Inside the Dragon Sword Drama: Total Refunds, Takeover Allegations, and a $2.2M Reversal

by

Story Highlights

  • Webzen suddenly wired $2.2 million to Hound13 just before a major whistleblower interview was set to air.
  • Dragon Sword is still in maintenance mode, pumping out endless gacha currency, with the future uncertain.
  • While each side points fingers, the reality is that mistakes on both ends led to Dragon Sword’s downfall within a month of release.

A dispute between the developers of Dragon Sword, Hound13, and their publisher, Webzen, has been ongoing. Recently, after weeks of unpaid leave notices and issues with the game’s live service, Webzen unexpectedly paid Hound13 the money they were owed – just before a planned interview with someone who had inside information. Here’s a closer look at what happened.

The contract war between publisher and developer that ruined Dragon Sword

I’ve been following Dragon Sword for a while now – you might remember it as Project D, which was first announced back in 2021. It’s an open-world action RPG that I was really excited about, but things got messy. Apparently, there were some serious disagreements between the developers and the publisher, and it sounds like the publisher even tried to take control of the game by demanding a bigger share of the ownership in exchange for more funding.

Webzen claims they aren’t at fault, stating that Hound13 consistently delayed the project’s timeline. This extended development time, according to Webzen, is what caused Hound13 to run out of money. Webzen says they even offered additional help, but Hound13 unexpectedly ended their contract without any prior discussion.

Looking at the situation from the outside, it’s clear both sides feel like they were wronged, and a promising game ultimately failed. Webzen offered a full refund for all purchases after ending the contract, but this essentially confirmed the game could no longer be supported with ongoing live services.

Fans of the game paid the price in the end in between the turmoil

Shortly after launch, the game went into maintenance mode – a situation Korean players refer to as a “Zombie state.” Although the developers would still like to improve the game, I believe it’s too late to save it. While they’ve been giving players a lot of free in-game currency, it hasn’t helped, and the game is essentially finished.

Now that you understand the background of this corporate conflict, here’s the final piece of information. The REGGistry reports that Hound13’s CEO contacted GSBG, a prominent South Korean YouTube channel known for exposing industry issues and its connections to the Korean Game User Association.

Realizing the potential for significant reputational harm and even legal issues, Webzen reportedly decided to quickly send the $2.2 million (3 billion Korean Won) they were holding back to Hound13.

It seems like Hound13 won for now, getting the payment and avoiding the interview, but ultimately, gamers are the ones who missed out. I’m not sure if Webzen intentionally released this alongside the big new game, Arknights: Endfield, but I’ll share any further information as it becomes available.

Read More

2026-02-28 16:11