MMORPGs in China
Even though free to play MMORPGs / MMOs are getting more and more popular in North America and Europe, they’re still nothing compared to the size of the industry in China. In fact, Chinese gamers spent a whopping $5 billion in 2009 on MMORPGs while Americans only spent $3.8 billion. A big chunk of that $3.8 billion spent in the United States comes from subscription based games like World of Warcraft, Eve Online and Warhammer Online. If you take out subscription based games from the equation, American gamers spent around $1.9 billion on free to play games. On the other hand, practically all of the $5 billion spent in China on MMORPGs comes from free to play micro-transaction based games. Free to play games are much more successful in China because the average purchase hovers in the $1-2 range, which is much more affordable when you have a thin wallet.
Money Spent on Online Games
MMORPGs are especially popular in China because it’s an extremely cheap form of entertainment. The immense popularity of free to play MMOs in China has led the Chinese government to propose and implement various anti-addiction programs across the country. One interesting fact is that subscription based games like World of Warcraft and Warhammer Online have no monthly fees in China. Instead, players use pre-paid cards which are significantly cheaper than the $15/month U.S. gamers pay to access these games. We all know how popular World of Warcraft is in Europe and North America, but it may come as a surprise to some that WoW is much more popular in China than it is elsewhere around the world. It has 2.5 million players in North America, 2 Million in Europe and a whopping 5.5 million in Asia.
World of Warcraft Screenshot
Even though American and European gamers didn’t spend as much as Chinese gamers on MMORPGs, it’s still safe to say free to play games are growing everywhere around the world and especially so in North America and Europe. This is the case because free to play gaming only really begin to take off in 2005 with the release of MapleStory – Nexon’s enormously popular side-scrolling MMORPG. Prior to MapleStory, there were only a handful of free to play titles on the market. Today there are well over 150 free to play downloadable MMORPGs available to Western gamers with more and more coming out each month. Many of these games come straight from China. Many of the most successful free to play games in North America and Europe were originally developed in China and published by Chinese companies. Perfect World, Jade Dynasty and Ether Saga Online for example are all great games brought to North America from China. Several big Chinese MMORPG Publishers in North America are Perfect World Entertainment, ChangYou, and TQ Digital. After Korean MMORPGs, Chinese made MMORPGs are the next most popular.
MapleStory Gameplay Screenshot
What do you guys think of Chinese made MMORPGs? Personally, I think games like Perfect World and Jade Dynasty are great while some games like Crazy Tao and Phoenix Dynasty Online just feel cheap.
By, Michael K.
March 18, 2010
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Well I have tried Perfect World and I just was not feeling it. Probably because I am a western gamer. :/
April 1, 2010
#1
i played perfect world till 23 lvl leveling was sooooooo slow,but then i started playing jade dynasty lvl 30,then i stoped and now i don’t know what to do now,started playing aika
March 19, 2010
#2
Chinese made MMORPGs aren’t the issue, but more or less the development behind it, the publisher’s arrogance and extensiveness to make/leech money out of it, and the potential the game even has. With the huge diversity of games nowadays, it’s hard pushed to create an original game, that can jump out at you, grab you and end up making you love to play it. We know all the WoW-copycats, all the Anime-Style-MMORPGs, and the combat systems from one to another is similar till the point they’re universal; for instance, INT = Intellegence = Magick, universal stat.
I don’t mind Asian-developed games, but I’d like it to have a bit more depth than the amount of copy-from-you, copy-from-him, average-style, throw-around products. I’d like the publishers who PUBLISH those games, to have a bit more indepth understanding of the material that is published, the popularity, the need for more features/content/etc, the entire thing to be more well-rounded.
To be honest, this is why I tend to go “arghhhhh” at the oh-so-familiar grinding-quests, grinding-leveling; no originality, no fun, no me. xD
March 19, 2010
#3
Pefect World is a weird MMO , in my first minutes of gameplay experience i honestly didn’t know what to do ,no mark for people who can give you quests no tutorial to teach you something .You’re just throwned in a village where you should survive through your skills ,but nobody expalins you how they work or how they can help you.
April 1, 2010
#4
you just didn’t find them,i believe that the 1st quest you receive is go to town and you get it from some1 from the place you start in
March 20, 2010
#5
The problem with most of the games published that are developed by Koreans are that the organizations that buy the rights to publish those games do not see the true potential of the game. They think short-term and get income from the games in the early stages of the game and simply let it rot and die. They do not care about long-term game investments. To most of em, a game is simply something to raise revenue for a tiny period of time.
March 21, 2010
#6
After years of WoW end game and PvP, I found the beginning of Perfect World to be slow, boring and confusing. By levels mid 20s though, I was hooked, and it just keeps getting better. PvP server is recommended.
April 1, 2010
#7
the other way for me,after lvl 23 in perfect world i just got bored of the slow exp rate,but i guess me being disconected from the game everytime i wanna meet and fight with my friend added alot too
March 24, 2010
#8
wow is not so cool pw is beder so.now thet im a gamer i pley 1320 games
January 5, 2012
#9
Speak English much?
March 25, 2010
#10
I really like games like Perfect World and Ether Saga. I think PW is the only game I’ve gone above a lvl. 10 in. As for P2P games, I wish the would just buy a card for like two months and play the game instead of having to spend 30 dollars on JUST the game, and then STILL have to pay more to play it. That just doesn’t make much sense to me.
May 31, 2010
#11
I’m going to china soon for five weeks. And I am hearing that I can’t play perfect world there. Tell me that this is not true. Please! I need to know.
July 6, 2010
#12
What concerns me is the amount of money/wealth we (USA here) are sending to China as an export for “services”; that being entertainment services. There are no physical resources gained from exporting our cash for online games to China, making China rich(er). Where are all the American homed MMORPGs. Why isn’t China exporting thier cash to us (USA) for games we program and own rights too? It’s not like China is know for being fair in trade practices in this regard, Sofware piratecy of American made software goes on a great deal I hear rumor tell. I see many games being made in Germany and other parts of Europe as well as China. Why not the USA? If the US government considered online games as exports as they do other services and goods there’d be alot more political rhetoric and policy about it, as for example NAFTA has/was. Are American programmers a thing of the past much like the TV and VCR manufacturers are?
Perhaps I am not informed in this regard. But if so, do enlighten me.
July 6, 2010
#13
BTW, has anyone noticed a trend on MMOHUT. It seems all the China made MMOs get better ratings then non-China made games. Is MMOHut operated or owned by Chinese interests? Or am I just wearing biased glasses. By the way. I actually like most of the MMORPGs that come from the seeming same engine. And I love the portrayal of thier culture as best a game does these days. I don’t like grind for fun nor micropayments for every MMORPG game that seems to be cut from the same game engine though. Why couldn’t they make some of those games with ads or monthy subscription or buy-once type games just to mix it up a little.
July 6, 2010
#14
You sir, are wearing bias sunglasses =]. There are a lot of garbage Chinese MMORPGs. MMOHut is run by 2 people, both of us live in the U.S. and aren’t Chinese or Korean haha.
February 23, 2011
#15
free game? it’s like drug, millions of chinese got bankrupted playing so called free mmorpg.. perfect world lured some players spending $500000 to be the top players! …. every year hundreds of players killed or beaten by usurers….
February 23, 2011
#16
What on earth are you talking about? No one has to spend ANY money in these games. Also, “Bankrupted” isn’t a word.
August 6, 2011
#17
Z2paMW actually—- go into their my space now