Business & Finance How to Release a Video Game in CHINA

[Husky_Khan]

Nice article by Games Industry Biz on the particulars of releasing a game in China.

Turns out it's a lot of fun. In most cases it's a complete waste of time and effort, but in some cases... the outcome could be mixed but only if your a big boy who can play with large Chinese gaming publishers.

Is the Chinese market worth considering for international developers?
Yes, and no. While each case would be worth its own consideration, to most, I would definitely say no. This might sound counterintuitive and against all indicators about the Chinese market being so attractive due to its sheer size, but the truth is very few non-Chinese games actually become big hits in China.

Those that do, I would argue, are the exceptions that prove the rule. Looking ahead and considering the ongoing political and social context, even fewer international games are expected to be launched in China, as the number of approved games has been drastically diminishing in the last year.

Obviously, not every game needs to become a big commercial hit to be considered a success. Depending on the team's ambitions, size, and other factors, a relatively small game selling a relatively small amount of copies (or having a small amount of users) can still be immensely profitable for its creators.

The challenge with China is, if you're a foreign developer or publisher who wants to launch a game in China, you better have a mobile game. The vast majority of games approved by authorities to be launched in China are mobile games. PC games, and even less so console games, are much less and far between.

How China's gaming regulations affect its market and the rest of the industry

Daniel Camilo explores the complexity of the Chinese market and whether it's worth considering for international developers

www.gamesindustry.biz

 

[TheRejectionist]

Nice article by Games Industry Biz on the particulars of releasing a game in China.

Turns out it's a lot of fun. In most cases it's a complete waste of time and effort, but in some cases... the outcome could be mixed but only if your a big boy who can play with large Chinese gaming publishers.

How China's gaming regulations affect its market and the rest of the industry

Daniel Camilo explores the complexity of the Chinese market and whether it's worth considering for international developers

www.gamesindustry.biz

So basically, after developing it without criticizing them, you need to make for iOS and Android?

 

[ParadiseLost]

The real TLDR is that there's no point to it.

The burden to officially release in China is massive and not really worth it unless you're trying to launch a highly monetized MMO.

And beyond that, most digital storefronts like Steam, PS, et cetera can be accessed from within China anyway, and game importing is also a big business, so official releases are not even likely to make a significant difference in sales.

The only reason to go through the process is on mobile, and mobile games are a cancer on society anyway.