How Krafton Is Shaking up the Life Simulation Market With inZOI

After Tera and PUBG, inZOI is Krafton's next big thing, having already sold over a million copies in Early Access. We spoke to Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim, producer and director of InZoi, about the importance of new IP, the peculiarities of the genre, and how to deal with feedback during the Early Access stage.

The Early Access launch of inZOI was a milestone for Krafton. Following the global success of Tera and especially PUBG: Battlegrounds, the South Korean company is venturing into a completely different genre and trying its hand at a life simulation game that rivals Electronic Arts' The Sims.

We spoke to Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim, producer and director of inZOI, about the importance of new IP, the peculiarities of the genre and how to deal with feedback during the Early Access stage. Please note that the interview took place between the launch of the ModKit in June and the release of the free expansion inZOI: Island Getaway on 20 August, during gamescom.

GamesMarkt: inZOI sold one million copies in its launch week. This makes it Krafton's fastest-selling title to date. How do you look back on the Early Access launch? What went well and what didn't?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "We did have a certain level of expectation that there would be many players hoping for a game like this in the current market, but with the Early Access launch, we realized just how scarce the life simulation genre was - and how much demand there is for it. We're incredibly grateful that inZOI became the fastest Krafton title to surpass one million copies sold. At the same time, I believe it reflects more of how many players had been waiting for a life sim game that offered a different style from The Sims. That also meant that expectations from the market were very high, and I think many players were eager to believe in inZOI."

"This is our first attempt at the life simulation genre, and it's still an Early Access title that is a work in progress. Like anything, the lower the expectations, the smaller the disappointment. But because demand for this genre is so strong, it would have been difficult for inZOI to fully live up to those expectations after only two years of development. The milestone of one million copies is incredibly meaningful and something we're truly thankful for, but it also comes with a heavy sense of responsibility. Right now, the team is dedicating each day to making inZOI even better."

GamesMarkt: How important is inZOI as a new IP for Krafton?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "I'm not saying this just because I work at Krafton, but I truly believe Krafton is a remarkable company that is boldly attempting to develop games across a wide range of genres, even by global standards. In fact, we have multiple genres being produced at the same time within Krafton, and we have studios all over the world. Yet, among all those games, inZOI is the sole title in the life simulation genre. Taking a broader view on this, I believe inZOI is a unique IP within the Korean gaming industry as a whole. I say this because for a long time, Korean developers, including me, have been making many games centered around only a handful of specific genres, MMORPGs in particular. There were more attempts at other genres in the early days of the Korean gaming industry, but MMORPGs became so popular and profitable that many have built their careers around MMOs - and even I have been focused on that genre for 25 years."

"In that context, inZOI is a project we started with the hope that it would be an opportunity not only for Krafton, but also for other Korean developers to try new genres, learn from the experience, make small achievements, and eventually promote genre diversity and healthy growth of the game industry. Even within Krafton, developers who are interested in the life simulation genre often come to the inZOI team with questions like, 'How did you get started in this genre?' or 'What were your goals and considerations?' Whenever this happens, it gives me hope that Krafton truly holds diverse development DNA and that we will continue to be an organization that can flexibly respond to changes in the world. Another important point is that inZOI was Krafton's first project to fully integrate AI into the game. We're continuing to actively share that experience and know-how within the company, playing the role of evangelists - spreading both the technology and vision to others."

Krafton is headquartered in South Korea and is home to a number of globally renowned developers, including PUBG Studios, Striking Distance Studios, Unknown Worlds, Vector North, Neon Giant, Krafton Montréal Studio, Bluehole Studio, RisingWings, 5minlab, Dreamotion, ReLU Games, Flyway Games, Tango Gameworks and inZOI Studio.

