Shengqu Games locks down the “Tower of Eternity 2” national service exclusive agent: IP Changxie continues to reinforce the MMO core moat in '17

On July 30, 2026, Shengqu Games, a subsidiary of Century Huatong (002602.SZ), and NC, a Korean game developer, jointly held a “Wing Start” product launch in Shanghai to officially announce that the two sides have reached a cooperation agreement on the exclusive agency operation of the large-scale next-generation fantasy MMORPG “AION2” (Chinese translation: “Tower of Eternity 2”) in mainland China. This move marks a phased leap forward based on the 17-year strategic partnership between the two parties based on the “Tower of Eternity” IP. It also adds core assets to Shengqu Gaming's product matrix and boutique strategy in the MMO segment circuit.

Long-term operation verifies IP resilience and joint development expands value boundaries

Since Shengqu Games (formerly Shengda Games) introduced the “Tower of Eternity” mobile game to the Chinese market in 2009, the product has established a stable user base and brand awareness in the domestic MMORPG market with differentiated flight combat mechanisms and faction confrontation systems. The two sides continued to deepen collaboration during this cycle, and launched the “Tower of Eternity: Classic” mobile game joint development project in November 2025 to promote the extension of IP assets to mobile devices, laying the foundation of mutual trust and collaborative experience for reaching a new national service agency.

At the press conference, NC founder and CEO Jin Zechen said that “Tower of Eternity” can become an MMORPG loved by players. It is inseparable from the attention and support of Chinese players over the years, as well as the company of long-term partner Shengqu Gaming along the way.

NC founder and CEO Kim Chak-jin

Peng Cheng, CEO of Shengqu Games, said that in the 17 years since “Tower of Eternity” entered China, Shengqu Games and NC have worked hand in hand to experience dramatic changes in the Chinese online game industry. It is because the two sides have always adhered to the long-term development concept of “a good game is worth long-term investment, and a good IP is worth being managed for a long time” that they successfully turned “Tower of Eternity” into a classic IP with over 100 million registered users, and ushered in the popularity of nostalgic clothing and Huai Zhong Huai versions. Joint research and development of the “Tower of Eternity: Classic” mobile game project was launched, step by step, revitalizing this IP.

Peng Cheng, CEO of Shengqu Games

Judging from business logic, this partnership is not a one-time licensing transaction, but a strategic renewal based on the management of the entire IP lifecycle. Shengqu Gaming will assume full responsibility from localized distribution, user acquisition, long-term operation to community ecosystem construction, while NC will focus on underlying technical support and version content iteration to form a closed loop of “R&D+distribution+operation” division of labor, which will help reduce the risk of cross-cultural market adaptation and improve the continuous monetization efficiency of IP in the Chinese market.

Unreal Engine 5 reconstructs the experiential dimension, overseas market data verifies commercialization potential

“Tower of Eternity 2” uses Unreal Engine 5 in its technical architecture, making the map area 36 times larger than the previous game, and groundbreaking embedded free flight throughout the entire region into the combat system, forming a three-dimensional PVP/PVE mechanism. On the combat model, the product combines traditional MMORPG skill cycle strategies with action game real-time judgment logic (including evasion, multiple attacks, and accurate impact feedback) to enhance the depth of operation and team coordination weight. In addition, the character customization system supports more than 200 parameter adjustments, strengthening the user's personalized investment and emotional connection.

Eight classic occupations in “Tower of Eternity 2”

In terms of market verification, after the product was officially released in Korea on November 19, 2025, the average number of daily active users during the public beta period reached 1.5 million, revenue exceeded 100 billion won within 46 days of launch, and received the G-STAR 2025 Best Game Award. The phased performance of overseas markets not only verified the global acceptance of its core gameplay, but also provided a reference data benchmark for predicting user acquisition costs (CAC) and lifetime value (LTV) after the launch of the national service.

Reinforce the MMO category moat to adapt to the structural recovery of the mobile game market

Judging from the business structure of Century Huatong, the parent company of Shengqu Games, MMORPG has always been its core advantage circuit. The introduction of “Tower of Eternity 2” will create a synergy effect with existing classic IPs such as “Hot Blood Legends”, “World of Legends”, and “Dragon Valley” to further improve the multi-level product matrix of “PC Game+Mobile Game+Nostalgia Wear”. In recent years, the company has implemented a “go hand in hand” strategy around these IPs, and has successively launched new products such as “Legendary New 100 District-League Heavy Soldiers” and “Dragon Valley World”, effectively activating existing users and reaching Gen Z groups, and verifying its ability to operate in classic IP renewal and user generational replacement.

At the industry level, domestic MMO tracks are undergoing a paradigm shift from “traffic driven” to “quality driven”. According to Gamma Data's “2025 China Game Industry Report”, the proportion of young users aged 18-34 in the MMO category reached 48.62%, indicating that the core user structure is not aging, but instead puts a higher threshold for content quality and gameplay innovation. At the same time, the R&D threshold, funding threshold, and compliance threshold for large-scale MMO products have been raised simultaneously, resulting in limited new supply on the supply side, forming a “competitive pattern of stock quality products.” “Tower of Eternity 2” is expected to gain incremental market share during this structured window with accumulated IP recognition, next-generation image quality performance, and gameplay mechanisms that have been verified overseas.

Furthermore, the recovery in the mobile game market provides macro-level support for the long-term operation of this product. In 2025, the actual sales revenue of the Chinese client game market reached 78.16 billion yuan, up 14.97% year on year; in the first quarter of 2026, mobile game revenue reached 24.976 billion yuan, increasing the year-on-year increase to 39.38%. Relying on immersive experiences, strong social stickiness, and the ability to update long-term content, mobile games are still irreplaceable, providing a solid payment environment and user retention base for heavy MMOs such as “Tower of Eternity 2.”

Shengqu Games announced that “Tower of Eternity 2” will open offline trials for the first time for domestic players in the core area of the Century Huatong booth during the 23rd ChinaJoy from July 31 to August 3, 2026. This move has the dual functions of product promotion and user research: on the one hand, brand exposure and initial volume accumulation is achieved through high-traffic exhibitions; on the other hand, it uses trial feedback to optimize localization debugging and newbie-guided design to provide data support for user retention and conversion efficiency after the official launch of China Service.

Conclusion: Strategic card position based on long-term operating logic

Overall, this partnership not only added a major MMO product with proven global quality to Shengqu Games, but also consolidated its operating barriers in the field of large-scale multiplayer online games by continuing its deep binding with NC. In an industry context where the mobile game market is picking up and the MMO circuit refinement trend is clear, the launch of the “Tower of Eternity 2” national service is expected to contribute to the company's medium- to long-term revenue growth and further verify the replicability of its “IP long-term operation+cross-end collaborative development” strategy. Subsequent national service launch times, pricing strategies, and localized operation plans are worth continuing to be tracked by the market.