South Korean game companies have been showcasing their next subculture games at Japan's Tokyo Game Show (TGS). With Japan a key market for global subculture games, the move aims to test gameplay and character competitiveness with local users before official launches and secure early fandoms.

On Sept. 18, industry officials said major South Korean game companies including Nexon Games, Netmarble, Smilegate and NC are presenting new subculture titles at TGS 2026, being held at Makuhari Messe in Chiba, Japan.

Nexon Games entered its in-development title Pareidolia, while Netmarble unveiled Pearl in Blue. Smilegate showcased Future Sight: The Unseen Future, and NC presented Astrae Oratio, which Dynamis One is developing.

South Korean game companies are focusing on unveiling new subculture titles in Japan because of the size of the Japanese market and the genre's influence. According to the Korea Creative Content Agency, Japan was a major market in 2024, accounting for about 10 percent of the global games market.

Japan's influence is even greater in the subculture genre. According to market research firm Sensor Tower, about 54 percent of global mobile subculture game revenue from June 21, 2020 to June 20, 2025 was generated in Japan. Another feature is a market that can expand intellectual property (IP) through goods, collaborations, comics and animation, along with an ecosystem for secondary creations.

Nexon Games unveiled a trial build of Pareidolia for the first time at this year's TGS.

Pareidolia is a PC, console and mobile game in development at RX Studio under Nexon Games' IO Division, which developed Blue Archive. It features 3D graphics based on Unreal Engine 5 and a structure that combines daily life with characters, exploration and combat.

The demo showed the basic flow of the game, including interacting with characters in a key area called Tasogare Hall and proceeding through dungeon exploration and combat. It also revealed an interaction feature that lets players call characters by name, and combat that combines the strategy of turn-based battles with the feel of real-time fighting.

Japanese game media outlet 4Gamer assessed the quality of implementing 2D illustrations in 3D and the feature of calling characters by name as key highlights after trying the demo.

Nexon Games producer Minseo Cha (차민서) said, "We will continue to spare no effort in development and present a game that is worth the wait for fans around the world."

Netmarble unveiled its new title Pearl in Blue for the first time at TGS and introduced the game's worldview and development status.

Pearl in Blue is a subculture collectible mobile RPG that combines RPG elements with a romance experience that feels like becoming the protagonist of a romantic comedy animation. It highlights content that raises an order of knights who work as heroes and influencers and builds relationships with characters as key features.

Netmarble held a media presentation on Sept. 17 and unveiled the game's main features, worldview and development status. At the event, it also presented a concept promotional video produced for TGS and a program featuring the voice cast of key characters.

Ahead of the official launch, Netmarble plans to sequentially release game information through its official Japanese X and YouTube channels, among others, to expand touchpoints with local users.

Smilegate entered 2 new titles at TGS, including Future Sight: The Unseen Future and Dead Account: Two Blue Flames.

Among them, the subculture RPG Future Sight is being developed by Control9. After being unveiled for the first time at last year's TGS, it has participated in game and animation events including South Korea's AGF and this July's Anime Expo in the United States.

At this year's TGS, the company is setting up a booth and demo area that emphasize character visuals and running programs involving developers, cosplayers and virtual YouTubers. It also plans to broaden touchpoints with users by unveiling new game information on site, including raid content.

NC held the first public demo of Astrae Oratio, which Dynamis One is developing.

Astrae Oratio is a modern fantasy magic RPG published by NC and developed by Dynamis One. In a world where reality and magic coexist, the player becomes a civil servant called a chief at an agency called the Special Zone Office that handles the administration of mages, and meets various people and incidents.

NC recreated key in-game spaces including the Special Zone Office and Tokyo Tower in its booth and enabled visitors to experience scenario mode and combat mode separately.

NC is developing the game with the goal of launching it in 2027 and plans to conduct a global closed beta test (CBT) within this year. It plans to reflect user feedback gathered at this TGS and in the CBT in development to raise the game's level of completion.

Blue Archive, developed by Nexon Games, and Shift Up's Goddess of Victory: Nikke are considered representative South Korean subculture games that have achieved results in Japan. Attention is also on what reaction the new titles unveiled at this year's TGS will receive in the Japanese market after official launches.

An industry official who visited TGS said, "It is very encouraging that many Korean subculture games are participating on the stage of Japan's Tokyo Game Show, the home of subculture, and getting a good response," adding, "I hope a blockbuster subculture hit emerges that follows Blue Archive and Goddess of Victory: Nikke."