GamesMarkt: What has been or is currently important to you in Early Access? How is player feedback shaping the future of the game?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "What matters most during the Early Access period is, without a doubt, communication with our players. We've released a total of 12 hotfixes so far, and we've already delivered major updates, including the inZOI ModKit. Perhaps there may be another update by the time this interview goes live. The reason we're releasing updates so quickly and frequently is simple: we started with zero experience in this genre. inZOI is still a game with many rough edges, and we're learning from player feedback as we improve it one fix at a time. That's also why we chose to push out Early Access, and why we're offering all updates completely free until the full release. While the game is not yet complete, this decision reflects our commitment to build and grow together with our players. In that sense, player feedback is the most important compass for us to refine inZOI's current state and shape its future. We look forward to watching inZOI grow in the right direction as we continue close communication with our players."

GamesMarkt: How do you respond to players who complain that new content is released too slowly, or that the game was launched with insufficient content?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "We understand that some players may feel that way. inZOI was developed by a relatively small team over a short period of time, but there was a clear reason we chose to launch in Early Access. If we had a huge team producing a lot of content without a clear direction, we may have ended up with a game filled with unwanted features, which is something we wanted to avoid. That's why we had a smaller team develop the core features, giving us room to polish the game according to the community's desired direction and gradually expand from there. We believe that all feedback is valid, and we plan to actively build out the game in the direction desired by our players."

"And as I mentioned, we will continue to offer all updates for free until the game is polished with enough content for official launch. In terms of the slow release of new content, I want to emphasize that the inZOI team has truly been working at full speed. Since launch, we've released over 10 hotfixes and major updates, added around 60 new customization elements and more than 200 building items, on top of various content improvements and even the inZOI ModKit. So, we're doing our best, but we're also motivated to keep pushing forward. For example, we're bringing a major update in August that will include new vehicles, swimming pool and swimming systems, farming, foraging, and a wide array of outfits and furniture. Please understand we're doing everything we can to offer even faster and richer content updates."

GamesMarkt: How important is the ModKit for the game?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "The current ModKit is still a work in progress, reflecting roughly half of what we have in plan. Notably, scripting support is a core feature that is currently in development planned to be included in the December update. For now, the inZOI ModKit enables players to modify character appearances and take partial control over functionality and performance of interaction elements. The most popular mods right now are those related to 'Meow Coin.' Players have particularly been having fun adding various new effects to their Meow Coins. I personally downloaded and tested it myself, and the fact that it's user-created made it even more interesting to play. We're only about half-way through, but as expected, we're already seeing players actively creating a variety of outfit mods and even supplementing the game with functions that the team hadn't implemented. In that way, the inZOI ModKit is an important tool that allows players to explore the game's possibilities, adding more features and fun even beyond what we've been able to provide. Fans are playing with inZOI in their own ways through mods, and we're excited to see how this kind of creative expansion will play a major role in making the game even more fruitful and dynamic over time."

GamesMarkt: What are players criticizing, and what are the ramifications of this?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "In line with the spirit of Early Access, the inZOI team has been collecting player feedback through a variety of channels. We've also been carefully reading through all the Steam reviews, and it looks like there are currently three main things we need to address. First, the need for Zois to more naturally express emotions or behave as if they had personalities. Second, the need to add content to some areas within the city that feel empty or underdeveloped so that players can fully engage in the space. Third, the need to further deepen interaction and relationship levels. These are challenging aspects, but we're taking them seriously and spending time tackling them one by one. We chose an Early Access launch to fill any gaps together with our players, through constant communication and feedback. We will continue to actively listen to the community as we improve the game and ultimately evolve inZOI into a highly polished product."

