China's gaming market generated 188.45 billion yuan in revenue in the first half of 2026, with 684 million users, according to a report released Thursday.
The China Game Industry Report for January to June 2026 showed self-developed games earned 163.36 billion yuan domestically, up 16.31 percent. Overseas revenue from these games reached 12.37 billion dollars, up 30.22 percent, with the United States, Japan and South Korea as the top markets.
Mobile games accounted for 135.21 billion yuan or 71.8 percent of the domestic market. Esports revenue totaled 89.62 billion yuan, up 11.1 percent. Mini program games surged 36 percent to 31.66 billion yuan.
Zhang Yijun of the China Audio-video and Digital Publishing Association said client games and overseas markets performed strongly. AI adoption is reducing costs and reshaping development and gameplay.
