It is rare for the government to back down on regulatory issues.
The dismissal of Minister Shin Jeon-mi, in particular, was a shock. This was because she was known to have the President's deep trust and was a key figure in the current administration's gender equality policies.
Consequently, upon her dismissal, groups such as parents' associations and women's organizations fiercely criticized the government, accusing it of succumbing to the game industry cartel.
Yeon Nakyeong, leader of the Liberty People's Party, raised her voice in the National Assembly.
"This is a measure showing the government is bowing to the pressure of large corporations, abandoning its responsibility to protect youth and women! Is the President now the chief spokesperson for OTK Company and the game industry?"
The ruling party protested vehemently against this statement, and the long-awaited National Assembly session descended into chaos.
Dismissed from her ministerial post and now back to being an Assemblywoman, Shin Jeon-mi attended a scheduled meeting with female executives.
There, she criticized the government.
"I became a proportional representative because I am a woman, and I could become a minister because I am a woman. As someone who has received significant benefits for being a woman, I understand very well how important this is. I was able to reach this position because I am a woman. Yet, for the current administration, which claims to prioritize gender equality, to exclude women from high-ranking positions like this is wrong and goes against the current of the times."
Then, a female executive spoke up. She was an executive at Golden Gate's Korean branch.
"I don't quite understand your point. Since a man wouldn't be appointed Minister of Gender Equality and Family, that position will eventually be filled by another woman. Doesn't that mean your dismissal has no connection to the government supposedly excluding women from high-ranking positions?"
Caught off guard by the pointed remark, Assemblywoman Shin Jeon-mi looked flustered.
"Ah, well... regardless, women must be given more opportunities. We need to increase the advantages given to women in startup funding, and preferential measures for women-owned businesses must be expanded further. The current support under the Women's Enterprise Support Act—like startup aid, priority public procurement for women's enterprise products, and preferential financing—is simply not enough. Weren't all of you ladies here able to reach your executive positions thanks to this kind of support and these benefits?"
The executive shook her head firmly.
"No. I reached this position solely through my own capabilities and hard work. To get here, I competed fiercely against everyone around me, men and women alike, and I never received any special treatment just because I am a woman. To suggest that we could become executives simply because we are women is, frankly, a remark that disparages the abilities of all women in senior roles."
The other female executives present nodded in unison, seemingly in agreement.
Nevertheless, Assemblywoman Shin Jeon-mi later continued to work with women's groups, advocating for a mandatory 50 percent quota for female executives in private companies, which contributed to a decline in the approval ratings for the New Politics Party.
***
After the government's announcement, most game companies retracted their plans to move overseas, but some decided to leave Korea as originally planned.
A total of four companies announced their intention, including RoanSoft, one of the top five game companies.
This decision was driven not only by dissatisfaction with regulations but also by other factors.
Yun Jun-baek, CEO of RoanSoft, said:
"Meeting and talking with the Vice President of OTK Company and President Ichikawa of OTK Games, I felt my long-dormant gamer instincts reawakening. Creating a virtual reality game that people worldwide can enjoy is likely the dream of every developer. We want to participate in its development too."
According to Taek-gyu, many CEOs of Korean game companies started as developers and genuinely love games themselves.
Perhaps the desire to develop fun games is a wish shared by all developers?
Despite attempts by the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism (MCST) and local district representatives to dissuade them, these companies pushed ahead with relocating their headquarters to Detroit and held their shareholder meetings as scheduled.
[RoanSoft Decides to Move Headquarters to Detroit!]
[Corporate Spin-off Plan Approved at Shareholder Meeting]
[A Dark Future for the Game Hallyu Wave...]
[Government Cannot Avoid Responsibility!]
These companies directly employed nearly 10,000 people.
While this entire workforce wouldn't be immediately laid off or moved to the US, the situation was inevitably perplexing for the government.
Criticism once again rained down on the government and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (MOGEF), and Vice Minister Cha Yoon-hye struggled to manage the fallout.
Representative Yeon Nakyeong once again spoke out forcefully.
"Companies are fleeing abroad due to an incompetent economic policy that only harps on regulation! We must now end this left-wing misrule!"
- WTF, what do they want us to do?
- Weren't they just complaining yesterday that the government sided with the game industry?
- The Liberty People's Party proposed the addiction treatment law in the first place. Same goes for creating the shutdown system.
- LOL, damned if you do, damned if you don't.
- But they have a point, the companies packing up and leaving now are the smart ones.
- I guarantee, when election season nears, they'll start bashing game companies again to beg for votes from parents.
- You can tell just by seeing Shin Jeon-mi still hasn't learned her lesson and is just stirring up trouble (drawing aggro).
- Maybe she's a mole sent by the Liberty People's Party?
- Just flee to the US. Like President Ronald said, there's no MOGEF in America.
***
Perhaps feeling a sense of loss now that companies were actually leaving, both the government and the media suddenly began trumpeting the importance of the game industry.
They highlighted how games are the top cultural content export, how the Game Hallyu wave is a major contributor, and how it helped minimize the intellectual property trade deficit.
The government held meetings to discuss the development of the game industry, and the media published articles praising games daily.
This treatment was unbelievable considering that just days ago, games were treated like alcohol, gambling, and drugs.
Amazingly, Oh Taek-gyu had achieved all this!
"It's fortunate that this incident helped people realize how important the game industry is."
However, Taek-gyu shook his head.
