Boundless Challenges: Meeting Seok Mo Cheong, the Architect of Smilegate’s Expanding Global Presence 2026-02-26

Since joining Smilegate last June, Chief Global Officer (CGO) Seok Mo Cheong has been on an unrelenting journey for the past six months. Drawing on over 15 years of experience in the gaming industry and six years as an investment professional, he is redefining Smilegate’s unique “Global Formula.”

The Smilegate Newsroom sat down with CGO Seok Mo Cheong to take a closer look at his strategic roadmap for the company’s future.

Q. It has been about six months since you joined Smilegate. For those employees who may still be unfamiliar with your role and your organization, could you please introduce yourself and the team?

Hello, I’m Seok Mo Cheong. I joined the company on June 16 last year, so it’s been about six months. Before joining Smilegate, I spent about six years at Nexon as Chief Business Development Officer (CBDO), overseeing global business development, and later served as Global Chief Operating Officer (COO), where I was responsible for corporate management and game service operations. I also have about six years of experience at an investment firm.

If I were to define the role of the CGO in one sentence, it would be: “Identifying and executing external opportunities for global growth.” While our internal studios focus on creating great games, I work externally to proactively identify new partners and business opportunities, and turn those opportunities into tangible results.

Q. Could you please introduce your organization?

Our organization is primarily built upon three key pillars.

The first is the Business Development (BD) team, which focuses on identifying global partnerships and business opportunities. The second is the Development Management team, responsible for overseeing the production process of projects conducted alongside our partners. Finally, the Go-To-Market (GTM) team takes full responsibility for the entire lifecycle of a game, from its initial launch to ongoing live service operations.

In addition, we have a separate and vital unit dedicated to IP sourcing. Their role is to discover diverse intellectual properties—such as novels and animations—that have the potential for game adaptation or can create strong synergies with our existing titles.

Q. How does the Smilegate you experienced from the inside differ from your external perception? Also, what was the decisive factor behind your decision to join?

“Externally, Smilegate stood out to me as a company with the unwavering grit to invest for the long term. It was impressive to see how it achieved global milestones in mainstream genres like FPS and RPG through consistent, dedicated investment.

Since joining, I’ve realized that this ‘grit’ is far from accidental. It is the result of deep deliberation, strong internal insights, and a structured, data-driven approach.

My role is inherently challenging—managing complex internal and external stakeholders while navigating a long-term path toward results. However, the partnerships Smilegate has built were incredibly compelling. Seeing collaborations with visionary partners like Dan Houser’s Absurd Ventures and That’s No Moon made me realize how exciting it would be to work here. Furthermore, the company’s clear understanding of the role’s complexity and its commitment to long-term support gave me the confidence to join.”

Q. After observing your teams for the past six months, what strengths have you identified? Also, what specific changes have you noticed or implemented since joining?

I felt that the level of expertise in each field is exceptionally high. What impressed me most, however, was the sense of responsibility and patience among our members. In business development, only one or two out of ten attempts may lead to actual results. Our team has the resilience to endure that inherent uncertainty. Another strength is their genuine affection for the company; with many long-term employees, I truly felt that people here sincerely care about Smilegate.

Over the past six months, I have focused on aligning the CGO organization’s vision, goals, and ways of working. A work culture doesn’t simply come together overnight just by saying, “Let’s become one.” In these situations, unifying work processes and tools is incredibly helpful. Therefore, we are organizing historical business data from each unit into a centralized internal wiki and creating an environment where everything can be tracked in a standardized manner.

We’ve made significant progress—a recent hire even mentioned that it was much easier to get up to speed and follow the workflow. We are continuing to refine these efforts and establish standardized practices as our foundation.

Q. Have you noticed a shift in market perception following Smilegate's global activities in recent years?

I believe Smilegate’s global standing has been strong for a long time, thanks to the massive success of CROSSFIRE. In recent years, that presence has grown even further as Lost Ark achieved strong results in the North American and European markets. Even before joining, I could clearly sense the rise in Smilegate’s global recognition. In fact, when meeting industry professionals, I rarely find the need to give a lengthy introduction about the company.

Notably, while global investment has contracted over the past few years, we are recognized for consistently maintaining our networking and investment efforts. Since our collaboration with Dan Houser was made public, we have also seen a significant increase in inbound opportunities from potential global partners.

Q. Which global markets do you consider particularly important over the next few years? What preparations and efforts are needed to penetrate those markets?

From a corporate perspective, I believe the most critical task is to protect and sustain our existing live services. Strong live services for our well-loved IPs create the foundation for future opportunities. In that sense, Korea, China, and Southeast Asia—where IPs like CROSSFIRE and Lost Ark continue to enjoy strong popularity—remain incredibly important. We are also placing significant focus on the Japanese market, as demonstrated by our showcase of Chaos Zero Nightmare and MIRESI: Invisible Future at last year’s Tokyo Game Show.

At the same time, I believe North America and other Western markets are key to creating new milestones.

There is no simple “correct answer” to succeeding in North America and Western markets. It requires continuous challenges, learning from failure, and cultivating talent shaped by those experiences. This must be supported by mutual trust and patience. We must also closely examine previous success stories and learn everything we can from them. We are approaching this with careful deliberation.

Q. What are the most important values or principles you want to uphold while leading global business?

"As a gaming company, I believe the most fundamental principle is ‘Quality First.’ I am convinced that if the quality is exceptional, it will eventually shine over time, even if the immediate results are not significant.

However, putting a ‘Quality First’ philosophy into practice is no easy task. To make this a reality, we are working to make our validation systems more robust and to build a structure that enables collaboration with world-class developers and creators."

Q. How do you want Smilegate to be perceived in the global market?

From a business partner’s perspective, I want us to be seen as a company that is “kind, yet rigorous and highly capable”—a partner that truly delivers results. I believe that genuine relationships are built through performance.

In my experience, simply being “kind” to a business partner doesn’t necessarily lead to a long-lasting relationship. Real longevity comes from a relationship where you can engage in constructive conflict, achieve results together, and build trust through that shared success. Without performance, any business relationship eventually comes to an end.

From a user’s perspective, I want Smilegate to be a company that makes people eagerly anticipate our next release. To achieve this, I believe—once again—that quality is our most vital priority.

From the unwavering grit that remains unshaken by short-term results and a “quality-first” principle, to a partnership philosophy built on trust earned through performance—CGO Seok Mo Cheong has articulated “global strategy” not as a grand, hollow vision, but through the concrete language of organizational design and execution.

As he envisions a future where Smilegate is recognized as a “kind yet rigorous, results-driven global partner,” we look forward to the path he is carving for the company.