물풍선이 터진 자리, 25년 ‘크레이지 아케이드’가 남긴 시대의 종언 > K-wave Trends

Crazy Arcade, which debuted in 2001, was more than just a water balloon-popping fighting game, it was an icon of the domestic online game market, which was growing explosively with the spread of the Internet at the time. The intuitive controls and cute character designs that can be easily learned by anyone of any age have taken over home PCs and PC rooms, earning it the title of ‘National Casual Game’ in name and reality. Numerous users have led Nexon's heyday by competing with friends in the game and forming communities, so it is perhaps natural that the news of this shutdown has been met with a flood of petitions from users desperate to maintain the server on bulletin boards. As much as the weight of memories accumulated over a period of 25 years, the regret and emptiness felt by users carry more meaning than simply the disappearance of one service.

However, the dominant analysis of Nexon’s decision is not an emotional one, but ‘selection and focus’ from a management and strategic perspective. In recent years, Nexon has shown a trend of reorganizing its portfolio by boldly eliminating old IPs that have decreased profitability or have stagnated the inflow of new users. Starting with the termination of service for the original ‘Kart Rider’, the end of ‘Kart Rider: Drift’, and the discontinuation of service for ‘Bubble Fighter’, the entire so-called ‘Crazy Park’ IP is in the process of being reduced. This can be seen as a result of Nexon's cool-headed business judgment to allocate resources more efficiently and focus its capabilities on developing future-oriented new games in line with the rapidly changing game market trends.

Ahead of the end of the service, Nexon has prepared specific follow-up measures to minimize inconvenience to users and ensure courtesy until the end. Before the final access is cut off at 9 a.m. on August 13, users can enjoy a final gratitude event where they can earn 10 times more experience and Luci, and are provided with the benefit of being able to use various characters and items that were previously sold for a fee for free. In particular, for paid payments that may be controversial, we are making efforts to prevent damage to users by expanding the scope of refunds to not only the amount paid from March 11th to the end of the month, but also items not used after June 11th of last year. This systematic refund process and compensation plan is the minimum duty toward loyal users who have been playing the game for a long time, and is an essential process for managing the corporate image.

This incident is also an example that clearly shows a cross-section of the generational change that the gaming industry is experiencing. It is an undeniable reality that casual games, which dominated PC online games in the early 2000s, are gradually giving up their positions due to the emergence of mobile environments and high-end multiplayer games. Nexon's decision clearly reveals the survival method of modern companies that boldly liquidates non-profitable businesses to promote sustainable growth in a changing market environment, rather than resting on past glory. Although the name ‘Crazy Arcade’ has left us, the footprints that the game left on Korean gaming history and the pleasant memories stuffed in the memories of countless users will never be erased.