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China Games Market Report Series - 3 Report Bundle

  • Report

  • May 2024
  • Region: China
  • Niko Partners, Inc.
  • ID: 5980926

China remains a powerhouse in the global games industry. It is the largest games market globally with one-third of global PC and mobile games revenue generated domestically. At the same time, Chinese game companies are expanding their reach globally. Thus, it is important to deeply understand the Chinese gaming scene from companies & games-to-watch to regulations and games licenses. 

These 2024 China Games Market Reports are presented in an all-new way. The report series now includes one Market Model report (May), one Gamer Behavior & Market Insights Report (June), and one Market Model Update Report (November).

Each report includes sections on PC, mobile and console segments. The Chinese Games Market Series provides a comprehensive guide and insightful analysis to those aiming to navigate and tap into the lucrative China gaming market.

Key takeaways from the China Gamer Behavior & Market Insights Report:

Emerging trends in PC and mobile gaming

  • PC gaming is seeing the largest increase in individual spending this year. 62% of PC gamers said they spent more this year than they did last year, with 19% claiming they spent at least 30% more than they did last year.
  • Steam maintained its position as the #1 PC game distribution platform in China, with gamers primarily accessing the international version of Steam without a VPN. 79.5% of PC gamers who play premium games use Steam.
  • The Mini Game segment has emerged as a major growth area within mobile gaming with approx. 650 million gamers playing them. According to the survey, 2/3 of mobile gamers are playing mini games daily or several times a week.

The rise of short video content and platform

  • 5% of respondents learn about new video games from short video content, making it the most popular method. This popularity is more pronounced among mobile gamers, while it ranks at #4 for console gamers.
  • Over 4 in 10 gamers (43.9%) watch video game/esports livestreams with 68.6% using Douyin.

Other notable trends

  • According to our survey, 78.3% of gamers are aware of AIGC technologies and 37.3% of gamers are interested in the technology being applied to games.
  • It appears that youth gamer regulations, while effective in curbing game time for those under 18, may be having the opposite effect on gamers once they become adults. Gamers aged between 18-22, who were minors when youth gamer regulations were passed, play longer hours per week today than those that are 23+.
  • Japan has extended its lead as the #1 country for import game approvals and the US regained its #2 position. South Korea's #3 is notable given that 0 games from Korea were approved 3 years ago.

This series includes 3 reports:

  • Market Model Report - May 2024
  • Gamer Behavior & Market Insights Report - June 2024
  • Market Model Update Report - November 2024

