Key data hits new highs, significant results achieved in overseas game market.

Journalists learned from the 2024 China Game Industry Annual Conference held from the 12th to the 13th that in 2024, the actual sales revenue, user base, and overseas revenue of domestic game market have reached new highs. Against this backdrop, how the domestic game market will achieve further growth and how domestic games can enhance their competitive advantages overseas have become the focus of attention for the attendees. Many business leaders of listed game companies and relevant experts have expressed that as the integration of games with public welfare and culture deepens, the combination of 'games+' is continuously expanding the development space of the game industry. In the future, game globalization will be integrated with the trend of 'Depth', moving from 'going out' to 'coming in' and 'going up'.

Actual sales revenue reaches a new high again

At the 2024 China Game Industry Annual Conference, the 2024 China Game Industry Report was officially released. Zhang Yijun, the first vice chairman of the China Audio and Digital Publishing Association and chairman of the Game Committee, interpreted the report.

The report shows that since 2024, the actual sales revenue of the domestic gaming market has reached 325.783 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 7.53%, reaching a new high. The scale of domestic gaming users has reached 674 million, a year-on-year increase of 0.94%, reaching a historical high.

Among them, the actual sales revenue of independently developed games in the domestic market in China was 2607.36 billion yuan, a year-on-year increase of 1.70%, with the growth rate slowing down. Specifically in terms of channels, the actual sales revenue of mobile games in China was 2382.17 billion yuan, an increase of 5.01% year-on-year, reaching a new high; the actual sales revenue of client games was 679.81 billion yuan, an increase of 2.56% year-on-year; the actual sales revenue of web games was 46.38 billion yuan, a decrease of 2.35% year-on-year. It is worth mentioning that since 2024, the actual sales revenue of console games in China was 44.88 billion yuan, an increase of 55.13% year-on-year.

In the sub-markets, the actual sales revenue of mobile games accounts for 73.12%; the actual sales revenue of client games accounts for 20.87%; the actual sales revenue of web games accounts for 1.42%. Due to the emergence of phenomenon-level products this year, the market share of other games has increased significantly from 1.67% last year to 4.59% this year. As a result, the proportions of mobile, client, and web games have all decreased compared to last year.

Explore diverse "game+"

"Game+" is still the focus of attention from all parties. The integration of games and public welfare continues to deepen. Zhang Yijun stated that exploring "game + public welfare" is the responsibility of the gaming industry, and companies should actively promote the integration of games and public welfare to expand development space.

Zhao Guochen, Vice President of Tencent's Sustainable Social Value Division, believes that games, with their rich scenes and innovative technologies, have gradually become a "super digital scene" that drives the public to achieve public welfare goals. Chen Jin, responsible for the CrossFire series of esports, said that the esports event ecology is mature, and public welfare provides it with new topics and experiences. After the event was launched on the public welfare section built by Tencent Public Welfare and others, it attracted a large number of users to participate, many of whom became stable donors.

In the field of culture, games also play an important role. Fu Lina, the supervisor and chief sustainable development officer of Kaiying Network, introduced that the company's game 'Baigong Ling' combines intangible cultural heritage craftsmanship knowledge, successfully awakening the memory of traditional culture among young people. At the same time, the company has launched the 'Seasons and Customs' intellectual property (IP), vividly presenting seasonal customs in a personified manner, and promoting public welfare practices for the protection of intangible cultural heritage.

Pang Dazhi, Vice President of NetEase, said that Chinese game companies should shift from 'passively accepting orders' to 'actively cultivating' and use culture as the core to create high-quality products. For example, NetEase's games such as 'Fantasy Westward Journey' and 'Dream Journey to the West' combine product design with traditional culture, and 'Yanyun Sixteen Tunes' vividly showcases the cultural style of the Five Dynasties and Ten Kingdoms, receiving praise from overseas players. Hu Xin, Assistant to the Chairman of Century Huatong, believes that games can not only tell good Chinese stories, but also convey Chinese values and ways of doing things, such as promoting the cultural connotation of China through games.

The trend of globalization is significant

On December 13th, The Game Awards, known as the 'Oscars of the gaming industry,' announced the winners for the 2024 games. The Chinese game 'Black Myth: Wukong' received 4 nominations, including Game of the Year, Best Game Direction, Best Action Game, and Best Art Direction. It ultimately won the Best Action Game award.

Since its release in August of this year, "Black Myth: Wukong" has sparked widespread discussions in the global gaming market, becoming a microcosm of Chinese games going global. The "2024 China Game Industry Report" shows that in 2024, the actual sales revenue of independently developed games in the overseas market reached 18.557 billion U.S. dollars, a year-on-year increase of 13.39%. Its scale has exceeded 100 billion RMB for five consecutive years, reaching a new high. Gamma Data shows that in 2014, the actual sales revenue of independently developed games from China in the overseas market was 3.076 billion U.S. dollars. Over the past decade, the overseas sales revenue of domestically produced games has grown fivefold.

China's game industry has made significant progress in going global, but it also faces new challenges. At the 2024 China Game Industry Annual Conference, Ao Ran, Executive Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of the China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association, stated that if the Chinese game industry wants to gain a greater advantage in fierce international competition, it must build a more comprehensive capability. It should not only "go out", but also "go in" and "go up".

Currently, we have surpassed the stage of single export and entered the localization stage of integrating local R&D resources and directly serving the local market. As the degree of participation of China's gaming industry in the global value chain gradually deepens, it will inevitably develop into a high-level stage of allocating production factors globally, integrating global R&D, production, and marketing resources, and thus occupying a core position in the international production division system of the gaming industry. Zhou Jinzhu, Director of the International Trade Research Department of the Research Institute of China Council for the Promotion of International Trade, said.

(Source: China Securities Journal)

Source: East Money

Author: China Securities Journal