Ironmace has been embroiled in a dispute with
Dark And Darker Gold Nexon over Dark and Darker since early 2023, when the publisher accused it of making the game using materials stolen from a cancelled Nexon project.
In March, Nexon's legal action led to the game's removal from Steam; Ironmace responded by using BitTorrent to distribute a playtest client, which became something of a PR coup for the studio.
In August, the studio released an early access version of Dark and Darker through its website and a digital storefront called Chaf Games, but it remains unavailable on Steam—a big problem for a new game trying to find an audience.
That's a complicated situation for any third party to wade into, and I have to wonder whether Krafton is at risk of losing both the license and the money it spent to acquire it if Nexon prevails in court. Nexon had argued that the case should be tried in the US "because Korean courts are powerless to compel the production of certain evidence."
It's possible that Krafton is eager enough for the license that it's willing to roll the dice, and it may also have been emboldened by a recent courtroom win for Ironmace: Earlier this month, Nexon's copyright claim in the US was dismissed, as the judge in the case determined that it would be better adjudicated in South Korea.
Krafton declined to comment on the reasons for acquiring the license now, but confirmed that it is aware of Ironmace's precarious legal situation. "Regarding legal issues, Krafton is monitoring the judicial decisions as
buy Dark And Darker Gold a third party," a Krafton spokesperson told PC Gamer.
