Core Insights - Tencent's mobile game "Honor of Kings" has achieved a record-breaking 139 million daily active users (DAU) in China and over 260 million monthly active users (MAU) globally by 2025, surpassing its previous forecast of 100 million DAU for 2024 [1][3] - The game has also set a new global record for monthly active users among gaming products [3] - Upcoming IP derivative games include "Honor of Kings: Chess of the Kings" and "Honor of Kings: World," with the latter expected to launch in Spring 2026 and featuring advanced technologies like ray tracing and NVIDIA's DLSS3 [3][4] - A new animated series focusing on the character "Li Xin" has been announced, with additional series in development, indicating a strong expansion of the game's IP into multimedia [4][5] User and Revenue Growth - Since its launch in October 2015, "Honor of Kings" has seen rapid user growth, reaching 200 million registered users within a year [7] - The Chinese gaming market has grown significantly, with user numbers increasing from 534 million in 2015 to 664 million in 2022, and market revenue rising from 140.7 billion RMB to 265.88 billion RMB in the same period [7] - The gaming industry in China is projected to exceed 325.78 billion RMB in 2024, with a year-on-year growth of 7.53%, accounting for approximately 26.7% of the global gaming market [7] - In 2023, "Honor of Kings" generated significant revenue, with Tencent's domestic gaming revenue reaching 40.4 billion RMB, a 17% increase year-on-year, and the game being the only mobile game to surpass $1 billion in revenue in the first half of the year [8] - "Honor of Kings" has maintained its position at the top of the Chinese App Store revenue rankings for 14 consecutive months and achieved the second-highest single-month revenue in gaming history [8]

Group 1: A-Share Gaming Sector - The A-share gaming sector is experiencing fluctuations, with the gaming ETF (159869) showing a near 2% decline, while some stocks like Xunyou Technology and Tianzhou Culture are performing well [1] - As of October 24, the gaming ETF (159869) has a product scale of 11.258 billion yuan, facilitating investors in accessing A-share gaming leaders [1] - The National Press and Publication Administration announced that 159 domestic games received approval in October 2025, with a total of 166 games approved for the month, maintaining a high level of approvals [1] - Notable new releases this year, such as Giant Network's "Supernatural Action Group" and G-bits' "Staff Sword Legend," are expected to enhance the profitability of related listed companies [1] - The gaming industry is anticipated to maintain its favorable outlook, with recommendations to focus on companies with key product launches or reserves, as well as high-quality overseas game content providers [1] Group 2: Chinese Film Industry - The demand for excellent content has driven the overseas box office revenue of Chinese films in 2025 to exceed the total for 2024 [2] - As of October 20, 2025, the overseas box office revenue for Chinese films reached 140 million USD, approximately 1 billion yuan, surpassing the entire revenue for 2024 [2] - Chinese films have been released in 46 countries and regions, with 13 films generating over 1 million USD in overseas box office revenue this year [2] - Among these, 7 films earned over 5 million USD, 2 films over 10 million USD, and 1 film over 50 million USD [2]

Group 1 - The gaming stocks experienced a significant drop, with Giant Network plunging over 8% to a price of 37.13 yuan and a trading volume exceeding 1 billion yuan [1] - Youzu Network fell nearly 6%, while other companies such as Kaiying Network, Perfect World, 37 Interactive Entertainment, and Glacier Network also showed weakness [3] - Specific stock performance included Youzu Network at 12.69 yuan (-5.86%), Kaiying Network at 23.66 yuan (-5.40%), and Perfect World at 16.82 yuan (-2.77%) [4]

Industry Overview - In October, a total of 166 games received approval for release, with 159 being domestic games and 7 imported games, marking the highest number of new game 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 - NetEase's head of the tenth division, Li Kaiming, 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 be released in spring 2026 [6] International Developments - A 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 in "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 Viewpoint - The essence of UGC (User Generated Content) is not merely tools and gameplay, but rather the ecosystem it creates [1]. Group 1: UGC Implementation in Genshin Impact - The recent update of Genshin Impact introduced the UGC module "Qianxing Qiyu," which has contributed to the game's rise to the second position on the iOS sales chart [2]. - The "Qianxing Qiyu" module consists of three main components: UGC gameplay content, a creator-oriented editor, and "Qiou" characters [3]. - The pricing for in-game appearances starts at 96 RMB per set, with the most rare five-star appearances requiring significant in-game purchases, potentially costing around 4000 RMB for full collection [3]. Group 2: Industry Expectations and Comparisons - UGC gameplay has become a standard feature in heavy mobile games, primarily aimed at enhancing player retention and community engagement [4]. - The current implementation of "Qianxing Qiyu" does not significantly differ from similar UGC modules in Tencent and NetEase games, which raises concerns about MiHoYo's position as an industry innovator [4]. - Despite having a development team of over 200 people, the output of MiHoYo's UGC module does not show a substantial advantage over Tencent's smaller team, which has only about 40 members [4]. Group 3: Monetization and Future Potential - A significant aspect of UGC is to provide financial incentives for active creators, as seen in NetEase's "Egg Party," which allows top creators to earn revenue [5]. - MiHoYo's approach to monetization, which centralizes all commercial aspects in its appearance shop, may hinder the effectiveness of the UGC module in enhancing player engagement [5]. - "Qianxing Qiyu" is still in its initial version, indicating that there is considerable growth potential, and it could evolve into a significant content engine for Genshin Impact in the future [5].

