Scene: The Correction

## Scene: The Correction **Setting:** *The same gaming café. **Kenji** is still wiping tears, his face red with rage. **Ren** remains calm, scrolling through a financial report on his tablet.* **Kenji:** *(Slamming his fist on the table)* "I hope EA and Nexon both go up in flames! Burn to the ground! Bankrupt! How *dare* they mess up my Blue Archive? They deserve to lose everything!" **Ren:** *(Without looking up)* "Ah, I think there’s some misinformation floating around in that anger, Kenji. You’re conflating the two." **Kenji:** "Conflating? They’re the same! Greedy monsters! Isn’t that EA guy running Nexon now? That’s why Blue Archive is ruined!" **Ren:** "No, that’s not quite right. **Patrick Söderlund** is not the CEO of Nexon. He was appointed **Executive Chairman** back in February 2026, a role focused on long-term strategy and creative direction. The CEO is still **Junghun Lee**." **Kenji:** "Chairman, CEO, same thing! He’s the EA exec who ruined everything! He should be fired!" **Ren:** "Actually, if you look at the numbers, Söderlund was promoted *because* his games are successful, not because they failed. Look at **The Finals**." **Kenji:** "That shooter? Who cares?" **Ren:** "The people at Nexon care. The Finals revenue grew by **47% year-over-year** in Q1 2026 alone. It turned profitable in late 2025 and is consistently pulling in millions. And **ARC Raiders**? It sold over **14 million copies** since its October 2025 launch. Players aren’t boycotting those games; they’re playing them." **Kenji:** *(Stammers)* "B-But… Blue Archive! They’re ruining it!" **Ren:** "And that’s on the specific team managing Blue Archive and the legacy Nexon monetization model. But EA and Nexon are two of the biggest gaming companies by revenue for a reason. They know how to make hits. Söderlund’s track record at Embark Studios is *success*. The Blue Archive mess isn’t because EA took over; it’s because Nexon doubled down on its old, proven, albeit hated, pay-to-win tactics." **Kenji:** *(Slumps back, deflated)* "So… wishing them bankrupt won’t fix Blue Archive?" **Ren:** "No. Wishing them bankrupt ignores that The Finals and ARC Raiders are doing great *without* the Blue Archive gacha model. The problem isn’t EA or Söderlund; it’s Nexon’s refusal to let go of its MapleStory-era greed. You’re angry at the wrong target." *(Kenji stares at his screen, the rage slowly replaced by a confused realization.)* **Kenji:** "Then… who do I yell at?" **Ren:** "The boardroom in Tokyo that decided a resetting pity counter was a good idea. Not the guy making successful shooters in Stockholm." ## Scene: The Tokyo Connection **Setting:** *The gaming café. **Kenji** looks up from his screen, confusion replacing some of his rage. **Ren** points to a map on his tablet showing Nexon's headquarters.* **Kenji:** "Wait... why the *Tokyo* boardroom? I thought Nexon was Korean? Why is the blame on Japan?" **Ren:** "Because that’s where the money is managed. Nexon moved its global headquarters from Seoul to **Tokyo** back in 2005. The CEO, **Junghun Lee**, and the executive team overseeing global strategy—including Blue Archive—operate out of **Minato-ku, Tokyo**." **Kenji:** "But... Yostar is Japanese too! Why didn’t they stop it?" **Ren:** "Because Yostar is just the *publisher* for the Japanese server. The *developer* is **Nexon Games**, a subsidiary headquartered in... you guessed it, Tokyo. When Yostar issued that statement saying the decision came from 'long-term discussions with the developer,' they were admitting that the Tokyo boardroom called the shots. Yostar couldn't stop it because they don't own the code." **Kenji:** "So the apology from Producer **Kim Yong-ha**... that was him speaking for Tokyo?" **Ren:** "Exactly. Kim is the Executive Producer at **Nexon Games**. His apology on July 28th admitted *they* forced the change to 'reduce stress,' ignoring that their definition of stress relief was doubling the cost for players. The Tokyo headquarters approved the shift from the 'Spark' system to the resetting 'Summoning Charge' system because it aligns with their broader portfolio strategy—seen in MapleStory and Mabinogi—of maximizing revenue from dedicated spenders." **Kenji:** "I just... I thought the devs loved us. The anime girls... the stories..." **Ren:** "The devs in the Tokyo boardroom love *revenue*. The anime girls are the product; the paywall is the price of admission. Nexon isn't a Korean company anymore in spirit; it's a global entity run from Tokyo, applying the same monetization logic to every title it touches. Blue Archive was just the next target on their list." *(Kenji stares at the map, the realization sinking in that the "betrayal" came from the very top, not just a rogue team.)* **Kenji:** "Tokyo... the heart of the anime industry... and the heart of the paywall." **Ren:** "Precisely. And until they change that philosophy, wishing them bankrupt won't bring back the 'Spark'." ## Scene: The Shadow of NXC **Setting:** *Ren pulls up a corporate structure chart on his tablet, showing a complex web of subsidiaries leading back to a single entity in Jeju Island.