Young Game Creators from Six Countries Share Their Work at the BETTER GROUND Final
For young people interested in game development, completing a game means bringing together ideas, technical skills, and the contributions of a team. At the 2026 BETTER GROUND Final, youth from across Asia Pacific had the opportunity to share what they had created, and learn how others had approached the same challenge.
Held on September 18 at PUBG Seongsu in Seoul, South Korea, the showcase brought together 66 youth from 17 teams: 12 from South Korea and one each from India, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines and Thailand. Organized by JA Korea and KRAFTON, the event marked the culmination of BETTER GROUND High School, a youth education program that connects career exploration with game development and industry mentoring.
Through demonstrations and stage presentations, participants introduced their games, explained their design choices, and shared their development experiences. They also played games created by their peers and exchanged feedback across countries and cultures.
Turning Ideas into Playable Games
The games reflected a wide range of youth interests, from ecology and mathematics to psychology and emotions.
India’s IMMORTALS team presented “HOLLOWMOOR”, a horror game that reveals its story through clues and puzzles. Indonesia’s Neuva team explored the inner world of a protagonist experiencing insomnia in “NEMURI”, while Malaysia’s Quartex team addressed school bullying through the psychological horror game “The Unforgiven”.
Thailand’s Hello Game James team combined mathematics with action and exploration in “Magic With Math”. The Philippines’ PhsynTaK’s team developed “GENOMORPH”, an ecological action RPG in which players use native animals’ biological abilities to restore an ecosystem.
South Korea’s 12 teams also brought varied ideas to the showcase. Dokbo’s “Egoura” follows a journey of emotional discovery; Be(a)st Friend’s “METALIKE” features robot combat in an AI-dominated future; and DIMIGO GAMES’ “Wound” combines knife throwing with teleportation.
By playing one another’s games, participants shared their creative intentions and the challenges they had encountered during development. The projects offered a starting point for learning from different approaches and exchanging feedback with fellow young developers. Participants voted Neuva’s NEMURI as Game of the Year(GOTY), selecting it as their favorite among the 17 games showcased.
From Career Exploration to Game Development
Launched in South Korea in 2023, BETTER GROUND High School helps high school students explore careers in the game industry by developing games of their own. The program combines JA Korea’s youth education experience with the expertise of global game developer and publisher KRAFTON.
The learning journey moves through four stages: PLAY, DAY, UP, and FINAL. In April, approximately 1,000 young people from six countries joined the online PLAY stage to explore the game industry and its career pathways. Selected teams then developed their project plans during DAY and continued building their games through UP, supported by mentoring and feedback.
In South Korea, the process included an intensive workshop followed by approximately three months of online mentoring. KRAFTON employees volunteered their professional knowledge, while local game industry experts also supported youth in participating countries. Activities and schedules were adapted to local settings.
Participants divided responsibilities across planning, programming, and art, managed project goals and timelines, and worked through problems as development progressed.
A member of Dokbo shared that completing a game as a team over five months highlighted the importance of collaboration and clear communication. Through BETTER GROUND, he also found direction for his future career and gained valuable experience to support his continued growth as a game developer.
Learning Across Borders
BETTER GROUND expanded beyond South Korea in 2025, adding India, Indonesia, and Malaysia. Thailand and the Philippines joined in 2026, bringing the program to six Asian countries through collaboration across the JA network.
The Seoul showcase connected those local learning experiences. Young people who had developed their projects in different educational and cultural settings could try one another’s games, discuss problems and solutions, and explore different approaches to a shared interest.
BETTER GROUND gives young people the opportunity to turn their ideas into real games, solve problems with their peers, and build confidence in their ability to succeed,” said Hobart Epstein, a JA Korea board member. “JA Korea will continue expanding effective social contribution models developed in South Korea to the global stage, helping more young people discover their potential.”
For the youth gathered in Seoul, the Final was an opportunity to recognize what they had accomplished and gain perspectives for their next project. Their games made learning visible: ideas developed through teamwork, strengthened through feedback, and shared with peers beyond their own communities.