‘AI tech enables game firms to offer tailored services,’ say South Korean online game giants
‘Game developers should be able to define a variety of reasons for each user to play a certain game or leave it,’ says Nexon Korea’ vice-president says
By Jun Ji-hye
Artificial intelligence (AI) and big data technologies are the optimal means for game developers to offer the most tailored services to suit a user’s taste, an executive of one of South Korea’s long-time online game giants say.
Kang Dae-hyun, vice-president of Nexon Korea, said there are so many different reasons for users to find enjoyment in games or leave a certain game, noting it is almost too difficult for humans to analyse everything.
AI and big data technologies help game firms to better analyse those reasons and experiences of each user, enabling companies to offer them the most tailored services.
Kang made the remarks in a keynote speech during the Nexon Developers Conference (NDC) that kicked off for a three-day run at the company building in Pangyo, Gyeonggi Province.
“Game developers should be able to define a variety of reasons for each user to play a certain game or leave it,” he said. “AI and big data technologies help users enjoy the best experience or avoid the worst experience.”
Kang, who also serves as director of the firm’s Intelligence Lab, cited an example of a user who is satisfied with the role supporting another user in the game.
“A game developer needs to create an environment for such a user in which they can support another user better, and feel more enjoyment,” he said.
Kang said this is also the aim of Nexon’s Intelligence Lab’s development and application of AI and big data technologies.
Nexon Korea launched the Intelligence Lab in May last year to study high-tech systems. As part of efforts to cope with the rapidly changing times of the Fourth Industrial Revolution, the company plans to double its staff working there to 300 this year from the current 150.
The firm said the NDC is a venue for game developers and publishers to share their knowledge and information. This year’s event is packed with 106 lectures about AI technology and the know-how behind new, successful games.
Officials from Korean companies such as NCSOFT and Bluehole as well as experts from global firms such as Tencent are participating in the event, Nexon noted.
During the opening ceremony, Nexon CEO Owen Mahoney called on game developers to refrain from excessively chasing the latest trends or fads to win competitors.
“The more we do that, the more we chase somebody else’s vision instead of our own,” he said. “This kind of thinking usually leads to stagnation. Stagnation in creative ideas means stagnation in innovation.”
