PUBG Mobile, Battlegrounds Mobile India Demand Helps Krafton Post 26.4 YoY Profit In Q1 2022

Krafton said its tie-ups with premium franchises such as Lamborghini and ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ boosted its traffic for PUBG Mobile.

PUBG Mobile remains one of the biggest earners for Krafton.

Source : Krafton

New Delhi: Krafton, the South Korean game developer behind popular battle royale games such as PUBG Mobile, Battlegrounds Mobile India (BGMI), and New State Mobile, has posted a year-on-year (YoY) growth of 26.4 percent in Q1 2022. In its earnings report, Krafton said it has seen a first-quarter net income of 245.2 billion won. It has also announced two games — a turn-based strategy title for PC and mobile, and an AAAA game based on PUBG. The company has also announced future developments in the Web 3.0 and NFT metaverse platforms.

As per Krafton’s Q1 2022 earnings presentation, during the January-March period, its revenue increased 13.4 percent YoY to 523 billion won. Its operating profit rose 37.3 percent to 311.9 billion won, well-exceeding market expectations. 

For PUBG Mobile, Krafton said that collaboration with premium franchises such as ‘Spider-Man: No Way Home’ and Lamborghini helped in stronger traffic retention and monetisation. 

In the case of BGMI, it was Krafton’s localised advertising strategy as well as localised special content packs that increased revenue contribution. For those unaware, BGMI is a rebranding of PUBG Mobile, which was banned by the Government of India back in 2020 along with 117 other Chinese apps. 

Apart from the two bestsellers, Krafton also saw an increased playtime among gamers on New State Mobile, thanks to its “fast-paced” gameplay style.

Furthermore, Krafton said that it is currently working on The Calisto Protocol, a PUBG-inspired AAAA horror, which will be launched in the second half of 2022. On the other hand, Project M: Unknown Worlds is a turn-based strategy game being developed by Krafton. To be available on PC and Mobile, Project M will be up for early access in the second half of this year.

Krafton also said that it is looking at a Web 3.0 and NFT metaverse platform, “to provide new value for gamers and creators through content production tools where fresh interactive content is created endlessly.” It appears that just like most other companies, Krafton, too, is looking to jump onto the crypto bandwagon soon.