Tencent, NetEase rethink Japan investments after yielding few blockbuster video games
Chinese gaming giants are reconsidering their spending in Japanese studios amid a revival in the Chinese market, led by Black Myth: Wukong
Tencent Holdings and NetEase are reconsidering or scaling back many of their investments in Japanese studios, after years of spending yielded few hit games and the Chinese market staged a comeback.
NetEase’s far larger rival, Tencent, is also reconsidering the pace and scale of investments in the country, the people said, asking not to be named as the details are not public. It has already backed off from at least several funding commitments for new games, the people said.
The previously unreported moves to cut back staff and spending in Japan follow years of investment in the world’s No 3 gaming market, with not much to show for it. China’s two dominant game publishers sought to escape a stagnating home market by making a series of bets in Japan since 2020, looking to incubate the next great entertainment hits to bring back home.