China’s 109 video game approvals for September include a mysterious Tencent title

China’s video game regulator has approved an average of 107 titles per month this year, as gamers question whether Black Myth: Wukong marks a turning point

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A boy plays the video game Black Myth: Wukong in a Sony store in Shanghai on August 26, 2024. Photo: EPA-EFE

Ann Caoin Shanghai

Published: 10:51pm, 27 Sep 2024

China has kept the average pace of domestic video game approvals above 100 for the year in its September batch, which includes a mysterious title from Tencent Holdings, as interest in games from the country remains high a month after the release of the blockbuster game Black Myth: Wukong.

The National Press and Publication Administration (NPPA) granted licences to 109 video games for release in China this month, according to its latest list of approvals released on Friday. The government has approved an average of 107 games per month in 2024 as it seeks to revive the industry after a prolonged down period after a 2021 crackdown.

A game called Shou from Tencent, the country’s largest video gaming firm by revenue, made the list, but little is known about it. The company has not released any information regarding the genre or development progress of the mobile game, the name for which means “hunting” in Chinese.

Other notable titles to make the cut include Over Field, a role-playing game from NetEase, China’s second-largest video game company, Jianxiaqingyuan Ling from Seasun Games, a subsidiary of Chinese software developer Kingsoft, and Maoxianzouelong, a mobile game from Guangzhou-based 37Games.

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This month’s game approvals came in slightly under the 117 approved in August, the highest number of video game licences given out in a single month this year.