Group 1 - The gaming sector is experiencing a midday surge, with the gaming ETF (159869) rising nearly 1%, and stocks such as Youzu Interactive, Glacier Network, Mingchen Health, Shunwang Technology, and Guomai Culture showing significant gains [1] - As of October 23, the gaming ETF (159869) has seen a net inflow of funds amounting to 256 million yuan over the past five trading days, indicating strong investor interest, with the product's scale reaching 11.115 billion yuan [1] - The comic-drama market is on the verge of a major breakthrough, with projections indicating a compound monthly growth rate of 83% for comic-drama productions in the first half of 2025, resulting in over 3,000 works and a twelvefold increase in revenue scale [1] Group 2 - On October 22, the National Press and Publication Administration announced that 159 domestic games received approval for release in October, maintaining a high level of new game approvals [2] - A total of 1,440 games have received approval in 2025, including 1,354 domestic games and 86 imported games, reflecting a robust regulatory environment for the gaming industry [2] - The gaming sector is catalyzed by multiple factors including AI, content, and commercialization model transformations, with the gaming ETF (159869) tracking the CSI Animation and Gaming Index, highlighting investment opportunities in the sector [2]

Group 1 - The A-share market opened positively on October 24, with the Shanghai Composite Index rising by 0.17%, the Shenzhen Component Index increasing by 0.51%, and the ChiNext Index up by 0.83% [1] - The storage concept is gaining momentum, with commercial aerospace, quantum technology, and GPU concepts leading the gains, while short dramas, cultivated diamonds, and coal sectors experienced slight declines [1] - The gaming sector showed a slight upward trend, with the gaming ETF (159869) experiencing a minor increase. As of October 23, the gaming ETF has seen a net inflow of 256 million yuan over the past five trading days, indicating strong investor interest, with a total product scale of 11.115 billion yuan [1] Group 2 - On October 22, the National Press and Publication Administration announced that 159 domestic games received approval for release in October, along with 7 imported games, totaling 166 games, maintaining a high approval level [2] - In 2025, a total of 1,440 games have received approval, including 1,354 domestic games and 86 imported games, reflecting a robust gaming market [2] - The gaming sector is experiencing multiple catalysts, including AI, content, and commercialization model transformations, with the gaming ETF (159869) tracking the performance of the A-share listed companies in the animation and gaming industry [2]

Group 1 - The gaming sector is currently supported by clear investment themes, including favorable regulatory policies, strong product performance, and reasonable valuations [2] - Recent data shows that the gaming ETF (159869) has seen a net inflow of 256 million yuan over the past five trading days, indicating strong investor interest [1] - Major gaming companies like Giant Network, Century Huatong, and G-bits are expected to report high growth in Q3 due to strong product performance [2] Group 2 - The AI app download rankings in China for September show that Doubao leads with 6.19 million downloads, although it experienced a 2.0% decline from August [1] - The second tier of apps, including Tencent Yuanbao and Xingtui, have downloads ranging from 3 million to 4 million, while the third tier has downloads peaking at around 2 million [1] - The gaming ETF (159869) tracks the performance of the A-share listed companies in the animation and gaming industry, presenting investment opportunities [2]

Core Insights - Recent personnel changes at NetEase's gaming division indicate a significant restructuring, particularly affecting the Guangzhou-based teams, which have historically been crucial to the company's success [1][4][8] Group 1: Personnel Changes - NetEase's gaming division has experienced a series of high-profile departures, including the resignation of key figures such as Lin Yunfeng and Li Kaiming, indicating a potential shift in leadership strategy [2][6][16] - Li Kaiming announced his departure to pursue entrepreneurial ventures, countering rumors of being forced out, and confirmed he had initiated his resignation process earlier [7][11] - The restructuring is seen as part of a broader strategy by CEO Ding Lei to address underperformance in the Guangzhou region, which has seen a lack of successful new titles in recent years [9][28][36] Group 2: Performance and Strategy - The Guangzhou gaming units, particularly the Dream and Tenth divisions, have faced challenges with recent projects, including the underwhelming performance of "射雕" and the cancellation of "万民长歌：三国," leading to a reassessment of their operational effectiveness [29][31][34] - The restructuring aligns with a trend of shifting focus towards younger talent and innovative projects, as evidenced by the success of titles emerging from the Hangzhou-based teams [25][37] - NetEase's strategy appears to be moving away from its historical reliance on veteran teams in Guangzhou, as the company seeks to rejuvenate its game offerings and adapt to changing market demands [36][37] Group 3: Market Position - Despite the upheaval, NetEase continues to maintain a presence in the mobile gaming market, with "梦幻西游手游" and "率土之滨" remaining top performers, showcasing the enduring appeal of its legacy titles [10][34] - The company is actively recruiting in Hangzhou, indicating a strategic shift in its operational focus from Guangzhou to its headquarters, reflecting a broader trend in the gaming industry towards centralization of talent and resources [36]

Group 1 - Bilibili's game "Escape from Duckkov" has sold over 1 million copies globally in its first week since launch on October 16 [1] - The game achieved a peak concurrent online player count of over 250,000 on October 22, setting a record for domestic independent games [1] - The gaming industry is entering an innovation cycle of 2-3 years, driven by external factors like policy improvements and internal optimizations [1] Group 2 - Borye's cooperation with Bilibili is strong, with Bilibili's affiliate Shanghai Huandian holding an 11% stake in Borye's game subsidiary, Beijing Manyou Valley [2] - Giant Network is expected to see significant profit growth in Q3, largely due to the success of "Supernatural Action Team" [2] - Future growth potential exists in Giant Network's product line, particularly with historical SLG "Five Thousand Years" and casual competitive strategy game "Pocket Fighting" both having received approval for release [2]