"How long do you think this mood will last? It's obvious that if even one incident occurs, the government and media will blame games again. Murder, bullying, school violence, mass shootings, etc. It's all because of games. Haven't we been through this countless times?"
Regardless, taking advantage of the currently favorable atmosphere, the game industry engaged in a tug-of-war with the government, striving to gain as many concessions as possible.
Taek-gyu insisted that game companies attempting to subtly back out of self-regulation must absolutely follow through, no matter what.
Amidst this situation, Lost Fantasy Online concluded its open beta service and officially launched simultaneously in Korea and Japan.
Although players now had to pay a monthly fee to enjoy the game, it became a massive hit, attracting 200,000 paid subscribers in Korea alone on the first day.
Games, more than any other content, face a stark divide between massive success and utter failure.
If it fails, you lose the publishing costs as well; if it succeeds, you can recoup the entire production cost within a few months.
At this rate, they would recover the production costs and more within the year.
With Lost Fantasy Online achieving results beyond expectations, the VRMMORPG development plan became even smoother. The ability to self-finance a portion of the development costs reduced the burden of seeking investment.
Thanks to this success, Ichikawa Shigeru's reputation soared even higher.
However, he wasn't without his crises. Although he was the star developer who created the Lost Fantasy series and thrilled the public by consistently creating games that pushed the limits of technology, he faced a prolonged slump after the merger of Linix and Pentagon, eventually halting development due to conflicts with management.
There was even talk that the Lost Fantasy series was finished, but after leaving LinixPentagon and establishing OTK Games, he proved his capabilities by achieving massive consecutive hits in both mobile and online gaming.
People praised him lavishly, calling it the 'Return of the Game Emperor,' and closely watched his next move.
OTK Games spun off its Japanese subsidiary. Since OTK Company held most of the shares, with the remainder held by Ichikawa Shigeru and the development team, there was no need for a separate shareholders' meeting.
Next, they proceeded with relocating the headquarters to Detroit. This matter was under negotiation with the city. The city council began reviewing tax benefits and site provision.
The development of the VRMMORPG 'Seruana' is the largest mega-project in gaming history.
Some experts still harbored doubts about its feasibility and anticipated numerous technical difficulties. However, there was confidence that Ichikawa Shigeru would undoubtedly overcome these obstacles and create the game.
If successful, how much added value would it generate?
Who could have imagined that banks, shopping malls, and bookstores would exist within the internet? Once virtual reality games become realized, there's no rule saying such things couldn't be created within the game.
In a way, it's about creating not just a game, but an entire world.
The initially allocated development budget alone was $10 billion!
This is the largest development budget in gaming history. Since they are creating a game that has never existed before, it's impossible to know how much more it might actually cost.
Global attention was focused, and investors showed great interest.
There were three reasons for this. First, the technical foundation—VR technology, artificial intelligence, machine learning, data processing, etc.—was in place. Second, Ichikawa Shigeru's development capabilities were outstanding. And finally, OTK Company had committed to investing in the development costs.
OTK Company had achieved tremendous success in all its investments to date, without a single failure.
Even a seemingly unviable business suddenly appears more likely to succeed if Warren Bott invests in it. In times like these, an investor's reputation certainly helps.
Interest in investing came from various quarters.
Even at $10 billion, OTK Company could likely cover the development costs if it chose to. However, as this recent incident showed, games are heavily influenced by government regulations. Therefore, there was a need to involve local companies or investment firms to build cooperative relationships.
A publishing representative from WeChant in China flew in, and RCK Bros, Asia's largest private equity fund, also expressed interest. Nikolas Karlsen, Head of Operations for Norway's sovereign wealth fund (GPFG), visited Korea personally.
Norway actively invests in IT and the game industry because they are high-value industries with little correlation to oil.
However, an unexpected person accompanied him: a young woman in her early twenties, around 160cm tall, with a cute appearance and faint freckles on the bridge of her nose.
It was Princess Anneke of the Norwegian royal family. This was her first visit to Korea.
The two came directly to the OTK Company headquarters after landing at the airport. It was even nicer seeing people met in Norway again here in Korea.
Hyun-joo noona and Ellie also exchanged greetings.
Princess Anneke beamed upon seeing Ellie.
"I've heard so much about you. I saw your commercial too. You're even more beautiful in person."
Ellie smiled.
"Thank you."
I casually asked.
"Which commercial, might I ask… Ouch!"
Ellie pinched my side hard, and I quickly shut my mouth.
Princess Anneke spoke with a lively expression and voice.
"Congratulations on the success of Lost Fantasy Online. I play it whenever I have time, it's so much fun. Mr. Ichikawa Shigeru is truly amazing."
Taek-gyu said,
"It's not serviced in Norway yet, though."
"I connect to the Japanese server to play."
The princess apparently speaks some Japanese as well. Japanese is essential for fandom activities, after all.
While we discussed investments with Head Manager Karlsen, Princess Anneke talked about games with Taek-gyu.
Princess Anneke, chattering away with sparkling brown eyes, looked quite cute.
Their conversation continued throughout the meal. If the topic is games, Taek-gyu could probably talk non-stop for three days and four nights.
Watching them, I was bewildered.
"Why on earth do girls flock to him like this?"
Is he some kind of devilishly charming otaku? Or does his fortune in the hundreds of billions of dollars create a halo behind him?
Hearing my words, Ellie gave me a sideways glance.
"Surely you're not jealous?"
"...Of course not."
Though, somehow, I did feel a little envious.