Industry Overview - In October, a total of 166 games received approval for release, with 159 domestic games and 7 imported games, marking the highest number of new approvals in recent years [3] - The actual sales revenue of the Chinese gaming market for Q3 (July-September) was 880.26 billion yuan, representing a quarter-on-quarter growth of 6.96% but a year-on-year decline of 4.08% [5] Domestic Companies - Among the 159 approved domestic games, 155 are mobile games, 12 are client games, and 5 are web games, with notable titles including "Survival 33 Days" by 37 Interactive Entertainment and "Tomorrow's Prologue" by Meituan [4] - NetEase's Li Kaiming, head of the tenth division, announced his departure to pursue entrepreneurship, with the company confirming that his exit will not affect the studio's operations [6] - Tencent announced that "Honor of Kings World" is set to launch in spring 2026 [6] International Developments - A recent report indicated that 26% of European developers faced layoffs in 2025, with 13% leaving the gaming industry altogether [8] - The price of in-game items for "CS2" plummeted following a patch that expanded the trade-up system, with the price of the Karambit Doppler skin dropping from over $2,700 to around $1,100 [10] - Koei Tecmo Holdings significantly raised its profit forecast for the first half of the 2025 fiscal year (April to September), expecting both ordinary profit and net profit to double, driven by strong game sales and effective cost control [11]

Core Insights - The Chinese gaming market's actual sales revenue in August 2025 was 29.263 billion yuan, showing a month-on-month increase of 0.61% but a year-on-year decline of 13.01% [1] - The decline is attributed to a combination of "changes in user consumption behavior" and "gaps in industry product iterations" [1] - The lack of new blockbuster games to replace last year's hits has led to insufficient consumer motivation [1] Industry Performance - The actual sales revenue of the Chinese mobile gaming market was 21.541 billion yuan, with a month-on-month increase of 0.85% but a year-on-year decline of 4.25% [2] - The actual sales revenue of the Chinese client-based gaming market was 6.563 billion yuan, showing a month-on-month decrease of 1.11% but a year-on-year increase of 17.59%, primarily driven by cross-platform products [2] - The actual sales revenue of Chinese self-developed games in overseas markets was 1.680 billion USD, with a month-on-month decrease of 0.79% and a year-on-year decline of 10.66% [2] Market Dynamics - The decline in August 2025's year-on-year revenue is largely due to the high revenue base set by the phenomenon-level product "Black Myth: Wukong" last year, with no new titles of similar market appeal emerging in the current period [1]

Core Insights - The Chinese gaming market revenue in August 2025 reached 29.263 billion yuan, showing a month-on-month increase of 0.61% but a year-on-year decline of 13.01% [1][2] - The decline is attributed to changes in user consumption behavior and a lack of new competitive products, particularly following the high revenue base set by last year's hit game [2][6] Market Performance - The client game market generated 6.563 billion yuan in August 2025, with a month-on-month decrease of 1.11% but a year-on-year increase of 17.59%, driven by new dual-end compatible products [6][10] - The mobile game market revenue was 21.541 billion yuan, reflecting a month-on-month growth of 0.85% but a year-on-year decline of 4.25%, with new releases contributing over 200 million yuan to the market [10][31] Product Insights - The top-performing new mobile game, "Valorant: Source Action," generated an estimated revenue of over 300 million yuan in its first month, showcasing strong market interest [28][30] - The client game "Dream Journey" achieved a peak of 2.93 million concurrent users after launching a new server, indicating robust player engagement [6][10] IP and Market Trends - The share of original IP products in the top 50 mobile games increased by 8.1 percentage points to 51.1%, while adaptations of existing IPs saw a decline [17][19] - The trend of multi-faceted IP utilization is growing, with a 65.4% increase in IP collaborations compared to the previous year, enhancing revenue potential for games like "Treading the Wind" [19][22] Advertising and Downloads - The game "Ling Beast Adventure" utilized information flow advertising effectively, achieving a stable position in the App Store's top 30 shortly after its launch [26][28] - In August 2025, the iOS download rankings were dominated by shooting games, with "Valorant: Source Action" leading the charts [23][25]