The Chinese video game industry is on the rise, and Genshin Impact is leading the charge. This wildly successful game, developed by Shanghai studio miHoYo and launched in September 2020, has raked in a staggering $4 billion in global revenue by the end of 2022. That's not all - Genshin Impact has also named the "most discussed game" on Twitter, with 12,571 tweets and almost 4 million retweets in 2022, according to data from UK market research firm Fancensus.com.
But what sets Genshin Impact apart from other mobile games? For starters, it achieved "long-term success in major mobile game countries," according to a report by US app analytics firm Sensor Tower. And despite being developed in China, nearly two-thirds of the game's revenue came from outside the country, with Japan, the US, and South Korea as the top three overseas markets.
Genshin Impact's success showcases the potential for Chinese mobile games to win over global players, even as the domestic gaming market remains sluggish due to regulatory controls and weak consumer spending. Chinese games like Honour of Kings and PUBG Mobile, both developed by Tencent Holdings, have generated strong overseas revenue, creating a new source of foreign income for China.
But it's not just the global reach that has made Genshin Impact such a hit. The anime-style action role-playing game generated $1 billion within six months of launch, three months faster than Pokémon Go. On its second anniversary in September, it had seen 37.3 million downloads in the year, a decrease of only 7% compared to the same period the previous year. Yena You, a strategist at Sensor Tower, attributes the game's continued success to localization tailored to each region, famous voice actors for dubbing, periodic updates, and the release of new characters.
It's no surprise that Genshin Impact was a standout in the
year-end awards at Apple's App Store and the Google Play store. The game took
home the Best Ongoing Game award on Google Play, along with other Chinese
winners including Dislyte by Shanghai-based Lilith Games and Tower of Fantasy
by Shenzhen-listed Perfect World. And it's not just limited to mobile games -
Chinese video game companies are exerting more influence over non-Chinese games
through ownership, shareholding, or partnership deals with global developers.
Tencent, for instance, recently acquired a 20% stake in South Korean studio
Shift Up, creator of hit game Goddess of Victory: Nikke.