The Chinese game market rose to nearly $55 billion in 2029: 3As in the mainland.

In the past two years, the Chinese game market has become more eccentric both internationally and domestically. In 2024, Black Myth: The Goku, a national 3A, sold more than 25 million copies globally, demonstrating the power of home-grown studios to build top-paid games. The field of mobile games has also continued to flourish, with new performances such as Underground City and Warriors: Origins, Century Wallstone Winters, and Scrap Paper Network Love and Deep Space.

Although China’s mainframe market remains small, Switch 2 of Nintendo, which was the first to be listed through water and cargo channels, has achieved a strong start, largely on the basis of the reputation of its predecessor, the Switch mainframe. The electricity industry has also entered a new phase of expansion, marked by the return of the Watching Pioneer competition, the launch of Operation Delta ‘ s electricity competition, and the recent appearance of the Nauntless Compact ‘ s hand-to-hand edition and its competitive ecology. Policy support is a key driver of the growth of the game industry in recent years: In the first half of 2025, more than 30 new policies were introduced to accelerate the development of the sector, of which the National Press and Publications Agency approved 119 game numbers in the previous August, an increase of 21 per cent over the same period. However, challenges remain: the saturation of players, rising operating costs, the risk of regulatory tightening, and the escalation of trade friction between China and the United States, including GPU export restrictions.

Niko Partners has been tracking the Chinese market since 2002 and has witnessed an increase in the industry from $100 million to the $50 billion projected for the year. According to its latest report, China ‘ s total game market revenue in 2024 amounted to $49.2 billion (3.6 per cent over the same period), and is expected to increase to $50.7 billion in 2025 and $54.8 billion in 2029 (2.2 per cent over five years). At the end of 2024, Chinese players reached 722 million, and are expected to increase to 753.7 million in 2029 (0.9 per cent of the five-year complex growth rate). The average annual income of single players increased from $68 in 2024 to $73 in 2029.

Long-term growth drivers include: long-term hand-shows and PC games, quality-paying games, Switch2 and generation-by-generation host sales, small game eco-rises, love simulations, etc. sub-type penetration, application of off-the-shelf model expansion, generation of AI-enabled user creations, and the realization of direct fans of game IP.