Table of Contents

CHINA MARKET MODEL REPORT TABLE OF CONTENTS
  • About the Report
  • Executive Summary
  • Market Model Infographic
  • 2024 Market Model
    • Market Model - All Platforms
    • Market Model - Mobile
    • Market Model - PC
    • Market Model - Console
    • Market Model - Export
  • Analysis & Demographics
  • Forward-Looking Analysis
  • Gamer Demographics
  • Appendix
  • Methodology
List of Exhibits
  • Domestic Video Games Market - Mobile, PC, Console
  • Gamer Demographics - Gender, Age & Devices
  • Gamer Demographics - Employment Status and Income
CHINA GAMER BEHAVIOR & MARKET INSIGHTS TABLE OF CONTENTS
  • About the Report
  • Executive Summary
  • Infographic
  • Growth Drivers & Inhibitors
  • Gamer Behavior Insights
    • Gamers Spending
    • Impact of Youth Regulations
    • In-game Purchases
    • Games Discovery
    • Gamers and Great Firewall
    • Attitudes to Cheating/Hacking in Online Games
    • Game-related Payments
    • Female Gamers in China
  • Mobile Game Market Insights
    • Mobile Game Market Overview
    • Popular Mobile App Stores
    • Mobile mini games
    • Mobile games monetization
    • Mobile game spending
    • Top 10 iOS Games in China
  • PC Game Market Insights
    • PC Game Market Overview
    • Premium game purchase
    • Cross-platform gaming
    • Top iCafe and Steam games
  • Console Game Market Insights
    • Console Game Market Overview
    • PlayStation and Nintendo market overview
    • Console grey market overview
    • Console gaming behavior
  • Esports, Live Streaming & Internet Cafes
    • China’s esports industry overview
    • Trends in esports events and live streaming
    • Esports hotels
  • Network & Technology
    • 5G and broadband adoption overview
    • China’s walled garden
    • AIGC in games
  • Localization & Payments
    • Out-of-app monetization
    • Collaboration between global IP and Chinese games
  • Financial & Investments
    • Top 10 public game companies in China
    • M&A activities overview
  • ISBN & Regulations
    • NPPA approval forecast
    • Regulations overview
  • Appendix
  • Methodology
List of Exhibits
  • Monthly spending among Paying Gamers
  • Self-Reported Spend Increase / Decrease
  • Average hours played per week by age group
  • Average monthly spend on gaming by age group
  • In-game purchases (All Platforms)
  • Average monthly spending on gaming by activity
  • Sources used to obtain information about new games
  • Most popular social / messaging apps among gamers
  • Percentage of gamers that use special tools to bypass the great firewall
  • Reason for spending on video games (All Platforms)
  • Most disliked aspect of games played
  • Payment methods used for spending on video games
  • Most popular digital wallets for spending on video games
  • Female survey respondents by year
  • Gender breakdown by platform (2024)
  • Reasons for spending on video games (Female respondents only)
  • Average Hours per week spent on the following (Female respondents only)
  • Top 25 grossing iOS games by launch year  (May 2024 TTM)
  • % of revenue from top 10 iOS game publishers (May 2024 TTM)
  • Most popular mobile app stores
  • Mini Game Platforms Used in the Past Three Months
  • How frequently do respondents play mini games
  • Most popular in-game purchases among mobile game spenders
  • Importance of being able to play high end games
  • Top 10 iOS Games in China (May 2024 TTM)
  • Average weekly gaming hours for PC gamers
  • Average monthly gaming spend for PC spenders
  • Average number of games downloaded from each platform in the past 12 months
  • Steam users by language tied to account
  • Average annual spend on PC gaming segments among PC game spenders
  • ISBNs issued with more than one platform attached
  • Cross Platform PC Gamer Breakdown
  • Top 20 Steam Games in China TTM (Revenue)
  • Top 20 iCafe Games in China TTM (Launches)
  • Console hardware sales in China (Legal + Grey; Million Units)
  • Console sales in China (Legal + Grey; Millions of Dollars)
  • China Hero Project Games by Release Year
  • Most popular licensed Nintendo Switch games in 2023 (Excluding Nintendo first party games)
  • Primary console used by each console owner
  • Average number of games purchased / downloaded annually
  • Most played console games (past 3 months)
  • Average hours played per week
  • Where console gamers obtain game info
  • Esports engagement (% of gamers)
  • Esports Engagement (Average hours per week)
  • Esports Games by Prize Pool (H1 2024)
  • Esports tournaments by venue (H1 2024)
  • Esports tournaments by platform (H1 2024)
  • Average daily viewers & total streamers for DouYu, Huya and Bilibili
  • % of gamers that watch gaming live streams
  • Platforms used to watch gaming and esports content online
  • Monthly internet café launches (Shunwang iCafe)
  • Number of esports hotels in China
  • Interest in playing games that integrate related technology
  • % of gamers interested in AIGC tech
  • Top 10 public game companies in China by 2023 revenue
  • Top Mobile game publishers in China (2023)
  • Top PC game publishers in China (2023)
  • Mergers, acquisitions and investments where a PRC-based games related company is the buyer or target
  • Import ISBNs by origin country (2023-2024 H1)
  • ISBNs issued by the NPPA on an annual basis

Companies Mentioned

  • 37 Interactive
  • Activision Blizzard
  • Alibaba
  • Apple
  • Baidu
  • Behaviour Interactive
  • Bilibili
  • Blizzard
  • Bytedance
  • CD Projekt Red
  • Century Huatong
  • Changyou
  • Coconut Island
  • Digital Extremes
  • Douyin
  • DouYu
  • Electronic Arts
  • Electronic Soul
  • From Software
  • FunPlus
  • G-Bits
  • Happy Elements
  • Hazelight Studios
  • Huawei
  • Huya
  • iDreamsky
  • IGG
  • Intiny
  • Irisloft
  • JJ World
  • Kingnet
  • Kingsoft
  • Koei Tecmo
  • Krafton
  • Kuaishou
  • Larian Studios
  • Magic Desing Studio
  • Microsoft
  • miHoYo
  • NetDragon
  • NetEase
  • Nintendo
  • Nvidia
  • OPPO
  • Others
  • Papergames
  • Perfect World
  • PocketPair
  • Recreate Games
  • Rockstar Games
  • Samsung
  • Seasun Games
  • Sony
  • TapTap
  • Tencent
  • Tuyoo
  • Ubisoft
  • Ultrapower
  • Valve
  • Veewo Games
  • Vivo
  • WeChat
  • Weibo
  • Wizard Games
  • XD Network
  • Xiaohongshu
  • Xiaomi
  • Yostar