NCsoft^® Corporation (CEO Kim Tack Jin, www.ncsoft.com ), the world’s leading developer and publisher of online computer games, has signed a licensing contract with The9 (www.the9.com), a leading online game operator in China, to release NCsoft’s online role-playing game Guild Wars® in China.

The contract will give The9 exclusive rights to provide Guild Wars online game services within mainland China for three years. The9 is China’s leading operator of online games and was listed on the NASDAQ market in December 2004. 

Jun Zhu, Chairman and CEO of The9, said, “The9 was predestined to earn the rights to service Guild Wars, the global online role-playing game which has gained worldwide recognition for its quality and popularity. Through close cooperation with NCsoft, The9 will offer Chinese gamers a chance to simultaneously experience Guild Wars, the innovative new-style online game, along with other gamers around the world.”

Tack Jin Kim, CEO of NCsoft, added, “The9 has a proven record of excellence in the Chinese market as a leading online game operator. We are confident that through the partnership, Guild Wars will receive great response from Chinese gamers and once again raise the game’s status in the global market.”

More than one million units of Guild Wars were sold in less than five months when the game launched on April 28, 2005. The new chapter in the Guild Wars franchise, Guild Wars Factions™, awaits its launch on April 28^th. Currently, Guild Wars is available in Korea, North America, Europe, Japan and Taiwan.