China has definitively secured its status as a global gaming center. According to The Game Business podcast with analyst Daniel Ahmad and Lisa Cosmas Hanson from Niko Partners, the country has 722 million active players — twice the entire population of the United States.
The Chinese video game market is estimated at $49.2 billion by the end of 2024. In 2025, it will exceed $50 billion, representing a 3.6% year-over-year growth. Forecasts indicate that this growth will continue until at least 2029.
An interesting detail is that consoles account for only 3% of the market. About 70% of Chinese players prefer smartphones, while the remaining 30% prefer PCs. Consoles struggle to compete in a market where mobile gaming has become the standard.
The reason is simple: consoles arrived in China much later than in other countries, and their market share is growing slowly. Experts debate whether it is possible to change this trend. However, the new Nintendo Switch 2 has had a successful launch — although it is not officially sold in China, many people order it from Hong Kong.
