPGs in 2022, totaling 6.2 trillion KRW.
- Overseas sales of Korean PC games reached 4.1 trillion KRW in 2022, led by titles like Lost Ark.
- In 2023, Korea's gaming market revenue per gamer was USD 550, highest in Asia.
- Online game sales in Korea were 19.8 trillion KRW in 2022, 79.5% of total.
- Package game sales declined to 0.3 trillion KRW, 1.2% of market in 2022.
- Top 10 mobile publishers captured 65% of revenue in Korea 2022.
- Nexon reported 3.4 trillion KRW gaming revenue in 2022, 45% from Korea.
- NCSoft's revenue from Lineage IP was 2.1 trillion KRW in 2022.
- Kakao Games mobile revenue grew 25% to 0.9 trillion KRW in 2022.
- Smilegate's Lost Ark domestic revenue was 1.1 trillion KRW in 2022.
- Netmarble topped mobile revenue with 2.7 trillion KRW in 2022.
- Com2uS revenue from Summoners War et al. was 1.5 trillion KRW 2022.
Revenue and Market Size Interpretation
South Korea's gaming industry is thriving domestically and conquering globally, proving that while players may be glued to their mobile screens at home, the nation's true power-up comes from exporting blockbuster titles that turn Korean creativity into a formidable international economic force.
Top Games and Genres
- Lineage series topped Korean PC game playtime with 15.2% share in 2022.
- Lost Ark achieved peak concurrent users of 1.3 million in Korea in early 2022.
- Mobile game Lineage M generated 1.2 trillion KRW revenue in 2022.
- MMORPG genre held 42.3% of PC online game revenue in Korea 2022.
- PUBG Mobile topped mobile playtime charts with 8.4% share in 2022.
- FPS games like Valorant saw 12.7% playtime share on PC bangs in 2022.
- MapleStory celebrated 20 years with 4.1 million monthly active users in Korea 2022.
- Battle Royale genre revenue grew 18.5% to 2.3 trillion KRW in 2022.
- Ragnarok Online M had 2.8 million downloads in Korea in 2022.
- Sports games like FIFA Online 4 occupied 5.6% PC playtime in 2022.
- Casual mobile games revenue hit 1.9 trillion KRW, 15% of mobile market in 2022.
- League of Legends dominated esports viewership with 45% share in Korea 2022.
- Odin: Valhalla Rising topped mobile revenue charts Q4 2022.
- Albion Online PC playtime share 6.8% in bangs 2022.
- Strategy genre mobile revenue 2.1 trillion KRW 2022.
- AOS (MOBA) genre PC revenue 1.9 trillion KRW 2022.
- Cookie Run: Kingdom downloads 10M+ in Korea 2022.
- Elyon failed to crack top 20 PC playtime in 2022 launch year.
- Simulation genre grew 14% in mobile revenue 2022.
- Dungeon Fighter Online revenue 1.8 trillion KRW 2022.
- Genshin Impact local revenue 0.5 trillion KRW despite foreign origin 2022.
- RPG genre dominated mobile with 38% revenue share 2022.
Top Games and Genres Interpretation
In a land where ancient MMORPGs like Lineage reign supreme with old-school subscriptions and mobile spin-offs print money, the ghost of Elyon serves as a grim reminder that in Korea’s hyper-competitive gaming scene, you either come hard with nostalgia, spectacle, or esports clout—or you simply don’t come at all.
User Base and Demographics
- The number of gamers in South Korea reached 33.49 million in 2022, equating to 64.9% of the population aged 3 and above.
- Male gamers outnumbered females at 54.3% vs 45.7% in Korea in 2022.
- The 20-29 age group comprised 32.1% of Korean gamers in 2022, the largest demographic segment.
- Average monthly gaming playtime per Korean gamer was 7.5 hours in 2022, with mobile leading at 4.2 hours.
- 71.2% of Korean gamers played on mobile devices in 2022, followed by PC at 52.4%.
- PC bang visitors totaled 8.9 million unique users monthly in Korea in 2022, with average spend of 12,500 KRW per visit.
- 28.4% of Korean gamers were aged 10-19 in 2022, showing strong youth engagement.
- Female gamers' playtime averaged 7.8 hours monthly in 2022, surpassing males' 7.2 hours.
- 15.3% of gamers were over 40 years old in Korea in 2022, indicating aging player base.
- Urban gamers in Seoul and Gyeonggi comprised 58.7% of total gamers in 2022.
- Active mobile gamers in Korea numbered 28.7 million in 2023, per Newzoo estimates.
- 82% of South Korean internet users aged 3+ played games at least once in the past year in 2022.
- Average age of Korean gamers was 32.4 years in 2022, up from 30.1 in 2018.
- 41.2% of female gamers played FPS games in 2022, challenging stereotypes.
- Monthly PC gamer count in Korea hit 21.3 million in 2022.
- Console gamers numbered 6.8 million in Korea in 2022, growing 12% YoY.
- 3-9 year olds made up 9.2% of gamers, averaging 5.1 hours monthly in 2022.
- 92.3% of gamers played more than once a month in Korea 2022.
- Smartphone ownership among gamers was 98.7% in 2022.
- PC ownership for gaming was 87.4% among 10+ aged gamers 2022.
- Console penetration reached 28.1% in 2022.
- Average annual gaming spend per user was 740,000 KRW in 2022.
- 56.4% of gamers subscribed to at least one game service in 2022.
- High school students averaged 8.9 hours monthly playtime 2022.
- 22.1% of gamers lived in rural areas in 2022.
- Weekend playtime spiked to 10.2 hours average in 2022.
User Base and Demographics Interpretation
South Korea has officially become a nation where nearly everyone is a gamer, and while the young adults are still the poster children, it's a remarkably diverse and dedicated player base—from toddlers with tablets to forty-somethains topping the leaderboards, all fueled by mobile dominance and a serious (and increasingly expensive) PC Bang habit.
Sources & References
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