Online game developer NCSoft is facing an earnings shock, with its first-quarter sales falling behind market predictions, according to a results announcement made Thursday.

The company was expected to record 260 billion won ($230 million) of sales during the January-March period, but it showed a 0.6 percent fall during the quarter instead, with 239.5 billion won of sales. 

Its tentative operating profits also shrank to 30.4 billion won, showing a 59.8 percent decrease compared to the previous year. Its net profit during the term also dropped by 73.7 percent.

The company could have seen such results due to stagnant development in existing PC games, the accumulation of potential demand with the upcoming release of a new mobile game, and an increase in labor costs due to special incentives.

The company is pinning its hopes on “Lineage M,” which is to be launched next month.

However, with the possibility that “Lineage M” may be classified as inappropriate for teenagers by the Game Rating and Administration Committee, the company said that it would carefully monitor the situation and try to meet market expectations in the next quarter. 

By Yim Ji-min (jiminy@heraldcorp.com)