PRESS RELEASES
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WEBZEN TO SHOWCASE KINGDOM OF WARRIORS AND OTHER EXCITING TITLES AT CHINAJOY
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- WEBZEN to showcase Kingdom of Warriors, one the most anticipated games in China, along with Huxley and Project Wiki
- CEO Nam Ju Kim to give a special presentation on successful global strategy
July 25, 2006 – Global online entertainment company WEBZEN Inc. (www.webzen.com) announced today that it will be showcasing its exciting line-up of game titles, including Kingdom of Warriors, at ChinaJoy, China’s largest entertainment software show, at the Shanghai New International Expo Center (SNIEC) from July 28-30, 2006.
In its third year at ChinaJoy, WEBZEN will be featuring its diverse line-up in a 391 square-meter booth in the center’s main exhibition area, Hall 1. As the only Korean game publisher to share the main hall with China’s game powerhouses such as Shanda and The 9, WEBZEN promises to dazzle the visitors with its world-class titles.
Under the same banner “Stylish WEBZEN” introduced during this year’s E3, the booth will showcase Kingdom of Warriors, which has been in development for three years in China, as well as a diverse line-up of other dynamic games that include the much-anticipated Huxley and Project Wiki.
Geared specifically for the Chinese market, Kingdom of Warriors is the exciting massively multiplayer online role-playing game (MMORPG) being developed by WEBZEN China, Co., a subsidiary of WEBZEN Inc., founded in December 2004. Testifying to the public’s overwhelming enthusiasm for WEBZEN’s titles, Kingdom of Warriors has consistently been in the top 5 of the most anticipated games in the country in a list compiled by China’s 17173.com (www.17173.com), along with Soul of the Ultimate Nation (SUN), which has been rated number 1. With the growing number of fans eagerly awaiting the ultimate game based on the classic novel Romance of the Three Kingdoms, the fan sites for Kingdom of Warriors have been exploding with news of the upcoming show.
In addition, Nam Ju Kim, CEO of WEBZEN Inc. is scheduled to participate in the conference planned for the 27th, a day before the official opening of ChinaJoy, by giving a special presentation on successful global strategy to VIPs from China and abroad. The participants in the conference will include leading figures in the world’s game publishing industry as well as high-level government officials.
“WEBZEN plans on increasing its brand awareness in China through this year’s ChinaJoy and solidifying its image as a global brand in the local market,” said Nam Ju Kim. “I’m thrilled that our game titles, including Kingdom of Warriors, have been receiving such a great response in the country’s media and from Chinese gamers. With ChinaJoy, we will be stepping up our presence in China.”
Meanwhile, Chinese gamers and other visitors are invited to try out Kingdom of Warriors in WEBZEN’s booth during the show. Various other events are planned, including games and prize giveaways.
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July 25 2006
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WEBZEN SIGNS MASSIVE TO PROVIDE VIDEO GAME ADVERTISING
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Highly Anticipated Online Games Huxley and All Points Bulletin to Enjoy New Revenue Streams from Blue-Chip Advertisers
June 27, 2006 — Massive Incorporated, creator of the leading in-game advertising network, and WEBZEN Inc. (NASDAQ: WZEN), a leading global online entertainment company, today announced plans to provide in-game advertising to two of the global publisher’s most anticipated massively multiplayer online games (MMOG). The agreement marks Massive’s entry into the Asian market and WEBZEN’s first services to provide in-game advertising.
Games included in the deal are the upcoming PC versions of the massively multiplayer online first-person shooter (MMOFPS) Huxley and the urban action MMOG All Points Bulletin. Both games are slated for worldwide release and will include in-game advertising in each territory.
“As a premier global online games company, WEBZEN is dedicated to providing a realistic experience for our gamers,” said Nam Ju Kim, CEO, Webzen Inc. “The combination of WEBZEN’s global marketing know-how and Massive’s unprecedented in-game advertising experience ensures we are delivering the highest level of quality to gamers.”