* **Kenji:** "Okay, so the Tokyo board made the call. But who tells *them* what to do? Who’s actually pulling the strings?" **Ren:** "Follow the money, Kenji. It leads back to **NXC Corporation**. They are the largest shareholder of Nexon, holding roughly **30% to 46%** of the company depending on how you count affiliated units. They aren’t just an investor; they are the *owner*." **Kenji:** "NXC? I’ve never heard of them. Are they some evil conglomerate?" **Ren:** "Not exactly. They’re a holding company founded by Kim Jung-ju, the original genius who started it all. He founded Nexon in Seoul back in 1994, and their very first game wasn’t MapleStory or Mabinogi. It was **Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds**." **Kenji:** "Kingdom of the Winds? Sounds... old." **Ren:** "It *is* old. Released in **1996**, it was the **world’s first graphic MMORPG**. Before *Ultima Online*, before *EverQuest*, Kim Jung-ju was already running a graphical online world where people traded items and formed parties. He invented the free-to-play model with microtransactions *there*. The DNA of every paywall you hate in Blue Archive was written in the code of Nexus thirty years ago." **Kenji:** "So... the guy who invented the paywall is still in charge?" **Ren:** "Kim Jung-ju passed away in 2022, but his family controls NXC. His wife, **Yoo Jung-hyun**, is now the largest shareholder of NXC with **34%**, and together with their daughters, the family controls nearly **97%** of the holding company. They are the ultimate decision-makers. The Tokyo board, the CEO, even Patrick Söderlund—they all answer to the philosophy established by NXC." **Kenji:** "And that philosophy is...?" **Ren:** "Monetize everything. Nexus: The Kingdom of the Winds is *still running* today, decades later, because the model works. NXC doesn’t see Blue Archive as a story about cute girls; they see it as the next Nexus, the next MapleStory—a platform to extract value for the next thirty years. The 'greed' isn’t an accident; it’s the founding principle of the company." *(Kenji stares at the chart, realizing the "enemy" isn’t just a few developers in Tokyo, but a decades-old legacy of monetization entrenched at the very top.)* **Kenji:** "So fighting the Tokyo board won’t work. The real boss is... a ghost and his family in Jeju Island." **Ren:** "Exactly. And until NXC decides that player trust is more profitable than short-term extraction, the paywalls aren’t going anywhere." ## Scene: The Evidence of Success **Setting:** *Ren pulls up two charts on his tablet: one showing the "Very Positive" Steam reviews for **The Finals** and **ARC Raiders**, and another showing **Patrick Söderlund**’s career timeline.* **Kenji:** *(Still fuming)* "I don't care! Fire him! Fire **Patrick Söderlund**! He’s the reason Blue Archive is ruined! He’s that failed EA guy who only knows how to make pay-to-win garbage!" **Ren:** "Kenji, have you actually *played* **ARC Raiders** or **The Finals**? Or did you just read the angry comments?" **Kenji:** "Why would I play *his* games? They’re probably full of microtransactions too!" **Ren:** "That’s the misinformation talking. Look at the facts. **Embark Studios**, which Söderlund founded and still runs as CEO, is a subsidiary of Nexon. But their games are the *opposite* of what’s happening in Blue Archive." **Kenji:** "How so?" **Ren:** "**The Finals** is free-to-play but strictly **cosmetic-only** monetization. No pay-to-win stats. It has a 'Very Positive' rating and hundreds of thousands of players. And **ARC Raiders**? Söderlund fought to make it a **premium $40 game** with *no* loot boxes, just to avoid the exact kind of greed ruining Blue Archive. It sold **14 million copies**. Gamers *rewarded* him for being fair. Where is the boycott? Where is the outrage? It doesn’t exist because the games are good." **Kenji:** *(Stammers)* "B-But... everyone says he’s the villain! That he’s bringing EA’s evil ways to Nexon!" **Ren:** "People love a simple villain, Kenji. They see 'Former EA Exec' and assume the worst without checking the record. Söderlund was promoted to Executive Chairman *because* ARC Raiders and **The Finals** succeeded where legacy Nexon mobile titles were stagnating. The Blue Archive gacha change came from the **Tokyo mobile division**, the same team that ran MapleStory and Mabinogi. Söderlund wasn’t even in charge of that division when the decision was made." **Kenji:** *(Slumps, looking at the 'Very Positive' reviews on the screen)* "So... I’m yelling at the guy who actually said 'no' to loot boxes?" **Ren:** "Exactly. The irony is thick. The man they want fired is the only one at Nexon who has proven recently that you *can* make hits without predatory monetization. The real problem is the old guard in Tokyo who can’t let go of their MapleStory playbook. But it’s easier to blame the 'EA guy' than to admit the rot comes from within Nexon itself." *(Kenji stares at the screen, the anger slowly turning into embarrassment as he realizes he’s been fighting the wrong battle.)* **Kenji:** "I... I guess I should maybe download **The Finals** before I demand anyone’s head." **Ren:** "Might be a good start. See what fair monetization actually looks like."