Stellar Blade achieved remarkable success at the 2024 Korea Game Awards, held on November 13th, securing an impressive seven awards. Let's delve into the game's triumphant night.
Stellar Blade's Seven Wins at the 2024 Korea Game Awards
SHIFT UP's Ambitious Goals for Stellar Blade's Future
SHIFT UP's Stellar Blade dominated the 2024 Korea Game Awards, earning seven prestigious awards, including the Excellence Award. The awards ceremony, held at the Busan Exhibition & Convention Center (BEXCO), recognized Stellar Blade's exceptional achievements in Game Planning/Scenario, Graphics, Character Design, and Sound Design. The game also received the Outstanding Developer Award and the Popular Game Award.
This victory marks the fifth Korea Game Award win for Stellar Blade's Director and SHIFT UP CEO, Kim Hyung-tae. His previous wins include accolades for Magna Carta 2 (Xbox 360), The War of Genesis 3 (1999), his contributions to Blade and Soul (2012) as Art Director at NCSoft, and SHIFT UP’s Goddess of Victory: Nikke (2023).
In his acceptance speech, as reported by Econovill and translated via Google, Kim Hyung-tae acknowledged the initial skepticism surrounding the development of a Korean-made console game. He expressed gratitude to his team for overcoming challenges and achieving such significant success.
While Stellar Blade narrowly missed the Grand Prize (awarded to Netmarble’s Solo Leveling: ARISE), SHIFT UP remains fully committed to the game's future. Kim Hyung-tae confirmed plans for extensive future updates, expressing confidence in achieving even greater success, including a future Grand Prize win.
The complete list of 2024 Korea Game Awards winners is presented below:
| Award | Awardee | Company |
|---|---|
| Grand Presidential Award | Solo Leveling: ARISE | Netmarble |
| Prime Minister Award | Stellar Blade (Excellence Award) | SHIFT UP |
| Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism Award (Best Game Award) | |
| Trickcal Re:VIVE | Epid Games |
| Lord Nine | Smilegate |
| The First Descendant | Nexon Games |
| Sports Shipbuilding President Award | |
| Stellar Blade (Best Planning/Scenario) | SHIFT UP |
| Stellar Blade (Best Sound Design) | |
| Electronic Times President Award | |
| Stellar Blade (Best Graphics) | |
| Stellar Blade (Best Character Design) | |
| Commendation from the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism | |
| Hanwha Life Esports (eSports Development Award) | |
| Gyu-Cheol Kim (Achievement Award) | Minister of Culture, Sports, and Tourism Award |
| Kim Hyung-Tae (Outstanding Developer Award) | SHIFT UP |
| Stellar Blade (Popular Game Award) | |
| Terminus: Zombie Survivors (Indie Game Award) | Longplay Studios |
| Korean Creative Content Agency President Award | ReLU Games (Startup Company Award) |
| Game Management Committee Chairperson Award | Smilegate Megaport (Proper Gaming Environment Creation Company Award) |
| Game Cultural Foundation Director Award | Uncover the Smoking Gun | ReLU Games |
Although Stellar Blade wasn't nominated for the Ultimate Game of the Year at the 2024 Golden Joystick Awards, its future remains bright. With a planned collaboration with Platinum Games' NieR: Automata (November 20th) and a PC release in 2025, Stellar Blade's popularity is set to continue expanding. SHIFT UP's Q3 business performance reflects a strategic commitment to maintaining the game's momentum through marketing and content updates. This success points towards a promising future for Korean-developed AAA titles.