Slated for release in 2007, the award-winning Huxley utilizes the UNREAL3 engine and WEBZEN’s proprietary networking technology to create an unparalleled twitch action gaming experience with up to 5,000 players in the same world. All Points Bulletin, developed by Real Time Worlds, Ltd. and designed by the creator of the Grand Theft Auto® franchise, is the only massively multiplayer online game (MMOG) to combine nearly limitless customization with intense urban action in a city that never sleeps. APB is planned for a 2008 release.
“Massive’s network represents the best global content in the industry, ever more so with the inclusion of Webzen’s award-winning games,” said Nicholas Longano, President of New Media for Massive. “We’re thrilled to work with Webzen to bring dynamic in-game advertising to the Asian market for the first time.”
Recently acquired by Microsoft Corp., Massive pioneered dynamic in-game advertising with the launch of the Massive Network in October 2004 and has since partnered with more than 60 blue-chip advertisers to seamlessly deliver ads into more than 75 million game sessions. Massive enables publishers and developers to capture significant new revenues through the aggregation of the video game audience which can be more effectively marketed to advertisers. Developers are able to integrate real-world ad campaigns that are timely and enhance the game environment with more realism.
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June 27 2006
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WEBZEN’S MMORPG SOUL OF THE ULTIMATE NATION™ ENTERS OPEN BETA IN KOREA
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May 24, 2006 –WEBZEN Inc. (NASDAQ: WZEN), a leading global online games company, announced today that the highly anticipated action massively multiplayer online role playing game (MMORPG) Soul of the Ultimate Nation™ has entered open beta service in Korea.
Soul of the Ultimate Nation is an action MMORPG that delivers more fun and more friends in less time. Players can quickly form a party and jump into battle using Soul of the Ultimate Nation’s unique Battle Zone System and embark on a journey through a graphically stunning and ever-expanding online fantasy world that is ready for action whenever players are. With unique battle systems and a captivating cast of characters, Soul of the Ultimate Nation is an epic tale in a world of emperors, armies, magicians and monsters.
During the four-stage beta testing conducted in Korea from September 2005 to May 2006, gamers gave high marks to Soul of the Ultimate Nation’s breathtaking graphics and the game’s innovative battle zone system that allows players to customize the map’s level of difficulty and compensation. For the current open beta tests, WEBZEN has listened to player opinions and is stepping up the game’s excitement by adding further enhancements to Soul of the Ultimate Nation’s unique field maps. Also, by adding a competitive hunting system and mission ranking system for even faster, more dynamic action game play, WEBZEN promises to push the envelop in the action MMORPG genre.
“After the amazing success of MU Online in Asia, we have worked extremely hard to bring fans the kind of triple-A online gaming experience they expect of WEBZEN’s second game in Soul of the Ultimate Nation,” said Nam Ju Kim, CEO, WEBZEN, Inc. “By listening to player feedback from previous closed beta tests and fine tuning the game’s beautiful and stunning graphics and innovative action systems, we believe that Soul of the Ultimate Nation has all the necessary features to make it a leader in Asia’s next generation of MMORPGs.”
For more information on Soul of the Ultimate Nation, please visit the official Korean website at www.sunonline.co.kr.
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May 24 2006
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WEBZEN TO SHOWCASE DIVERSE WORLD-CLASS MMOG LINE-UP AT 2006 E3 EXPO
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April 26, 2006 – Global online entertainment company WEBZEN Inc. (NASDAQ: WZEN) announced today its lineup of PC and next generation massively multiplayer online games (MMOG) for showcase at the Electronic Entertainment Expo (E3) in Los Angeles from May 10-12, 2006.
WEBZEN will focus this year’s exhibition on a diverse showing of MMOGs that include the epic fantasy MMO role-playing game (MMORPG) Soul of the Ultimate Nation (SUN); MMO first person shooter Huxley; and the mass-appeal casual MMORPG Project Wiki. All titles leverage WEBZEN’s world class online game design and client/server technologies, pushing the boundaries of today’s MMOG offerings. Visitors to WEBZEN’s booth – #1300 in the South Hall – will have the opportunity to play hands-on versions of all three titles.
