Stellar Blade Director Among Korea’s Richest

Kim Hyung-tae, who made his name known worldwide with Stellar Blade, draws attention not only with his creative success but also with his financial rise. Kim, who once started his career as a game artist, is now among the 50 richest people in Korea as the founder and chairman of Shift Up. According to Forbes, Kim’s wealth is around $725 million, and this increase is due to great successes on both mobile and console sides.

Stellar Blade and Nikke Crowned Success

The basis of Kim Hyung-tae’s rapid rise is the mobile game Goddess of Victory: Nikke, developed by Shift Up. This production, which draws attention with its “Waifu” character theme, attracted great attention in the mobile game market and enabled the company to earn serious income. This financial success allowed Shift Up to focus on more ambitious and single-player projects. The result was Stellar Blade, exclusive to PS5.

Stellar Blade’s success was reinforced not only by its sales figures, but also by Kim’s personal contribution to the project. Kim, who took part in the game as a director, assistant producer, and designer, is still at the center of the creative processes despite being the company’s top executive. This shows how committed he is to the project and the importance he gives to details.

2024 was a year full of records for Shift Up. The fact that Stellar Blade received more attention than expected further strengthened the studio’s position in the gaming world. While this success directly reflected on Kim Hyung-tae’s fortune, it also became a matter of curiosity as to what projects the company would focus on in the future. Players are eagerly awaiting the studio’s next step.

Although it is currently known that Shift Up is working on a new project, it is not yet clear whether this game will be Nikke-style or story-oriented like Stellar Blade. However, high-quality expectations have already been established in a project led by Kim. Shift Up continues to increase its influence in the Korean gaming industry not only with content, but also with its revenue and brand power.

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