AION 2 and Crimson Desert Lead 2026 Korea Game Awards Nominees

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The 2026 Korea Game Awards nominees are out, with NC’s AION 2 and Pearl Abyss’ Crimson Desert looking like the two biggest names in the Grand Prize race. The Korea Association of Game Industry announced the shortlist on October 26 KST and opened public online voting the same day.

The main awards cover the Grand Prize, Best Award, Excellence Award, and Technology/Creativity Award. Eligible games were developed and released in South Korea between October 3, 2025 and October 12, 2026, with nominees coming from developer submissions and KOCCA’s Best Game of the Year winners.

The 12 main-award nominees are Dokkaebi’s World, Lost Eidolons: Veil of the Witch, MONGIL: Star Dive, Crimson Desert, Stone Age: Idle Adventure, Eclipse: The Awakening, The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin, Imjin War: Joseon’s Counterattack, Zeus: God of Arrogance, Chaos Zero Nightmare, AION 2, and MIMESIS.

Crimson Desert has a strong case on the commercial side. Pearl Abyss’ open-world action-adventure launched in March, sold 2 million copies on its first day, and passed 6 million global sales in 83 days. Its first paid DLC, Unknown Journey, is scheduled for October 30.

AION 2 is also in the spotlight. NC’s MMORPG launched in Korea and Taiwan in November 2025, and it has been a major part of the company’s earnings recovery. Its global version launched earlier this month and has reportedly been holding daily Steam peak concurrent player counts in the 200,000 to 300,000 range. This is also NC’s first Korea Game Awards submission in 14 years, following Blade & Soul’s Grand Prize win in 2012.

Netmarble has the most titles on the main shortlist, with MONGIL: Star Dive, Stone Age: Idle Adventure, and The Seven Deadly Sins: Origin all nominated through subsidiary studios.

Public voting runs until 5 p.m. KST on November 16. Final winners will be decided through a mix of judging panel scores and public votes, with the ceremony set for 4 p.m. on November 18 at BEXCO in Busan, one day before G-Star 2026 opens.

Further reading: Official 2026 Korea Game Awards site