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Lost Ark’s Western servers are moving from Amazon to Smilegate
Smilegate is set to assume control of Lost Ark’s Western service from Amazon Games. The transition may involve downtime and the loss of some data.
What the publishing change means
Lost Ark developer Smilegate is preparing to take control of the game’s Western servers, previously operated by Amazon Games. This is more than a branding adjustment: server operations, player services and responsibility for regional publishing are moving to the company that develops the game.
Amazon served as publisher and operator during Lost Ark’s expansion outside South Korea. Under the new arrangement, the Western community will be linked more directly to the developer. That could shorten the path between content decisions and regional operations, but the immediate experience will depend primarily on how well the technical migration is executed.
Warnings about disruption and data loss
The handover is explicitly not expected to be seamless. Players may encounter service disruption and the loss of some data. The candidate summary does not identify the affected categories, so it would be premature to draw conclusions about characters, inventories or purchases. Players should wait for precise migration guidance from official channels.
Useful preparation includes confirming that the account remains accessible, its email address is current and available security options are enabled. Personal screenshots of character lists, valuable inventory items and payment history may provide context if a support dispute occurs. They are not official backups and cannot restore data, but they can make a report easier to document.
What players should do before migration
Dates, maintenance windows, account-transfer consent and revised service terms should be checked only through official Lost Ark and Smilegate communications. Fake migration links can spread during high-profile platform changes. Players should avoid third-party pages that request a password, authentication code or payment information, even when the message creates a false sense of urgency.
Active guilds, raid groups and market traders can organize around the possibility of downtime. Expiring listings or time-limited tasks should not be left for a maintenance window. It may also be prudent to delay fresh real-money purchases until the companies explain how currency balances, entitlements and transaction records will carry into the new operation.
What to watch over the long term
Direct Smilegate control may influence the update schedule, localization, customer support and management of the Western economy. A better outcome is possible, but not guaranteed. Early measures of success will include server stability, compensation for missing information, support response times and how quickly regional feedback reaches development decisions.
The transfer also fits a broader reduction in Amazon’s role in MMO publishing. Lost Ark players should prioritize dated official notices over rumors and keep account security at the center of their preparations. Anyone trading an account or eligible in-game value can use GameinShop’s escrow system to reduce the risk between payment and delivery.
Source: Steam News