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Chinese mobile games take 19 of top 100 spots in US games market in first quarter amid Covid boom

  • Chinese internet and social media giant Tencent featured with its PUBG Mobile game, as did Lilith Games with Rise of Kingdoms

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The strong showing for Chinese games in the US is in line with a global boom for online entertainment amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Photo: SCMP

Chinese mobile games accounted for 19 of the top 100 highest-grossing games in the US in the first quarter, according to data from Apple’s App Store and Google Play, raking in a combined US$487 million in revenue and underlining the drive by some developers overseas.

Chinese internet and social media giant Tencent Holdings featured with its PUBG Mobile game, as did Lilith Games with Rise of Kingdoms and FunPlus with Guns of Glory, according to the report published this week by the San Francisco-based data firm.

Together, the 19 top Chinese mobile games accounted for 16.3 per cent of the revenue generated by the top 100 games, up 15.9 per cent growth from the same period a year ago.

Chinese gaming companies have been pushing overseas amid increased saturation and regulation at home. Market leader Tencent said in its recent earnings announcement that it aims to have as many users overseas as it has in China, with half of its revenue coming from outside China in the near future.

Tencent’s Call of Duty: Mobile took the crown as the most downloaded Chinese title in the first quarter, although in terms of revenue it was behind the three games above.

A separate Sensor Tower report published last week noted an equally strong performance by Chinese companies in Japan in the first quarter. Out of the top 100 highest-grossing games, 23 were developed by Chinese companies, generating total revenue of US$488 million. NetEase is the market leader in Japan among Chinese gaming companies with three titles – Knives Out, Identity V and LifeAfter – featuring in the top 100 highest-grossing games in the country.

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