What does it take to make a console game that succeeds worldwide, and how does a Korean studio actually get onto PlayStation or Xbox? Korea’s government is bringing in some of the industry’s best-known creators, and the platform holders themselves, to answer both questions.
The Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism and the Korea Creative Content Agency (KOCCA) will hold the 2026 Console Game Developer Conference (K-Console Conference) on Monday, November 9, at the SKY31 Convention in Seoul’s Lotte World Tower.
First held last year to help build Korea’s console development ecosystem, the conference returns for its second edition.
This year’s theme is “How Great Console Games Are Made.” The program shares design and production experience from the teams behind global hits, along with practical information for Korean studios preparing to enter console platforms.
The speaker lineup also expands beyond Japan to include developers from North America and Europe, offering insight into the characteristics of different console markets and fresh perspectives for Korean developers aiming at the global market.
Global Track: Lessons From the Makers of Worldwide Hits
The Global Track features core developers from globally successful games, with sessions built around real development cases covering everything from game design and production to long-term IP management and building global fan communities.
Paweł Sasko, Associate Game Director at CD PROJEKT RED, will discuss the structure of unforgettable quests in The Witcher and Cyberpunk, explaining how to design stories and quests that stay with players.
Katsuhiro Harada, CEO of VS Studio, will speak on how a global IP stays loved for more than 30 years, sharing his strategies for long-term IP development and management and his experience growing a global fan community.
They will be followed by Kazutaka Kodaka, producer at Tookyo Games and creator of Danganronpa; Tynan Sylvester, creator of RimWorld; and Lee Dong-gi, CTO of SHIFT UP, developer of Stellar Blade. Their talks cover narrative implementation, principles of indie game development, and strategies for raising quality in the late stages of development.
Closing the track, Shuhei Yoshida, former president of Sony Interactive Entertainment Worldwide Studios and last year’s keynote speaker, will moderate a panel titled “Console Games That Succeed Worldwide: Candid Stories From Their Developers.”
Platform Sessions: PlayStation and Xbox Walk Developers Through Launch
New this year are sessions in which console platform holders explain their development and release processes directly. They respond to demand from last year’s attendees and this year’s pre-event survey, which showed developers want clearer information on platform entry and certification.
Platform staff will walk Korean studios through procedures and key considerations around platform approval, securing development kits, and non-disclosure agreements (NDAs), areas where information has historically been hard to come by.
Sony Interactive Entertainment Korea (SIEK) will present “The Journey to a PlayStation Launch: From Partner Registration to Passing TRC (Technical Requirements Checklist).”
This session is invitation-only. Attendees will be selected from pre-registrants, and only those who receive final approval and complete the NDA process may attend.
Xbox will host an open session, “Jump In: Xbox — An All-in-One Guide to Entering Xbox.” Michelle Jang, who leads Xbox partnerships in Korea, and other Xbox staff will cover the platform ecosystem, launch strategy, store registration and certification, and setting up development environments and deployment, step by step.
GAME DAYS: Demos, Showcases, and Networking
The conference is held in conjunction with GAME DAYS, an initiative bringing together the government, KOCCA, game media, and industry associations to energize Korea’s game industry.
Beyond the talks, the venue will feature a Korean console game and Xbox play zone, a demo area for winners of the Global Indie Game Development Contest (GIGDC), and spaces for industry networking.
A networking reception with key speakers, Korean developers, and platform representatives aims to turn shared experience and information into real business partnerships.
Kim Sung-jun, head of KOCCA’s Game and New Technology Division, said: “As Korea’s console game development ecosystem grows, it’s important that we reflect the voices of developers and practitioners on the ground and provide support that meets their real needs. Through this event, we’ll share the production experience of overseas developers and practical information from platform holders, and we will continue strengthening our support, informed by the field, so Korean game companies can enter the global console market.”
Registration and full session details are available through the event’s online exhibition hall at www.gamedays.kr.
Who This Is For
Strong fit for: Korean studios planning a PlayStation or Xbox release who need concrete guidance on partner registration, dev kits, NDAs, TRC, and certification; narrative designers and writers eager to hear Paweł Sasko and Kazutaka Kodaka; indie developers interested in Tynan Sylvester’s development principles; teams pushing for late-stage polish, given SHIFT UP’s Stellar Blade experience; anyone building long-running IP and fan communities.
Worth noting: the PlayStation session requires pre-registration approval and an NDA, so studios should apply early. The Xbox session is open.
What to Watch For
The platform sessions are the most practically significant addition. Console onboarding, from dev kit access to certification, has long been a bottleneck for Korean indie and mid-size studios, and having SIEK and Xbox explain the process directly could lower that barrier meaningfully. The Yoshida-moderated panel is also likely to be a highlight, bringing Japanese, European, North American, and Korean perspectives into one conversation.
The Takeaway
In its second year, the K-Console Conference is broadening its lens and getting more practical. A Global Track featuring CD PROJEKT RED, Katsuhiro Harada, Kazutaka Kodaka, Tynan Sylvester, SHIFT UP, and Shuhei Yoshida offers inspiration from across the world’s major console markets, while PlayStation and Xbox onboarding sessions tackle the procedural hurdles that keep many Korean studios off consoles. For a government push to grow Korea’s console ecosystem, pairing aspiration with step-by-step guidance is exactly the right combination.
Monday, November 9, 2026, at Lotte World Tower SKY31 Convention, Seoul. Register at www.gamedays.kr.
