South Korean mobile game giant Netmarble Games said Tuesday that it has acquired US-based game developer Kabam’s Vancouver studio, the creator of the hit mobile game “Marvel Contest of Champions.”

The deal, which will be handled by Ropes & Gray LLP, is expected to close during the first quarter of 2017, according to Netmarble. The financial terms of the asset sale were undisclosed.

Kabam’s studio in Vancouver is best known for developing “Marvel Contest of Champions.” Since its launch in December 2014, the mobile game has generated over $450 million in revenue and hit 90 million downloads.

Led by Netmarble, the studio is slated to launch a new mobile fighting game called “Transformers: Forged to Fight” worldwide in the second half of 2017.

As part of the deal, Netmarble will also acquire the US company’s customer service team based in Austin as well as the product development, marketing and user acquisition teams based in San Francisco in addition to the Vancouver-based studio.

“We are delighted to have acquired Kabam’s Vancouver studio, a competitive player with high development and sales capabilities in western markets,” said Netmarble Games CEO Kwon Young-sik.

“Through this acquisition, Netmarble hopes to drive up its presence in new markets in North America and the western world.”

Netmarble Games is Korea’s leading mobile game company. Exceeding market expectations, the firm posted 1.73 trillion won ($1.43 billion) in revenue and 225.3 billion won in operating profit in 2015.

The homegrown game firm is preparing to go public on Korea’s main bourse Kospi next year. Local analysts predict Netmarble’s market capitalization could reach up to 10 trillion won, given its growth potential.

By Sohn Ji-young (jys@heraldcorp.com)