Chae Won Kong

Software Engineer

chaewonkong@gmail.com | linkedin | github

Summary

Backend engineer with 4+ years in Go specializing in real-time matchmaking and distributed systems. Achieved 36x simulation speedup and 5–17x database performance improvements.

Skills

Go PostgreSQL Redis ClickHouse Kubernetes Docker LGTM Stack

Experience

Nexon Korea — Backend Engineer

Jul 2022 – Present

Matchmaker v2 – Greenfield Development (18 months, ongoing)

• Architected standalone matchmaking service from scratch, enabling external game studios to integrate independently without engineering support
• Designed reusable queue configuration schema and matching algorithms to support diverse game requirements across multiple titles
• Transformed monolithic internal service into distributable Helm-based solution with premium managed tier, positioning product for external sales

Matchmaker – Observability Platform

• Led database migration from PostgreSQL/Timescale to ClickHouse achieving 5–17x query performance improvement after PoC and TCO analysis
• Built self-service analytics API eliminating game teams’ dependency on data analysts
• Optimized PostgreSQL queries by ~10x before strategic migration decision

Backfill Simulation – Accelerated Testing Engine

• Developed accelerated log replay simulation for backfill testing, reducing validation time from 60 minutes to 100 seconds (36x speedup)
• Enabled rapid iteration on backfill policies for filling vacant slots in ongoing matches within 60-second windows
• Deployed to The First Descendant: 12.6% wait time reduction, 50.77% full match increase

Earlier Experience

• Frontend Engineer, Banksalad (2020–2022)
• Co-Founder, Oh Good Project (2020–2022)