On December 25th, the National Press and Publication Administration issued approvals for 105 domestic game licenses, bringing the total for the year to 1075. It is noted that this marks the first time the single approval quantity by the National Press and Publication Administration has exceeded a hundred, and it covers a wider range of gaming enterprises.
Statistics from the National Press and Publication Administration and the Game Industry Network indicate that over the past three years, the stability of the game approval policy has gradually increased, and the gaming market has shown significant recovery. The newly approved domestic game licenses on the 25th, following the approval of imported online game licenses on the 22nd, represent another significant move by the National Press and Publication Administration. This has greatly inspired the China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association Game Committee and numerous gaming enterprises.
On December 22nd, the National Press and Publication Administration publicly sought opinions on the “Administrative Measures for Online Games (Draft),” attracting attention. After the release of the draft for opinions, relevant officials from the National Press and Publication Administration promptly stated, “The draft is based on safeguarding and promoting the prosperous and healthy development of the online game industry.” The subsequent continuous issuance of game licenses and a series of measures demonstrate the proactive approach of the relevant authorities, a timely response to public concerns, and a determination to safeguard and promote the prosperity and development of the online game industry.
The “2023 China Game Industry Report” shows that this year, the output value of China’s gaming industry has exceeded 300 billion for the first time, with overseas sales revenue of 16.366 billion USD for self-developed products. The scale has surpassed a trillion RMB for four consecutive years. In addition to sparking vital energy in the digital economy, the report released by the China Game Industry Research Institute and the Wang Yanyu research group from the Institute for the History of Natural Sciences of the Chinese Academy of Sciences, titled “Game Technology – Technological New Clusters in the Process of Digital and Real Fusion,” found that in 2020, the contribution rate of game technology to the chip industry’s technological progress was approximately 14.9%. For the important infrastructure of the fusion of virtual and real in the 5G and XR era, the technological contribution rate of game technology was even higher, reaching 46.3% and 71.6%, respectively. China’s gaming industry, transitioning from early technology introduction to current independent research and leading technology, is becoming an important platform showcasing independent technological innovation capabilities.
On the other hand, China’s gaming industry is increasingly becoming a “new vessel” for excellent traditional Chinese culture, playing a crucial role in promoting the “going out” of outstanding traditional Chinese culture. In July 2021, the Ministry of Commerce released the “List of Key Cultural Export Projects for the Years 2021-2022.” Among the 122 key cultural export projects in various countries, 9 are gaming products or projects.
The Dunhuang Research Institute and Tencent jointly created the “Digital Scripture Cave (International Version)” using cutting-edge technologies such as game technology to vividly recreate the historical scenes of the Dunhuang Scripture Cave and its collection of over 60,000 precious relics in the digital world. Combining Chinese-style modern fine brushwork art scenes with gamified interactive mechanisms, overseas users can also “time travel” to a thousand years ago through immersive experiences, appreciating Chinese civilization represented by Dunhuang.
Based on the digital productivity released by online games, many countries, including Japan, South Korea, Canada, and Australia, are accelerating the layout of the electronic game industry. The European Parliament has also enacted 38 “new gaming policies.” The actions of the world’s major economies indicate that the online game industry deserves our attention and in-depth exploration of its potential value.
Well-known game industry consulting firm Newzoo predicts that the global game market revenue will be approximately $184 billion in 2023, and this figure is expected to reach $205.7 billion by 2026. The global number of players is also expected to reach 3.78 billion. “These data reflect the continuous growth of the gaming industry worldwide and the increasing demand for electronic entertainment products.”
With the continuous development and innovation of technologies such as AI, the gaming industry is rapidly growing. “The technological attributes of games can bring about resonance effects: first, the resonance between games and technological innovation; second, the resonance between game technology and external entities; and third, the resonance between games and the basic infrastructure of the technology field, especially the resonance in the construction of the technological talent team.” Aoran, Executive Vice Chairman and Secretary-General of the China Audio-Video and Digital Publishing Association, pointed out that games, as compound cultural content products, have both natural cultural attributes and profound technological attributes. Based on these two categories of attributes, games are constantly enriching their economic attributes and becoming a driver supporting the integrated development of digital technology and the real economy.
At the same time, in recent years, China’s gaming industry has continuously upgraded mechanisms for protecting minors, strengthened real-name authentication, and implemented measures to limit the gaming time of minors. Efforts in preventing gaming addiction have achieved positive results. The “2023 China Game Industry Progress Report on Protection of Minors” clearly states, “The prevention of gaming addiction in the game industry has entered a new stage, and the problem of minors excessively playing games has been effectively improved.” The “5th National Survey Report on Internet Use by Minors” released by the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League also shows that with the phased achievements of the gaming industry’s measures to prevent minors from addiction, the problem of minors excessively playing games has been effectively improved. Over 60% of underage netizens believe that the current management methods limiting gaming time have significantly reduced their own or their classmates’ gaming time.
However, the anti-addiction system still faces new problems and loopholes, such as “failure to prevent addiction,” the chaotic “channel service” in the application stores of mobile phone manufacturers, and the continuous emergence of new issues like the “low-age exposure to the internet” of rural children. How to implement and refine measures to prevent gaming addiction, strengthen the defense line for protecting minors, and address new problems and loopholes will continue to be a common direction for game developers, parents, and society. At the same time, how to safeguard and promote the prosperity and healthy development of the online gaming industry and guide society to more deeply and comprehensively recognize the deep-seated value of the gaming industry will also be a shared proposition for the industry and regulators.