Nexon’s revenue surpasses $780m this Q1 as Dungeon & Fighter Mobile China drives 60% franchise growth

South Korean developer Nexon generated ¥113.9 billion ($780.3 million) this Q1, a 5% year-over-year rise during a "stronger than expected" period for Dungeon & Fighter and MapleStory.

¥77.6bn ($531.6m) of that revenue came from PC and console, down 2% YoY, meanwhile mobile revenue rose by 25% to ¥36.3bn ($248.7m).

Overall operating income increased by 43% YoY on an as-reported basis, hitting ¥41.6 billion ($284.9m).

However, Nexon’s quarterly profit fell by 27% from nearly ¥36bn ($246.5m) in Q1 2024 to ¥26.3bn ($180.1m) in Q1 2025.

Fighting forward

During the last quarter, Nexon generated 48% of its revenue from its home country of South Korea, at ¥54.3bn ($372m). China followed at 33%, outspending the entirety of Europe and North America’s 10% revenue contribution.

Nexon noted that Dungeon & Fighter Mobile in China was largely responsible for the franchise’s 60% Y/Y growth in Q1, as well as the global release of The First Berserker: Khazan. The former’s DAUs and revenue did fall below expectations for the quarter, however.

Last year, Dungeon & Fighter Mobile in China was the most lucrative new release of 2024 across the mobile games industry, according to AppMagic, and officially bolstered franchise revenue by 162% during its release in Q2 2024. It also helped to drive 30% Y/Y growth in Nexon’s overall revenue during that time.

Nexon has confirmed "solid progress" in its partnership with Tencent, including new content coming to the game this year. There is one-year anniversary content planned, with May 21st marking one full year since release.

The PC version of Dungeon & Fighter also hit a new record in quarterly revenue in South Korea this Q1, having more than doubled its MAUs Y/Y.

"Anchored by recurring revenue"

Going into Q2, Nexon expects the combination of Dungeon & Fighter, MapleStory and Mabinogi Mobile to drive similar revenue to last year on a constant-currency basis. Mabinogi Mobile launched on March 27th in South Korea and has already "performed significantly better than our expectations".

It topped the App Store’s highest-grossing games chart upon release and reached third place on Google Play’s.

"To sum up Nexon’s Q1 performance and Q2 outlook, we have established clear and measurable progress on a set of objectives that will define our full-year and move us toward the financial targets established in our IP growth initiative," the company stated in its earnings letter.

"We prioritised a turnaround in key franchises and saw positive outcomes from our investments in improving gameplay. We delivered two new titles on schedule."

Nexon president and CEO Junghun Lee commented: "Despite global economic turmoil, Nexon is deeply resilient and positioned for sustained growth.

"Our company is anchored by recurring revenue from multiple established franchises, a clearly defined growth plan, a robust pipeline of new games, strategic partnership for capturing growth opportunities in large markets, world-class live operations, and a balance sheet with approximately ¥600 billion ($4.1bn) in cash which can be used to capture new opportunities and enhance shareholder returns."