Survey: 80% of Western Developers Plan China Entry by 2028; Game Market US$50 Billion

A market survey of 300 game developers in North America and the UK shows that 80% of respondents plan to bring their games to the Chinese market before 2028. China has become the third-highest priority overseas region for Western companies, and many respondents have experience releasing games in China within the past five years. China has over 700 million game players, with annual market revenue reaching US$50 billion, of which mobile gamers account for as much as 70%.

The survey also reveals blind spots among overseas teams regarding the Chinese market. 43% of developers believe that partnership and coordination barriers are the main obstacle to entering the domestic market, 38% are concerned about piracy and intellectual property risks, 32% are unsure how to market to Chinese players, and 11% are completely unfamiliar with China's game licensing rules. Nearly half of the developers believe that without cooperation with local Chinese institutions, it is almost impossible for games to be officially launched in China.

In terms of platform awareness, only 44% of developers correctly identify WeGame as a domestic PC game store, while 27% of respondents mistakenly consider it a game publisher. Many overseas teams still plan to use overseas advertising channels that cannot be used within China, and also misunderstand the internet usage habits of Chinese players. Directly copying Western distribution and marketing strategies is difficult to adapt to the Chinese market, and a large amount of localization customization is required for successful entry.

The trend of two-way expansion in the industry is increasingly evident. More and more Chinese game works are going global, with domestic titles such as Black Myth: Wukong, Genshin Impact, and Arena Breakout achieving success overseas. Two-way exchanges between Eastern and Western game markets are becoming more frequent.