Chinese Gamers' Demand for High-Quality Gaming Experiences

The Chinese consumer passionately embraces high-quality gaming, showcasing significant spending power and a preference for premium titles.

### The Rising Tide of Chinese Gaming: Insights from Black Myth Wukong
* 🎮  The Chinese consumer has a strong passion for gaming, viewing it as an **affordable and social form of entertainment** that encourages **significant spending on high-quality games**.
* 💰 " The higher the quality of the games, the more these high-demand gamers will throw themselves into them and **spend a lot of money**," highlighting their **willingness to invest in superior gaming experiences**.
* 🌟  Black Myth Wukong exemplifies the **exceptional talent within Chinese game development**, showcasing how a lesser-known studio, Game Science, can produce a top-charting game with backing from major companies like Tencent.
* 📈  Recent data indicates that the Sony PlayStation 5 topped consumer electronics sales on Alibaba, reflecting the **discerning nature and purchasing power** of Chinese gamers.
* 🕹️  Black Myth Wukong, a premium single-player PC game without in-game purchases, marks a shift from the typical free-to-play model prevalent in China, emphasizing the **potential for high-quality paid games** in the market.
* 📊  The game's popularity is underscored by impressive streaming statistics, with **29 million viewers on platforms like Bilibili**, accounting for **nearly 25% of all streamed game viewers on August 20th**.
* 🏆  The success of Black Myth Wukong positions it as a **potential national champion for China**, following in the footsteps of previous hits like Genshin Impact, demonstrating the **global appeal of Chinese-developed games**.
* 🧙‍♂️  Themes from Chinese mythology, such as those seen in both Black Myth Wukong and the long-standing game Fantasy Westward Journey, continue to resonate with gamers, proving that these narratives remain **timeless and beloved**.

What is the China consumer showing you when it comes to a desire to get into gaming? They don't seem to be reticent that. Hi. Yeah. The Chinese consumer has always been avid for gaming. They are. They find that gaming is an inexpensive form of digital entertainment. It's very social, and the higher the quality of the games, the more these high-demand gamers will throw themselves into them and spend a lot of money. And Black myth Wukong is just a perfect example of that. It's a perfect example of like things like Chinese game development prowess, how Chinese game developers are really world-class, and how a relatively unknown company like Game Science, which is the developer of Black Myth Wukong, backed by Tencent, backed by Hero Entertainment, how it could just have developed this game for years on end and then have it come out at the top of every chart. Okay, well, every chart. The other dataset I was tracking was

Sony PlayStation five sales on Alibaba for the seven days through August 20th, and it was top of the consumer electronics trade playable point five and PC. What does that tell us about the Chinese game player right now, the Chinese consumer that loves video games? Lisa. Well, it tells us that they are discerning. It tells us that they have money to spend when they want to spend it. And it tells us that they will spend that money on things that are high quality. So I think that for other game developers worldwide looking to tackle this market, there is opportunity there. Right now, Black Box Wukong does have one of the coveted government-issued ESPN licenses, permitting it to have domestic distribution. But its primary source of distribution in China today is Steam International. And for Steam International, the ISBN is not really relevant. So this is still a way for game companies to distribute games in China. How, therefore, is the government going

to assess what seems to be a phenomenal first day? Well, I think the government will assess this as a victory for a Chinese-based developer and one that is going to certainly be a leader among the export pack of arms that are being exported from China to the rest of the world. This is a single-player PC offline game, meaning it's a premium game. You pay for it upfront, and there are no in-game purchases. So, this is something really amazing because most of the success of games in China has been for free-to-play or with in-app purchases, this type of thing. And most of the hits have been on mobile. This is a PC-based single-player game. And just to give you some point of reference, by the next China Games and streaming tracker, one of the tools that we use to measure the market, it's our proprietary tool. We track streams on W who huia and bilibili, and there were 29 million

viewers by Nico's algorithmic approximation of viewers of this game. Out of 130 million viewers of all streamed games on those platforms on August 20th. So that was really remarkable. You know, almost 25% of all gamers who are watching streams of games are watching this game. Lee said, developed by Game Science in Hangzhou. I got so much marketing for this, particularly through the app. Do you think just to extend Caroline's question, this is going to be a national champion for China, that they'll say, What a success you've got here on our hands? Yeah, sure. I think this is one of the big successes, not only of China but of PC offline games kind of globally. And it happens to be from China and it happens to be from a relatively unknown studio called Game Science. Similarly, an impact had been released by Mihoyo a couple of years back and it too blew doors past everyone's

expectations and was a national, you know, big hit that went global. And lots of people love the game, Genshin Impact. So Mihoyo also came out with that game as their first big hit, and now we see Game Science doing the same thing. We've seen lots of Tencent games do this, we've seen lots of NetEase games do this. And speaking of NetEase, their big long-standing hit of 20 years is Fantasy Westward Journey, and Fantasy Westward Journey is a cultural mythical history-based game about, you know, Journey to the West and the Legend of the Monkey King, and that is the same theme that we see here in Blacksmith Wukong. And this theme has been very popular among Chinese gamers forever. And now we see that again, that it doesn't get tired, that the games to gamers don't get tired of it. This is something that they love to play.

‘Wukong’ Makes Game History in First-Day Rush

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The Chinese Consumer's Passion for Gaming

The Chinese consumer has a strong desire for gaming, viewing it as an affordable and social form of entertainment.

High-quality games, like Black Myth Wukong, drive significant spending from avid gamers and showcase the prowess of Chinese game developers.

The discerning nature of Chinese game players, along with their willingness to spend on quality, presents opportunities for global game developers targeting this market.

The government's assessment of the game's first day is positive, seeing it as a victory for the Chinese developer.

This single-player PC offline game is unique for its premium model, with no in-game purchases, contrasting with the common free-to-play success in China.

The game has gained significant traction, with 29 million streams tracked on popular platforms.

The Impact of a Game's Success on Streaming Viewers

The game developed by Game Science in Hangzhou attracted nearly 25% of all streamed game viewers on August 20th,  totaling 130 million.

The game's remarkable success has garnered significant marketing and attention, leading to its recognition as a potential national champion for China.

This success story adds to the trend of PC offline games thriving globally, with Game Science's relatively unknown studio making a significant impact.

The Success of Mythical-Themed Games in China

Mihoyo's Genshin Impact was a global hit, leading to a trend of similar success for other game developers like Game Science, Tencent, and NetEase.

NetEase's Fantasy Westward Journey, a 20-year hit, is based on the popular theme of Journey to the West and the Monkey King.

The enduring popularity of these mythical-themed games shows that Chinese gamers continue to love and engage with this cultural narrative.