The First Berserker: Khazan Sales Fall Short, But Nexon Eyes Long-Term Global Expansion

Nexon has revealed that The First Berserker: Khazan, the gritty action RPG spin-off from its long-running Dungeon & Fighter series, has underperformed in sales—but the publisher isn’t sounding any alarms just yet.

In its latest Q1 2025 financial report, Nexon acknowledged that revenue came in below expectations, partially due to Khazan’s commercial results. Despite a solid critical reception and a niche fanbase drawn from the Soulslike crowd, Khazan didn’t make a significant splash on global sales charts following its March release on PS5.

Still, Nexon maintains that Khazan was never meant to be a blockbuster on its own. Rather, it was “a strategic first step in a multi-year plan” to expand the Dungeon & Fighter (DNF) franchise to global markets.

Since its debut in 2005, DNF has been a massive success in Asia, particularly in South Korea and China. But the franchise has never truly broken through in Western markets. Khazan, it seems, was designed to lay the groundwork.

“The game achieved our objective as a strategic first step in a multi-year plan to introduce Dungeon & Fighter IP to a global audience,” Nexon stated in the earnings report.

What’s Next? Two More DNF Games in the Pipeline

With Khazan establishing a toehold, Nexon is preparing to launch two more titles under the DNF banner:

• Project OVERKILL – A mobile action RPG, likely aimed at combining DNF's signature fast-paced combat with the accessibility of mobile gaming.

• Dungeon&Fighter: ARAD – A Genshin Impact-style gacha game, previously revealed at The Game Awards, which appears to target a broader global audience with open-world gameplay and monetization via collectible characters.

These titles are part of Nexon’s multi-pronged strategy: leverage the DNF brand through various genres and platforms to tap into new markets, especially outside of Asia.

Khazan may not have been a runaway hit, but its existence signals Nexon’s confidence in DNF’s global potential—not unlike how Persona 5 paved the way for spin-offs and adaptations of the Shin Megami Tensei universe in the West.

If Project OVERKILL and Dungeon&Fighter: ARAD deliver, The First Berserker: Khazan may ultimately be remembered not for its sales, but for its role in launching a franchise beyond its borders.