As console prices continue to rise, South Korean game companies are enhancing their multi-platform strategies to support not only new consoles but also previous-generation devices. This approach aims to maximize user engagement amid concerns that the adoption rate of the latest gaming hardware may slow down due to rising costs.
Recently, the domestic gaming industry has been actively expanding its console platforms to target markets in North America and Europe. However, with the prices of the PlayStation 5 Pro and Nintendo Switch 2 increasing, there are worries that the number of users for these new devices may not grow as quickly as anticipated. Consequently, game companies are focusing on broadening their support to include older consoles to attract as many users as possible.
Indeed, South Korean game developers are working to ensure that a single game can be played on multiple platforms, including PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X and S, and Nintendo Switch. Pearl Abyss has also indicated at its regular shareholders' meeting in March that it is considering support for the Nintendo Switch 2 for its game 'Crimson Desert,' maintaining its trend of expanding console platform support.
A representative from Nexon Games stated, "The industry is continuously expanding console game development to enhance market reach and competitiveness. Supporting not only the latest models but also existing consoles is becoming increasingly important, and we are putting significant effort into optimization for various console environments."
However, increasing the number of supported devices also raises development challenges. New consoles support 4K resolution and high refresh rates, while older devices require adjustments in resolution, graphic quality, frame rates, and memory usage. Even for the same game, differences in storage performance and memory capacity across devices can necessitate separate designs for loading speeds and object rendering.
The industry anticipates that these optimization efforts will inevitably extend development timelines and costs. Particularly for AAA console games, which can require hundreds of millions of won in development costs, a slowdown in hardware adoption may lengthen the return on investment period.
Nevertheless, the overall strategy of expanding console support is not expected to waver. North America and Europe are key markets with a high proportion of console users, making the expansion of console platforms a necessary strategy. In fact, the development approach of supporting various generations of consoles is likely to become more widespread in the future.
Opinions on when the memory supply shortage will be resolved vary. Market research firm TrendForce predicted in a report published in March that new semiconductor factories capable of producing general-purpose memory will begin operations between late 2027 and 2028, gradually restoring memory supply.
Conversely, the Korea Creative Content Agency recently reported that the increased demand for memory and GPUs due to the expansion of AI infrastructure will continue to strain the supply of gaming hardware and server components for the time being. As a result, there is a possibility that prices for consumer gaming devices, including consoles and PCs, as well as operational costs for cloud gaming services, will rise. Game companies will also need to enhance their optimization technologies and server infrastructure strategies to reduce memory usage.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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