Chinese gaming giants Tencent, NetEase to release new titles back to back in sign of intensified rivalry

NetEase plans to release about a dozen new games next week, including titles in collaboration with franchises Marvel Entertainment and The Lord of the Rings

The competition between Tencent and NetEase has grown more heated recently as rivals like TikTok owner ByteDance have retreated from the industry

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Signage at the Tencent headquarters in Shenzhen, China, Jan. 17, 2024. Photo: Bloomberg

Published: 9:00am, 14 May 2024Updated: 1:10pm, 14 May 2024

Chinese tech giants Tencent Holdings and NetEase announced back-to-back new title releases, in a sign of intensified competition among the country’s top two video gaming publishers, as other Big Tech firms throw in the towel.

NetEase, the country’s second-largest online gaming firm, plans to release about a dozen new games next week, including titles in collaboration with big-name franchises Marvel Entertainment and The Lord of the Rings, the company announced on Monday.

The company will announce new updates to a series of existing titles such as the popular casual party game Eggy Party, it said.

NetEase’s releases will face off against new titles that Tencent is adding to its game portal WeGame on Sunday. The Steam-like video game distribution platform is set to introduce dozens of new titles, according to an announcement by the platform on Monday. It did not offer any details about the games.

Tencent, which operates the world’s largest video gaming business by revenue, has not yet announced a date this year for its largest annual game release event, the Spark conference.

The competition between Tencent and NetEase has grown more heated recently as rivals like TikTok owner ByteDance have retreated from the industry that has proven challenging for new entrants. Beijing has also been seeking to show support for the industry by granting more licences in recent months after an industry crackdown in 2021.