NEXON Co., Ltd. (3659.TO) (‘Nexon’), a worldwide leader in free-to-play online games, today announced an agreement with Valve Corporation, a leading entertainment software and technology company based in the United States, to publish Dota 2 in Korea and Japan.

Dota 2, developed by Valve with legendary designer IceFrog, is the sequel to the genre defining game that has become one of the most played games in the world and a leading title at e-sports tournaments around the world.

‘We are very excited about working with Valve to publish Dota 2 and build on the worldwide momentum of the highly successful franchise. We look forward to providing players in Japan and Korea the opportunity to experience this exciting new game,’ said Min Seo, CEO of Nexon Korea Corporation.

Gabe Newell, President of Valve Corporation, said, ‘Nexon, a company with whom we have a long and strong relationship, was clearly the right choice as a publisher to successfully deliver Dota 2 into the Korean and Japanese market. Partnering with Nexon will allow us to deliver Dota 2 to a massive audience of Asian gamers via a premium service.’

In Dota 2, the primary objective is for teams to destroy their opponents’ fortified strongholds by controlling a ‘Hero’ character. Powered by the updated Source engine, Dota 2 will deliver amazing high quality graphics, advanced matchmaking and more while maintaining the perfect game balance aspects of its predecessor. Dedicated franchise fans can look forward to seeing the masterful work of famed Dota developer IceFrog, who is also contributing to the development of Dota2.