Tencent to create mobile versions of famous Japanese games such as Street Fighter, Metal Slug
- At its annual game conference on Saturday, Tencent announced new mobile games based on Japanese game franchises Street Fighter, Metal Slug and Dynasty Warriors
- The Chinese gaming market is dominated by titles based on existing content such as already-successful video game franchises or books
On the cards are new mobile games based on famous Japanese game franchises Street Fighter, Metal Slug and Dynasty Warriors, all big names that already have vast followings worldwide for their PC and console versions.
“The game industry is standing at the edge of an era full of possibility,” said Tencent senior vice-president Steven Ma at the event. “Globally, the popularity of new technologies is accelerating, the innovation cycle of gameplay is shortening [and] the creation of story intellectual property (IP) is becoming more abundant.”
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Tencent, which commands roughly half of China’s US$33 billion mobile and PC gaming industry according to research firm Niko Partners, is not the only one snapping up rights for existing storylines and adapting them for mobile games.
“One of the hot topics especially in the mobile gaming industry worldwide in recent years has been ‘IP, IP, IP’,” said Serkan Toto, CEO of game industry consultancy Kantan Games. “Chinese companies in particular have been especially aggressive when it comes to bringing successful PC and console games to mobile platforms in recent years.”
In fact, the country’s mobile and PC game market is dominated by titles featuring already-popular characters and storylines – 73 of the top 100 grossing mobile games last year were created through the purchase of IP rights to existing content, according to research firm Analysys.
“A good story is instrumental in helping gamers to form emotional ties with the product,” said Ma at the event. However, he added: “By [this], we don't mean that we are attaching famous IP to the game to earn eyeballs. We mean that we will genuinely digest the meaning of the story and match it with an appropriate gameplay mechanic.”