Nexon puts faith in The Finals after it surpasses internal projections

As far as Nexon is concerned, The Finals is the next big thing. In its newest financial report, the publisher eyed the shooter as "[our] four major franchise pillar."

Embark Studios' debut title was given special attention in the earnings for the fourth quarter and overall 2023-2024 fiscal year. To date, it's already surpassed both Nexon's internal projections and quarterly booking expectations.

In North America and Europe, The Finals helped boost revenue by 78 percent. It and Dave the Diver were the countries' big earners, even as their shared revenue fell short at ¥8.2 billion ($54.9 million).

The MapleStory publisher's wanted newer games to help expand its reach, particularly in the western market. To Mahoney, the two-month-old shooter has become a "major step" in those plans.

Fourth quarter revenue reached ¥84.6 billion, up 4 percent from last year, but still short of Nexon's desired outlook. The larger fiscal year saw ¥423.4 billion, up 14 percent from 2022-2023.

Income-wise, Nexon grew and fell by 30 percent for operating (¥134.7 billion) and net (¥70.6 billion). Some losses were country-specific, including a penalty from Korean regulators in the fourth quarter.

Others were game-specific (FCOnline 2, Dungeon & Fighter), but balanced out by yearly revenue growth from the likes of The Finals or MapleStory.

What's next for Nexon

Along with a new season of The Finals, Nexon's 2024 will involve bringing "deep and powerful content" to already existing games.

Meanwhile, its slate of wholly new titles includes Arc Raiders (also from Embark), its own The First Descendant, and Dungeon & Fighter's mobile launch in China.

But first, it'll start 2024 with a stumble. Due to balance issues and the aforementioned regulator penalty, Nexon predicts respective declines for Dungeon & Fighter MapleStory in China and Korea as part of its first quarter forecast.