# ArenaNet

> video game developer and subsidiary of NCSOFT, founded in 2000 and located in Bellevue, Washington.

**Wikidata**: [Q495054](https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q495054)  
**Wikipedia**: [English](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/ArenaNet)  
**Source**: https://4ort.xyz/entity/arenanet

## Summary
ArenaNet is an American video game developer founded in 2000 and headquartered in Bellevue, Washington. It is a subsidiary of South Korea–based NCSoft and is best known for producing the Guild Wars video game franchise.

## Key Facts
- ArenaNet was founded in 2000 and is headquartered in Bellevue, Washington, United States.
- ArenaNet is a subsidiary (parent organization: NCSoft), where NCSoft is a South Korean video game development company founded in 1997 (inception: 1997-03-11) with headquarters in Seoul.
- Founders: Jeff Strain, Patrick Wyatt, and Mike O'Brien.
- Industry: video game industry; instance of: video game developer, business, enterprise.
- Employees: approximately 270.
- Legal form: joint-stock company.
- Primary product listed: Guild Wars.
- Official website: http://www.arena.net/ (English).
- Social media handles: Twitter: arenanet; Instagram: arenanet; Facebook: ArenaNet. Reported follower count: 62,577 (preferred value, point in time: 2023-02-05).
- Identifiers: freebase ID /m/05m9wy; VGC company ID 4693; videogamegeek company ID 13778; Library of Congress authority ID no2013063519; VIAF ID 142324682.

## FAQs
### Q: What is ArenaNet?
A: ArenaNet is an American video game developer founded in 2000 and headquartered in Bellevue, Washington. It operates as a subsidiary of NCSoft and develops video game products such as Guild Wars.

### Q: Who owns ArenaNet?
A: ArenaNet is owned by NCSoft, a South Korean video game development company headquartered in Seoul.

### Q: What notable game(s) has ArenaNet produced?
A: ArenaNet is noted for producing the Guild Wars video game franchise.

### Q: Where is ArenaNet located and how large is the company?
A: ArenaNet's headquarters are in Bellevue, Washington, United States, and the company is reported to have about 270 employees.

## Why It Matters
ArenaNet is a recognized developer within the global video game industry because it combines U.S.-based development with ownership by a major South Korean publisher, NCSoft. That corporate relationship situates ArenaNet within an international production and publishing ecosystem, enabling cross-border development and distribution. ArenaNet’s production of the Guild Wars franchise represents a concrete contribution to interactive entertainment and intellectual property in gaming. As a focused developer with a defined headcount (around 270 employees) and established online presence (official website and social accounts), ArenaNet functions as a mid-sized studio that designs, develops, and supports commercial video game products. Its legal form as a joint-stock company and its inclusion in industry databases and identifiers (Freebase, VGC, VGGeek, VIAF, Library of Congress) underline its established corporate and bibliographic identity within the games industry and reference systems.

## Notable For
- Producing the Guild Wars video game franchise.
- Being a U.S.-based developer headquartered in Bellevue, Washington while operating as a subsidiary of South Korea’s NCSoft.
- Founded in 2000 by industry figures Jeff Strain, Patrick Wyatt, and Mike O'Brien.
- Maintaining a visible consumer and industry presence with an official website and active social media channels (Twitter/Instagram/Facebook).

## Body
### Overview
- Name: ArenaNet.
- Instance of: video game developer; business; enterprise.
- Industry: video game industry.
- Legal form: joint-stock company.

### Founding and Leadership
- Founded in 2000.
- Founders: Jeff Strain, Patrick Wyatt, Mike O'Brien.

### Corporate Ownership
- Parent organization: NCSoft.
- NCSoft details: South Korean video game development company; inception 1997-03-11; headquarters in Seoul.

### Headquarters and Employees
- Headquarters: Bellevue, Washington, United States.
- Employees: reported value 270.

### Products
- Product or material produced: Guild Wars (listed product).

### Online presence and contact
- Official website: http://www.arena.net/ (English).
- Twitter handle: arenanet (account recorded with historical points in time; account active as of qualifiers provided).
- Instagram handle: arenanet.
- Facebook page: ArenaNet.
- Reported social media follower counts include a preferred reported value of 62,577 (point in time: 2023-02-05).

### Identifiers and Registrations
- Freebase ID: /m/05m9wy.
- VIAF ID: 142324682.
- Library of Congress authority ID: no2013063519 (as "ArenaNet (Firm)").
- VGC company ID: 4693.
- VideogameGeek company ID: 13778.
- Crunchbase organization ID: arenanet.
- Internet Game Database company ID: arenanet.
- Bibliothèque nationale de France ID: 15531609b.
- idref ID: 199184577.

### Classification and Metadata
- Country: United States.
- Wikidata description (summarized): video game developer and subsidiary of NCSoft, founded in 2000 and located in Bellevue, Washington.
- Sitelink count: 18; listed Wikipedia languages include br, cs, de, en, es, fa, fr, he, hu, it.

### References and provenance (data sources in provided material)
- Company metadata and properties drawn from structured entries including inception, founders, employees, identifiers, social media qualifiers, and parent organization attributes as provided in the source material.

## References

1. LastDodo
2. Virtual International Authority File
3. BnF authorities
4. Freebase Data Dumps. 2013
5. Google Knowledge Graph
6. [Source](http://km.aifb.kit.edu/services/crunchbase/)
7. VideoGameGeek
8. Video Games Chronicle