When the general public thinks of the leading gaming nations of the world, Japan is often the first to come to mind, thanks to the PlayStation and Nintendo, with the US behind them. From there, perhaps only Finland muscles in thanks to its studios’ boom at the start of the mobile gaming era. Still, ever since World of Warcraft, and perhaps before, China has been a quiet giant of the gaming industry – as far as western markets are concerned.
Still, some may not quite realize how important China is to the global gaming industry, from inspiration to development. If the nation clamps down on the industry, some areas overseas may be impacted.
China’s Seldom Used, but Very Effective, as a Setting or Theme
When you consider the rich history of the nation, the dynasties that ruled, the Mongol invasions, the backstory to it becoming modern China, and even the uniqueness of its cities, there’s a great deal that seems perfect for video game tales and settings. While a fair few games dip into China and sometimes its mythology, very few set out with the land as the clear, unwavering setting or theme. Of the more modern releases, three stand out.
The first is the turn-based strategy game from the historical arm of Total War games, Three Kingdoms. Coming from Creative Assembly, a British company, the game has players delve into the namesake period between 220 to 280, attempting to unify China as one of 12 factions under the warlords’ Sun Quan, Liu Bei, and Cao Cao. Despite development hell for Canadian developers United Front Games, Sleeping Dogs turned out to be a hit, being the spiritual successor of the True Crime series but set in Hong Kong. Lastly, from Japanese developer YU Suzuki following a record-breaking Kickstarter campaign, Shenmue III is an open-world action-adventure game set in late 1980s China.
All three of the above use the seldom utilized theme of China, its history, and its landscapes very well, earning critical acclaim and even cult status. However, no other gaming sector dives into the theme of China and its mythologies quite like casino gaming. In fact, as can be seen in the review of a leading developer’s free slots, several draws from the Guardian Lion, the fearsome Nian, and serpentine dragons, such as 5 Lions Megaways, 5 Lions Dance (which features the Nian), and 888 Dragons. The developer has also made their own historical game, 3 Kingdoms: Battle of Red Cliffs.
Considering the significant popularity of the games that chose China as their setting, it is surprising that the list is relatively short in comparison to, say, the US. There is such rich mythology, history, and stunning locations to add drama to plots and immersion to gameplay that perhaps we will see more high-quality titles set in the stunning country.
Development and Publishing Giants Dominating from China
While China has been better known for its love of massively multiplayer online games in the past, it’s very much a mobile hub now, and proving to be a trailblazer. Released to Android, iOS, PC, and PlayStation in September 2020, Genshin Impact has set a new standard for online mobile games. The expansive action RPG has been a colossal hit for Chinese studio miHoYo, who actively sought to expand the reach of free-to-play mobile games, with the end product grossing over $1 billion by March 2021.
In regards to the greater Chinese gaming scene, miHoYo and Genshin Impact’s developer, Hugh Tsai, are very small fry. The big-name is Tencent: a company far too big to be content with investing and building just Chinese gaming. The massive tech conglomerate has shares in many influential western-facing game companies, which includes 100 percent of League of Legends creators Riot Games and 40 percent of Fortnite creators Epic Games. They also own five percent of Ubisoft, 5 percent of Activision Blizzard, nine percent of Frontier Developments, and 84.3 percent of Supercell. They’re also behind the $7-billion-in-revenue Honor of Kings.
Still More to Come from China’s Expanding Gaming Influence
With mobile and MMO gaming now the pillars of the Chinese gaming industry, one development studio is actively seeking to make its mark in the western markets. Crafted by Game Science, a Chinese developer, is stepping out of its comfort zone in the creation of Black Myth: Wukong, a fully-fledged, triple-A gaming experience.
Players take on the role of the Monkey King, Sun Wukong, who can transform into other creatures in this action RPG title. Some gameplay has been revealed, and the design of the environments looks as immersive as the combat looks free-flowing. Drawing from the novel Journey to the West, if it lands, it will be China’s largest-scale, triple-A release to hit the Western gaming and entertainment industry, only enhancing the country’s almighty influence on global gaming.
As you can see, China doesn’t just have a bustling gaming scene spanning from MMOs to casino games, it’s actually one of the most globally influential industries in the world.