In the early morning of the 4th, overseas communities for 'Goddess of Victory: Nikke'—in opposite time zones—were thrown into turmoil. Analysis posts circulated claiming that simply opening the PC launcher for the game could leave one's PC vulnerable to remote control. Upon hearing that they could be infected through no fault of their own, more than a few players hesitated before launching the game.
The rapidly growing controversy quickly spread to domestic communities as well. However, there was no proper response from the company. Some posted that people shouldn't frame the game developer based on unverified information. Naturally so. When the publisher remains silent, determining the truth falls on the players. Some conducted technical analyses, while others wanted to believe that the game they enjoyed could not possibly be compromised.
And the first official notice was posted only at 12:13 PM. The issue was the sequence. At the very moment domestic players were awaiting the game company's response as concerns escalated, a notice regarding Nikke's Pick-Up Recruitment was published at 10:00 AM. In an environment where anxiety inside and outside the community was mounting and players were awaiting an official statement, a post promoting in-app purchase content went up instead.
Although it was likely a pre-scheduled post, players interpret that order of priorities. It left the distinct impression that while immediate action was urgent, resolving the security issue took a back seat. The 12:00 PM notice that first addressed the issue was a mere four sentences long: We identified an anomaly. We patched the client. We are investigating the scope of impact. And we apologize. The company said what it wanted to say, but there was not a single line indicating what players should actually do.
So, what should those who launched the PC client do right now? What remains after the patch has been applied? Can players trust the workarounds circulating across various communities?
The reason companies are reticent immediately after an incident is clear. Statements made before the root cause is established can become a liability later on. Naturally, preparing a flawless response can delay announcements and postpone crucial information.
However, what players are waiting for right now is not a perfect investigation report. They need to know whether it is safe to open the launcher, and what to do if they already have. Guidelines such as closing the launcher, clearing cache, and changing passwords—as posted across online communities—could easily have been included in the announcement even before the investigation concluded. In fact, those answers were present in external security analysis reports, and players have been sharing them amongst themselves to ease their anxiety.
What was needed immediately, even before clarifying the full facts, was clear action guidelines to prevent further damage. Rather than detailing what the company did, what was truly needed was a notice written with players in mind—one that clearly stated what steps players needed to take.
Even while words like "under investigation" are thrown around, there will still be people launching the PC client. What leaks from those PCs may not be limited to a single game account. Passwords stored in browsers, cryptocurrency wallets, and work access keys were all identified in reports as targets of data collection. No one yet knows what kind of damage those compromised credentials might bring in the future.
Whether it is Level Infinite, which operated the launcher and CDN, or developer Shift Up, which entrusted the operation, whatever the reason may be, the fallout and lost user trust from delayed, inadequate announcements and handling will fall on both of them.
