SHIFT UP Stellar Blade director Hyung-tae Kim has been formally recognized by the President of South Korea, marking a major milestone for both the developer and the country’s games industry.
As reported by Automaton, the recognition was awarded for Kim’s contribution to Korean creative culture, following the global success of Stellar Blade. The award reflects South Korea’s broader effort to recognize games as a key cultural export, alongside films, television, and music.
Not only did Stellar Blade prove popular among critics and players alike, but it has also helped push Korean-developed games further into the international spotlight, earning attention for its combat design, visuals, and overall production quality.
Stellar Blade gets award from South Korean president
Hyung-tae Kim is the founder and director of Shift Up, the Seoul-based developer behind Stellar Blade and mobile hit Goddess of Victory: Nikke. Under his leadership, the studio has grown into one of South Korea’s most prominent game developers.
On December 10, Kim addressed the honor in a statement shared after the ceremony, thanking both his team and the wider community that supported the project.
SHIFT UP “This Presidential Citation is thanks to the developers and fans who believed in and supported Shift Up,” he said via a machine-translated quote from Daum. “We will continue to do our best to further promote the competitiveness of Korean games on the global stage.”
The recognition comes as Shift Up looks ahead to its next major releases, with Project Spirits, a cross-platform fantasy action game in development, and a sequel to Stellar Blade set to release in late 2027.