China’s video games market reached $45.5 bn in 2022

In 2022, China’s mobile, console, and PC gaming markets generated a combined $45.5 billion.

A new analysis from Niko Partners found that China accounted for 47% of global mobile gaming revenues and 39% of PC gaming revenues.

The analytics firm predicted that by 2027 China’s video gaming sector would generate $57 billion in revenue from an estimated 730 million users.

The survey noted that China is still the largest market for video games worldwide, accounting for 31.7% of global mobile games revenues and 33.4% of global PC games revenues.

In the home market, mobile games contribute 66% of revenue, PC games 31%, and console games 3%.

In 2022, Tencent and NetEase will account for 61% of China’s domestic PC and mobile video games revenue. Niko noted that “weak performance from traditional titles and an absence of brand new title launches” were factors in the decline of this share from 2021 projections.

“Chinese video game businesses are expanding globally, and they are making robust financial investments at greater rates than ever before,” said Lisa Hanson, CEO and founder of Niko Partners. Revenue from PC video games developed and published outside of China climbed by 22% in 2022, and is expected to expand at a CAGR of 13.8% through 2027, far outpacing the rate of growth in China itself.

For example, she said, “China’s market can be difficult for domestic and foreign business, but the country remains the No. 1 market internationally for video games income and the number of players, and can not be ignored.”

Both officially sanctioned releases on app stores and illegal releases on sites like Steam International contribute to the thriving video game industry in China. If all the video games released in China via Steam were considered a single entity, Steam’s revenue would surpass that of every other publisher in the country except for Tencent and NetEase.

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