Soul of the Ultimate Nation is the much anticipated MMORPG that delivers more fun and more friends in less time. Players can form a party from thousands of gamers using SUN’s Battle Zone System and embark on a graphically stunning and ever-expanding online fantasy world that is ready for action when the players are. With a unique battle systems and a captivating cast of characters, Soul of the Ultimate Nation is an epic tale in a world of emperors, armies, magicians and monsters. Soul of the Ultimate Nation will be available for PC.
Huxley is a massively multiplayer online first person shooting game (MMOFPS) utilizing the UNREAL3 engine to create an unparalleled twitch action gaming experience with up to 5,000 players in the same world. Huxley takes place in a post-apocalyptic world where human beings have mutated and are divided into two opposing races, Sapiens and Alternative. At the center of the battle for survival is Lunarites, a promising new energy source highly coveted by both races. Forced to battle against one another for the continuance of each race, Sapiens and Alternatives will do whatever it takes to wipe out the opposition and gain control of the world and its resources. Huxley will be available for PC/CD-ROM and the Xbox 360.
Project Wiki is a casual, fairy tale based MMORPG with intense levels of cooperative interaction. The relationships and actions of each individual player directly influence the entire Project Wiki world and all of its elements. Project Wiki incorporates an adaptive system enabling the decisions players make in quests and missions to contribute to the individual personalities of characters, including what they wear and their facial expressions. Project Wiki will deliver a lively, creative and interactive online game play experience in a whimsical and charming environment for PC.
Executives from WEBZEN and WEBZEN America and members of the development teams will be on hand to take meetings May 10-12 at the company’s booth (#1300) located in the South Hall of the Los Angeles Convention Center. WEBZEN welcomes press and prospective business partners to schedule meetings in advance or to visit the booth.
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April 26 2006
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Webzen 'Soul of the Ultimate Nation (SUN)' Voted ‘Most Anticipated Online Game’ at China’s ‘Best Online Game Selection
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- Named ‘奇迹世界’ in China, is receiving high expectation from Chinese gamers
(2006-04-25) Webzen Inc. (CEO, Man Ju Kim, www.webzen.com) Webzen’s blockbuster MMORPG Soul of the Ultimate Nation (SUN) has been selected as the most anticipated online game at the 2nd Annual ‘Best Online Game Selection’ in China.
“Best Online Game Selection” is an event sponsored by ‘互动游戏(Hodong Yoo-Hui)’ and ‘Sina Utalk(http://www.utalk.com.cn)’, and is in cooperation with China’s largest game distribution company Junnet and daily newspaper ‘北京晨報(http://www.morningpost.com.com)’. In this event, the best game was selected from 4 criteria such as product, design, marketing, etc., and from 15 categories.
Hosting its second event this year, 10 leading medias and 30 game related companies participated on a large scale. Also, newly founding the ‘Most Anticipated Game’ category, votes from general gamers were gathered from February 14th to March 25th through the community portal site ‘SINA UC (http://www.51uc.com).
(Event website: http://event.51uc.com/ut/060218060331kxcb/zjyx.html)
As a result, putting aside games such as Turbine’s ‘Dungeons & Dragons Online’ (US), Koei’s ‘Dae Hang-e Shi Dae’, (Japan), NP Cube’s ‘Dark and Light’, (France), Webzen’s ‘SUN’ was selected as ‘Most Anticipated Game’. After have being voted as most anticipated game on the influential game webzine www.17173.com, the expectation from the local gamers was once again proved. ‘SUN’ was licensed to one of the largest Chinese game publishers, The9 at a stunning amount of US $13 million last February.
Webzen’s CEO, Nam Ju Kim stated, “I am very pleased that ‘SUN’ has been recognized among various other foreign games”, and added “China is ‘SUN’s first overseas launching market and also one of our global bases in which we have our subsidiary, so we will continuously devote our efforts to successfully penetrate in that market.”
In the meantime, ‘SUN’ will be serviced through the Chinese game publisher ‘THE9’ as 奇迹世界.
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April 25 2006
