IL Chinese video game market Crossing the threshold for the first time US$50 billion in 2025The total amount reached 51.8 billion yuan, an increase of 5.4% over the previous year. That’s the conclusion in a new report from Niko Partners, which says the industry will continue to expand in the coming years, albeit at a slower pace.
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In fact, the analyst firm predicts growth of 4% to $53.9 billion in 2026, while The market size will reach 59.8 billion by 2030equivalent to a five-year compound growth rate of 2.9%.
Not even Player base expected to increaseIt is expected that by 2030, the number of users will reach 769 million. Niko Partners also predicts that the average time spent playing games will grow, from 14.1 hours per week last year to 15.8 hours.
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The company said the positive market trends were primarily related to “the better-than-expected performance of new games and established evergreen games.” The market segments with the most interesting prospects include Mini games have covered 80% of Chinese players Accounting for nearly 20% of total mobile game spending.
Social media and video platforms also play an important role in the discovery of new games: in fact, almost half of Chinese gamers use them Video Apps to Find New Games and information on products available on different platforms.
The special relationship between the Chinese market and the Chinese market Online browsing restrictions. 66% of gamers surveyed said they use various systems to circumvent state online censorship. Specifically, 30.8% of people play games on global servers, 33.6% use connection acceleration tools, and 21.9% use VPNs.
Another factor destined to impact the industry in the coming years is the growing recognition that the gaming industry is part of China’s digital economy. In early 2026, video games will indeed be included The 15th Five-Year Plan for National Economic and Social Development (2026-2030)whereas previously they were more loosely classified as digital cultural products.
Looking ahead to the next five years, Niko Partners identified five key trends: growth in niche genres, increased monetization outside of apps, improving regulatory frameworks, increased consumer spending on premium games on PC and consoles, and the integration of artificial intelligence-generating AI.
own Artificial intelligence has been heavily integrated into the production processes of Chinese companies. According to Niko Partners, industry companies are “rapidly adopting generative AI throughout development processes and player-facing features” amid the broader growth of user-generated content platforms.
Although the expansion of artificial intelligence infrastructure has put pressure on the supply of RAM and semiconductors, analysts believe that the Chinese gaming market can maintain a positive development trajectory. Niko Partners concluded: “Continued innovation, regulatory clarity and strong player engagement will continue to support the long-term growth of the Chinese market.”