A South Korean court has dismissed Webzen's request for an injunction to prevent Hound13 from publishing 'Dragon Sword.' Hound13 plans to release the Steam version, 'Dragon Sword: Awakening,' as scheduled.
According to industry sources on the 23rd, the Seoul Central District Court's Civil Division 60 rejected Webzen's injunction request against Hound13 on the 22nd.
'Dragon Sword,' developed by Hound13 and published by Webzen, was released on January 21. However, it failed to meet initial expectations, leading to conflicts between Webzen and Hound13 over the game's poor performance.
Hound13 announced the termination of its publishing contract with Webzen, claiming that Webzen failed to pay 60% of the advance sales settlement due after the game's release and demanded a lower corporate valuation for its subsidiary. Hound13 believes the publishing contract with Webzen has ended and has been developing 'Dragon Sword: Awakening' as a separate package game.
In contrast, Webzen contended that Hound13 unilaterally disclosed the termination of the contract without following proper procedures. Following this, Webzen paid the remaining balance to Hound13 and continued the existing 'Dragon Sword' service.
In a statement, Hound13 asserted, "The publishing contract with Webzen was lawfully terminated on February 13, and the preparations for the Steam service were conducted under our rightful authority as the copyright holder."
With the court's dismissal of Webzen's injunction, Hound13 is set to launch 'Dragon Sword: Awakening' on Steam for the global market on the same day. Hound13 claims that it has secured independent service rights as the developer and copyright holder, disputing Webzen's assertion that it is proceeding without publishing rights.
However, the release of 'Dragon Sword: Awakening,' originally scheduled for 7 a.m. in South Korea, has been delayed due to incomplete Steam approval.
Webzen plans to appeal the court's decision. A Webzen representative stated, "We intend to appeal to seek a reevaluation of the court's judgment on various facts and issues."
* This article has been translated by AI.
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