What devs need to succeed in the Chinese games market

China is currently one of the largest computer gaming markets in the world. latest steam data indicating that 33.7% of users chose Simplified Chinese as their primary language (just behind English with 33.5%).

The opportunity is huge, but navigating such a large market can be daunting for developers.

GamesIndustry.biz spoke with TinyBuild producer and Chinese marketing expert Jingtong Zhu to find out what game makers need to consider to appeal to China's huge and diverse market, and how to ensure a game is localized with Chinese culture in mind.

TinyBuild has used these methods to market recent releases, including Hypnohead's The King is Watches, Niceplay Games' Potion Craft, and Not for Broadcast's Not Games.

How can developers ensure that the game is translated and localized with respect to Chinese culture?

Ideally, organize playtests with Chinese players to get direct feedback. For example, before launching The King Is Watching, we conducted both paid and public playtesting in China, which helped us identify localization and cultural issues early on.

If your game references Chinese culture or history, consult with trusted partners (friends, a Chinese publisher, or localization team) to ensure the content feels authentic and respectful.

We also strongly recommend performing localization quality control whenever possible, as this helps identify not only translation errors, but also tone, cultural nuances, and game integration issues that might otherwise be overlooked.

How can a developer find reliable companies for localization work?

Look for localization firms that have worked on games similar to yours. Word of mouth recommendations from other developers are often reliable. Before you make a decision, check out the reviews of games in their portfolio on Steam to see how players perceive the quality of localization into their target languages.

What do developers need to consider to succeed in the Chinese market?

To succeed in the Chinese market, developers need to approach marketing separately from global campaigns.

This is because China uses different social media platforms from the rest of the world, and most players prefer to view content in Chinese rather than English, meaning that content released globally may not reach Chinese audiences at all.

On Steam in particular, the platform limits the visibility of your game to Chinese users unless it is localized into Chinese (as it does for other languages), so it's important to translate your public game content (tests and demos) and marketing materials as early as possible.

Another important factor is community. Chinese players don't use Discord, so they often struggle to find an effective way to communicate with developers in other countries, whether it's to inquire about game updates or report issues.

At the same time, Chinese players value frequent and transparent communication with development teams. The Steam community can be a good platform to help bridge this gap. Translating key Steam announcements is essential to building trust and understanding.

China has strict game censorship laws – what elements of a game might draw criticism from the government?

On Steam, the rules are generally quite relaxed. The main risks are direct references to politics, history or controversial current events. More often than not, resistance comes from the community rather than the government.

How are the general demographics of gamers different in China, and what should developers consider when localizing their game to meet these criteria?

China is a huge and diverse market, and there is an audience for almost every genre.

While mobile and free-to-play games still dominate the market, the number of PC and console players has grown rapidly over the past five years. Many of them came from the free/mobile versions. This means that players are more accustomed to direct communication with development teams and frequent updates.

Besides this free/mobile game, due to the language barrier and lack of direct communication channels with the developers mentioned above, there is often a mismatch between players' expectations and what the game delivers.

One side effect is that Chinese players on average leave more negative reviews compared to other regions. While it's a cultural thing, it can also be managed and improved through communication and localization – not just the game, but community posts, marketing materials, trailers, etc.

Having a partner – be it a publisher with a strong presence in China or a trusted marketing/PR agency – to help with marketing and community management can also be helpful in this regard, especially for smaller development teams.

What games are successful in the Chinese market? Are there any specific genres or art styles that tend to do well?

Chinese players have shown great interest in genres such as simulation, management, life simulators, deck builders and auto battlers. Features such as roguelike mechanics, co-op modes, anime-inspired art style, and Asian cultural references also resonate well with players.

Compared to Western audiences, Chinese gamers are often more open to games that have an “indie” feel and don't necessarily expect AAA polish as long as the concept and gameplay feel fresh and fun.

A good way to gauge your game's potential in China is to look at your competitors' games on Steam. If their reviews in Simplified Chinese make up more than 20% of the total reviews or rank in the top positions in two languages, it's a strong signal that your game may also have a lot of popularity in China.

Which Western games have had particularly successful transitions to the market?

Western games that invest in quality localization and actively communicate with their Chinese audiences often find success in the region. AAA games such as Baldur's Gate 3, Split Fiction and Kingdom Come: Deliverance 2 have received impressive sales and review scores.

Indie games have also performed very well in recent years as more studios realize the potential of the Chinese market. At TinyBuild, some of our most successful releases in China were “The King Is Watching,” “Potion Craft,” and “Not For Broadcast.”

Is it beneficial for indie developers to work with a large Chinese publisher (such as Tencent or NetEase) or with a small firm?

For indie developers, it often makes sense to work with regional publishers who have experience working with premium and indie games. [This is because] the bulk of the Chinese industry is still focused on mobile and free-to-play games, which follows a different business model.

These days, having a publisher or marketing partner in China is common practice for games of any size, and there are many reliable teams with extensive experience that can provide bespoke support for indie projects.