GamesMarkt: Why did you decide to release the game on Mac too?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "We were fortunate that Apple showed a proactive interest in inZOI, and we had the opportunity to meet with a few representatives to talk about the game in-depth. They asked us a lot of specific questions about the game, especially about our development philosophy, production purpose, and future development plans. We found a great deal of common ground during these discussions, and the idea of creating a Mac version of inZOI naturally emerged from there. We assigned a dedicated team internally to begin preparing the Mac version, and Apple provided tremendous support throughout the process of optimization, QA, and other technical aspects. Most importantly, we realized through our conversations with Apple that there's a strong community of Mac users who are eager to play life simulation games. There was a consensus that people wanted to see this kind of game on Mac, too. And let me say, when we first ran inZOI on Mac, we were struck by how well the UI and overall vibe of the game fit with the Mac hardware. That experience was a big motivation behind our decision to release the Mac version of inZOI."

GamesMarkt: What's next for inZOI, and has the roadmap changed based on feedback about the game?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "As we've continued to reflect player feedback, the roadmap has reflected those changes as well. Throughout inZOI's development and launch, some key elements needing further implementation arose. We're now working to elevate inZOI to a level that meets player expectations by addressing these areas, many of which will be included in our October update."

"One of the biggest challenges is ensuring that Zois can behave like real individuals, forming relationships and expressing a certain depth of life. Our goal is to improve overarching areas of depth, variation, and character interactions within inZOI, since it is essentially a life simulation game. Another key area of improvement is freedom and interaction within the city. There has been feedback that the city feels underutilized compared to its size, so we're focusing on expanding the range of activities available within the city and enabling more flexible urban experiences. We're currently adjusting these features so that they can be reflected in upcoming updates. In the future, we're planning for features like City Edit and Jobs to be offered as modules, allowing players to freely customize and expand their own content. We're also looking to increase the number of interactions, while refining any awkwardness in existing ones. Through this ongoing, collaborative process with our players, we hope inZOI will continue to grow into a life simulation genre that is beloved for years to come."

GamesMarkt: Which strategies are you using to encourage Early Access players who tried the game and then lost interest to get excited about it again?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "During the Early Access period, the inZOI team has been working hard to understand the gap between what players initially expected and what they experienced. Beyond simply fixing bugs or adding features, we're taking a step back to deeply analyze why some players have lost interest, and what solutions we can offer. To do this, we have set up internal processes to actively collect feedback across multiple channels, listen carefully to each voice, and incorporate their input directly into actual updates and development."

"On top of constant communication and regular updates, we're gradually expanding the depth and variety of our content so that players have something new to experience when they return. For example, we're especially focused on improving key areas that our players have pointed out, such as natural emotional expression, density of interactions, and liveliness across the city. We're also working to regularly share our progress with players, so they can keep track of the changes we're making. At the same time, we're putting effort into delivering a clear vision for the game's future, giving players confidence that while inZOI may not be fully complete now, there is real potential and momentum behind it."

"In the end, it's all about 'rebuilding trust'. We'll continue to show that we're shaping the game together with our players, rather than relying on quick, flashy updates. Through a steady, long-term effort, we'll do our best to reignite interest and get players excited about inZOI once again."

GamesMarkt: How do you assess the current market for life simulation games, and how does inZOI fit into it?

Hyungjun 'Kjun' Kim:  "The life simulation genre has long been dominated by 'The Sims.' While there have been various other attempts, most haven't been able to make a significant impact on the market. The reason this genre has only accounted for about 4% of the overall gaming market could be linked to the flow of time or lack of development talent, but I personally believe that a major factor was the limited computational power at the time. Now, with the recent leap in computing performance, the potential of this genre is beginning to open up, and my expectation is that more incredible games will appear. Life simulation is closely tied to human life and its development, and I believe it pairs especially well with the AI technologies that are recently gaining attention. So, I see strong potential for this market to grow significantly in the future."

"inZOI also strives to incorporate these technological advancements to create a larger and more complex world, while offering a differentiated experience compared to other titles. Obviously, there has been trial and error as part of this venture. Some player feedback repeatedly pointed out that the game feels somewhat caught between 'life at home' and the 'city experience.' This is something we're trying to address as we work to enhance the gameplay experience around street and city simulation, so that inZOI can readily deliver a fulfilling life simulation experience."