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East Meets West: US to overtake China as world's most lucrative games market, and PUBG Mobile makes more than Fortnite

Keeping up with the news from the world's most influential games market

East Meets West: US to overtake China as world's most lucrative games market, and PUBG Mobile makes more than Fortnite

The Asia market has become the most lucrative and influential region in the global mobile games industry.

Companies in countries such as Japan, South Korea and China are highly successful at home and are increasingly expanding around the world through global game releases, international partnerships and M&A. These markets also offer lucrative opportunities for Western publishers.

To give you a deeper insight into this key region, each week we’re rounding up all the news from PocketGamer.biz and around the web. Don't forget to keep up with the news throughout the week on the Asia section of our site.

Got any news leads about the Asia market you'd like to share? Email PocketGamer.biz senior editor Craig Chapple at craig.chapple@steelmedia.co.uk.

The US will overtake China as world’s most lucrative games market this year

However, despite the freezing of licenses in China, Asia-Pacific remains the top region in the world for game revenue as it's expected to generate $72.2 billion, making up 47 per cent of the worldwide total.

Tencent and Nintendo reveal plans to localise Switch games in China

Plans to set up Nintendo's online services using Tencent's cloud infrastructure in China are also on the cards.

Sensor Tower: PUBG Mobile is making more money than Fortnite

In May, Tencent relaunched PUBG Mobile as Game for Peace in China after finally being given the greenlight to monetise. Global earnings for the title reached $167 million in July,an increase of 748 per cent year-on-year.

NetEase plots $725 million esports park investment in Shanghai

The park will be centred in Shanghai's western Qingpu District and will include what NetEase is claiming to be China's first large professional esports stadium. Several facilities will be hosted at the park, aiming to aid in game development, team building and talent training.

Animoca Brands acquires digital marketplace Quidd for up to $8 million

$5 million is payable up front with a possible US$3 million in earnout payments dependent achieving yearly net profit of $1.25 million, $1.5 million and $2 million over three years.

Animoca Brands posts highest revenue quarter in company’s history

Sticking with Animoca Brands, the publisher recently recorded its best quarter ever, bringing in $5.8m in revenue in Q2.

Nintendo, Microsoft and Sony will now require developers to disclose loot box odds

These companies - and others - have agreed to disclose details concerning loot box odds for all new game releases by the end of 2020.

Pokemon Duel is shutting down on October 31st

Following that date the title will no longer be supported or available to download. Those that already have the game installed will only be able to access certain functions.

Square Enix shutting down Star Ocean Mobile

Star Ocean: Anamnesis will turn off servers officially at on November 5th, 2019 at 9 am PDT. The game had first launched in the West just over a year ago on July 10th 2018 but has not lived up to expectations in that time.

Tencent Cloud chases new partners in South Korea and Southeast Asia as it plots international growth

The search for partners in South Korea and Southeast Asia comes shortly after the firm entered into the Japanese market last month.

Take a peek at the first ever Asia Digital Entertainment Summit

The Asia Digital Entertainment Summit 2019 (ADES) lands in Singapore on December 12th and 13th for two days of conference talks and seminars. Over 200 attendees will be present alongside 30 speakers from the likes of Activision, Valve, Ubisoft, NetEase and Sony.

Voodoo’s ad monetisation and the recipe for hyper-casual success

Voodoo games such as Hole.io, Helix Jump, Crowded City, Snake VS Block and Paper.io have been a huge hit with Chinese consumers. As part of its strategy for expanding into China and the APAC region, Voodoo decided to partner with China-based Mintegral to see if they could improve its ad monetisation strategy.

Weekly global mobile games charts: Dragon Raja helps Tencent claim top four highest grossing spots in China

Tencent now holds the top four top grossing spots in China, with Dragon Raja surging to second, with Game for Peace moving to third. Honor of Kings keeps its throne as it remained unchallenged at first.

Connect directly with the biggest players in the Asian market at G-STAR, the most accessible games event in the region. Busan, Korea, November 14th to 16th November. Register now here.

Head of Content

Craig Chapple is a freelance analyst, consultant and writer with specialist knowledge of the games industry. He has previously served as Senior Editor at PocketGamer.biz, as well as holding roles at Sensor Tower, Nintendo and Develop.