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Major game companies sign on for AGF 2026
South Korea’s largest anime and gaming convention will return Dec. 4-6, with leading Korean publishers NCSoft, Nexon and Smilegate among the companies planning major showcases.
Anime X Game Festival 2026, commonly known as AGF, will occupy five halls at KINTEX, a convention center in Goyang, just northwest of Seoul. Organizers and participating companies announced their plans on the 20th.
Other exhibitors will include Neowiz, Google Play, Yostar and Team Tetrapod. Sponsors besides NCSoft include Galaxy Store, Korean streaming platform SOOP, Elementa, movie theater chain Megabox and gift-card company Culture Land.
SOOP and Elementa will make their AGF debuts. SOOP plans to host virtual streamer fan meetings, merchandise sales and interactive events.
From niche gathering to major gaming showcase
AGF began in 2018 as a collaboration among Korean and Japanese companies involved in anime and related fan culture. Initially a relatively small event centered on merchandise tied to animated intellectual property and stage appearances by voice actors, it has expanded alongside South Korea’s fast-growing market for anime-style games.
The festival is now emerging as an offline marketing hub comparable in prominence to G-Star, South Korea’s largest traditional gaming convention. This year’s lineup includes Japanese and Chinese game companies, as well as major Korean publishers that did not participate in G-Star. Businesses involved in streaming, movies and gift cards are also joining the event.
NCSoft plans festival’s largest exhibition
NCSoft will serve as AGF’s first main sponsor and operate 150 booths, the largest presence among participating companies. The publisher made its AGF debut last year with “Limit Zero Breakers,” developed by BigGame Studio.
This year, NCSoft will exclusively showcase “Astraea Oratio,” a fantasy magic role-playing game developed by South Korea’s Dynamis One and published by NCSoft. The game was first shown to the public at the Tokyo Game Show in September.
NCSoft’s exhibition will include a playable demo, visitor activities and merchandise, including an art book featuring the game’s world and early character designs. The company, which is working to diversify its portfolio, has declared its intention to enter the anime-style game market and has also participated in overseas events including Comiket and Tokyo Game Show 2026.
Nexon and Smilegate reveal their lineups
Nexon plans to present two games, “Pareidolia” and “Azur Promilia.” “Pareidolia” is being developed within Nexon Games under executive producer Kim Yong-ha, who led production of the popular anime-style role-playing game “Blue Archive.” The new title was previously shown to the public at Tokyo Game Show.
“Azur Promilia,” developed by China’s Manjuu Games and published by Nexon, received positive feedback from a closed beta test in South Korea in May. It is scheduled for release by the end of the year.
Smilegate will bring “Chaos Zero Nightmare,” released in 2025, and “Miraishi: Invisible Future,” which is under development by Control Nine. At a showcase marking the first anniversary of “Chaos Zero Nightmare” this month, the company outlined plans for future updates and operation of the game.
Attendance tops 100,000
AGF drew 100,518 visitors over three days in 2025, surpassing 100,000 for the first time since the festival began. Attendance increased about 39.5% from 72,081 the previous year.
Industry officials cite the continued expansion of anime-style games, lower marketing costs and convenient access as reasons publishers are choosing AGF over overseas conventions or G-Star, which is held in the southeastern city of Busan.
KINTEX is easier to reach for the large population living in and around Seoul than venues such as Koelnmesse in Germany, Makuhari Messe near Tokyo or BEXCO in Busan. Since the opening of South Korea’s GTX-A commuter rail line in 2024, the trip from Seoul Station to KINTEX takes about 30 minutes. Employees staffing company booths can also commute from their homes in the capital region rather than pay for travel and lodging.
Market research firm Dataintelo projects that the global market for anime and related fan-oriented content will reach $87.6 billion by 2034. Mobile games and streaming are expected to account for 58% of total revenue.
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