South Korea's largest game exhibition, G-Star, is set to broaden its scope this year, incorporating artificial intelligence (AI), film, and comics into a comprehensive content showcase. This expansion aims to attract a wider audience and strengthen its own planned content in response to a decline in participation from major domestic game companies.
The Korea Game Industry Association and the G-Star Organizing Committee held a press conference on August 13 in Seoul to unveil key participating companies and the event's operational direction. G-Star 2026 will take place from November 19 to 22 at BEXCO in Busan.
This year, the main sponsor will be Lutton Technologies, which operates the AI character chat service 'Crack.' This marks the first time an AI company has taken on the role of main sponsor for G-Star. The organizing committee plans to focus on AI and narrative as key themes while expanding related content such as webtoons and films.
Jung Seung-woo, head of the G-Star Organizing Committee, stated, "While previous G-Star attendees were limited to gamers, we aim to include not only game enthusiasts but also fans of comics and other content."
The expansion of G-Star reflects the challenges of curating exhibition content solely based on participating companies' submissions. Currently confirmed participants include Crack, Google Play, Webzen, 4:33, HoYoverse, NetEase Games' Joker Studio, Bilibili Games, and Century Games. Major domestic game companies such as Nexon, NCSoft, Netmarble, and Krafton are not on the list.
The organizing committee is in discussions with other companies regarding their participation and plans to announce the finalized list of participants in September.
One of the main reasons for the decline in participation from domestic game companies is the shift in the industry focus from mobile to PC and console gaming. G-Star has established itself as an annual exhibition for unveiling new titles, but as major local companies invest more in long-development console games, it has become increasingly difficult to prepare submissions each year.
Jung explained, "Unlike the past when mobile games dominated, major developers are now concentrating on console game development. The lengthy development cycles for console games may limit participation to every five or seven years."
In response, the organizing committee plans to enhance the existing exhibition structure, which has relied on submissions from participating companies, and increase in-house content that G-Star directly plans. The goal is to establish G-Star as an exhibition that satisfies both participants and attendees, regardless of the participation of domestic and international game companies.
Collaboration with webtoons will also be expanded. This year, G-Star will showcase two types of key visuals, with the main visual created in collaboration with Lee Dong-geon, the artist behind the Naver webtoon 'Yumi's Cells.'
The organizing committee will also attempt to connect the gaming industry with other content sectors such as film, video, and webtoons during the G-Star conference. This year's program will feature not only game developers but also directors like Jang Hang-jun of 'The King’s Affection' and Lee Byung-hun of 'Extreme Job,' as well as creators from various fields including webtoons and animation.
A new online showcase will also be introduced. Unlike the previous format that presented multiple games in 1-2 minute videos, this year will feature in-depth content focusing on 2-3 games for 20-30 minutes each.
Collaboration with Hyundai will also take place, featuring the largest eSports championship finals in South Korea at G-Star, along with simulation racing experiences and events for attendees. Hyundai will also display its high-performance vehicles and actual race cars.
However, the organizing committee emphasized that expanding into other content areas will not dilute G-Star's identity as a game exhibition. Jung stated, "Even as we broaden our scope, it will be done without compromising the fundamental value of a game exhibition. We are considering ways to expand content while maintaining the principle that G-Star must remain a game show."
* This article has been translated by AI.
Copyright ⓒ Aju Press All rights reserved.