Unsurprisingly, PUBG’s South Korean parent company, Krafton, once again posted impressive earnings for its first quarter of 2022. The success of the now free-to-play Battle Royale was immediate at the start of the year, when the studio also just released New State Mobile (formerly PUBG New State)another title from the PUBG universe, alongside PUBG-Mobile (which is owned by Tencent). The group announces quarterly revenue of $405.7 milliona record and an increase of more than 13% over one year.
The peak is explained above all, specifies the group, by reducing operating costsn (for example related to marketing) on its games and the elimination of one-time costs related to equity compensation in 2021. But obviously, it is above all the return of players to its now free flagship title that makes it possible to return to success . In January 2022, the average number of monthly active users almost tripled compared to the previous quarter.
A paid Founder’s Pack is also available in-game now, and it’s doubled since launch, helping the title generate massive revenue. Sales on PC thus reached 82.3 million dollars and on consoles we note + 124% in sales over a quarter. PUBG Mobile is not left behind and recorded a turnover of 307.1 million dollars in the first quarter of 2022, a increase of 30 % compared to the previous quarter.
Krafton takes the opportunity to give his roadmap:
KRAFTON is set to release new titles this year, such as the game known as “Project M” and The Callisto Protocol. Unknown Worlds, the creators of the series Subnautica which KRAFTON acquired in 2021, are working on the still mysterious “Project M”, which should be available in early access later this year. “Project M” is a totally unique turn-based strategy game set in a sci-fi universe. The Callisto Protocolan original game survival horror developed by Striking Distance Studios, is also expected to launch in 2022. What’s more, internal project incubation teams have been developing games based on deep learning and performing public testing on Steam.
