Pearl Abyss held a shareholder meeting on July 7 at Pearl Abyss Home One in Gwacheon, Gyeonggi province, and responded to shareholder concerns about a continuing share-price slump after the success of "Crimson Desert". Chief Executive Jin-young Heo (허진영), Chief Financial Officer Mi-young Cho (조미영) and Chief Operating Officer Dong-won Lee (이동원) attended. The session ran for more than 3 hours, including presentations and a question-and-answer segment.

In opening remarks, Heo said management took seriously the disappointment, anxiety and frustration shareholders felt over recent share performance. The stock rose as high as 77,400 won intraday on April 1, a 52-week high that reflected expectations for Crimson Desert. It stayed in the high 30,000-won range on the day, remaining at about half its peak. The company followed up on its June 9 filing of a corporate value-enhancement plan that included its first dividend and plans to cancel and buy back shares.

The company summarised shareholder demands into four areas: the next steps for Crimson Desert, DokeV development progress and disclosure strategy, execution of shareholder returns, and stronger communication with the market.

DokeV targets release in second half of 2028; cautious on disclosure strategy

Lee first outlined Crimson Desert's performance. Crimson Desert sold 2 million copies on its release day and reached 6 million copies at list price in 83 days. Lee described it as an achievement in the console and open-world package game market, not online games, and one made outside the established success formula of Korean game companies.

Shareholders focused less on Crimson Desert's success than on growth strategy afterward. A key issue was when, and at what level of completion, the next title, "DokeV", would be revealed. Lee said DokeV targets a release in the second half of 2028. He said development had entered a phase of expanding content production to define the play loop.

Lee took a cautious stance on when to release video footage. He said revealing it too early could lead to the game being judged before its quality was in place, and said the company would use as its benchmark maintaining expectations and interest from disclosure through launch and translating that into results. He said the Crimson Desert release process took a long time and he believed the company had lost some market trust, but added that DokeV's predictability had risen significantly because it was being developed on an already built production foundation.

Company plans DLC and platform expansion to address gap concerns

During the Q&A, questions centred on how the company would fill a gap of about 2 and a half years from Crimson Desert until DokeV's release. One shareholder said Crimson Desert succeeded but the gap until DokeV and Plan 8 was too long. The shareholder said even if first-quarter operating profit was 212.1 billion won and the company posts about 470.0 billion to 500.0 billion won this year, its price-to-earnings ratio stays around 6, leaving it excessively undervalued versus other companies. Another shareholder compared it with similarly sized KOSPI-listed game companies and said even firms with relatively weaker development results or sales volumes were getting higher valuations, urging the company to deliver a clearer message to the market.

Cho said it would be difficult for market trust to recover immediately on Crimson Desert's success alone, and said the company needed to show the likelihood of success for its next title as well. He explained that if the company grows into a top global developer, its corporate value could be assessed accordingly. Cho added that market capitalisation assessments differ depending on the reference point, and said in the long run market capitalisation would rise along with an increase in corporate value.

The company presented two main strategies to address the gap. It is preparing paid DLC that includes a new story, exploration and expanded gameplay. The company said this required both game completion and marketing scheduling to be finalised, but said it would make clear within the third quarter whether it will be released this year and in what direction. On discounts, it said it would announce an optimal timing because revealing plans early could increase wait-and-see demand. On this year's sales target, it said it understood the market had expectations of 8 million to 10 million copies and said it aims to sell as many as possible. On the impact of major new titles such as GTA6 on Crimson Desert sales, it said it was setting a strategy to use the period of demand that waits for new releases.

On new platforms, the company said it is reviewing a release on Nintendo Switch 2, but it is not at a confirmed stage because performance optimisation and technical verification remain. It also mentioned the possibility of online multiplayer support, but said there were many issues to review, including server structure.

On marketing, the company said it plans to operate a Crimson Desert booth at Gamescom in Germany in August with support from Samsung Electronics, and to hold a separate presentation on its know-how in developing its own engine. It said it will not reveal DokeV video footage at this event. He cited a mobile expansion case for the Black Desert IP and said the company recently confirmed the BlackSpace Engine runs on mobile, adding it is internally discussing the possibility of making a new mobile title in the same way. On external sales of the engine itself or licensing commercialisation, he said there is currently no concrete plan because it would require a technical support and maintenance organisation and could disperse development resources.

The follow-up title "Plan 8" is in a phase of fleshing out its concept based on the shooter genre. The company plans to speed up development by moving key staff over in stages once DokeV development reaches a certain level. On Crimson Desert end content, Heo said he viewed it as an investment not simply to extend sales, but to learn what users like and reflect it in the next title. Lee said official support for mods has not been decided, but the company is broadly reviewing the situation as the mod community has become active.

Shareholder returns should be delivered, not just announced

Cho reported progress on the shareholder return policy announced in June. The company presented a policy of paying dividends equal to the greater of 10.0 billion won a year or 10 percent of net profit. It completed the cancellation of a volume equal to 50 percent of its treasury shares. It is also conducting a buyback of 100.0 billion won worth of shares within this year. Cho said trust starts with transparent execution of announced policies rather than new ones.

In response to calls for the CEO to buy shares directly, Heo said four inside directors, including Chairman Dae-il Kim (김대일), hold about 38 percent of the company’s shares. He said personal share purchases by management of listed companies face restrictions under capital markets law, and said he would fulfil responsibility by raising corporate value through the successful launch of new titles. Cho also addressed the buyback method, saying a way of artificially raising bid prices could be misunderstood as conduct that affects prices. She said whether to cancel shares after buybacks would be reviewed comprehensively by the board.

Questions also came on how the company discloses sales volume and how it responds to short selling. Cho said cumulative sales figures that are announced could differ from quantities recognised as revenue, depending on platform settlement structures and accounting revenue-recognition standards. She said the company has not failed to inform the market of sales volume or distorted it. On abnormal trading such as short selling, she said the company continues to monitor market data, but no evidence has been found so far that can conclude illegal or unfair trading occurred. On the introduction of the KOSDAQ segment system, she said the company would respond once the system’s criteria are finalised. On calls to move its listing to the KOSPI, she said it would review whether it is an option that helps shareholder value.

On the sale of its subsidiary CCP Games in April, Heo said it was a decision to focus capabilities on a strategy centred on its own IP and engine, adding that the sale proceeds will be used for new title development and shareholder returns. On mergers and acquisitions, she said there was nothing confirmed or under discussion, but added the company would review with an open stance if there are opportunities that help the company grow.

The company said it would internally整理 questions and opinions raised at the meeting and reflect them in future investor-relations materials and earnings releases. It said it will provide updates sequentially through official channels on the direction of Crimson Desert DLC, expansion to new platforms and the status of DokeV development.