Gamma data: Domestic game market sales revenue increased 12.17% year-on-year in the first half of the year to 188.45 billion yuan

The Zhitong Finance App learned that the “China Game Industry Report for January-June 2026” released by Gamma Data shows that in January-June, the actual sales revenue of the domestic game market was 18.45 billion yuan, an increase of 12.17% over the previous year. This is mainly due to the stability of the basic mobile platform, the simultaneous contribution of clients, and the incremental expansion brought about by dual-end interconnection, which together contributed to double-digit growth in market revenue. As of June, the number of game users in China was 684 million, an increase of 0.82% over the previous year.

Self-developed game market conditions

From January to June, the actual sales revenue of self-developed games in the domestic market was 163.356 billion yuan, an increase of 16.31% over the previous year, and the growth trend was good.

At the same time, the actual sales revenue of self-developed games in overseas markets was US$12.372 billion, an increase of 30.22% over the previous year. The main factors supporting this strong growth are the continuous operation of long-term products and the steady contribution of new products.

Distribution of overseas market revenue by region

From January to June, the US, Japan, and South Korea accounted for 32.31%, 14.05%, and 7.48% of the overseas market revenue for self-developed mobile games, respectively, accounting for 53.84%, and are still the main target markets; Germany, the United Kingdom, and France together accounted for 10.14%, showing a slight increase in the importance of the European market.

Overseas market revenue product type situation

Among the top 100 self-developed mobile games in overseas markets, the strategy category accounted for 46.91%, ranking first, with a slight increase over the previous year; followed by synthesis, accounting for 16.22%, an increase of 9.74 percentage points over the previous year, making it one of the most promising segments; role-playing and shooter categories ranked third and fourth respectively, accounting for 9.62% and 8.31% of revenue, respectively, and continued to remain stable.

Domestic market segment situation

In the domestic market segment, the actual sales revenue of mobile games increased year-on-year, accounting for 71.75%, maintaining a dominant position; actual sales revenue of client games accounted for 24.03%; and web games accounted for 1.07%.

The state of the mobile game market

In January-June, the actual sales revenue of the mobile game market was 135.21 billion yuan, an increase of 7.9% over the previous year. Mainly due to the steady performance of Changqing products, the successive launch of various new products also contributed significantly.

The proportion of mobile games

In January-June, among the top 100 mobile game products by revenue, role-playing and strategy categories remained at the top of the list, accounting for 22% and 11%, respectively; chess and card categories followed.

Mobile gaming revenue share

Among the top 100 mobile games in January-June, shooter revenue accounted for 26.23%, a significant year-on-year increase; multiplayer online tactical competition (MOBA) retreated from first place last year, accounting for 18.96%; and role-playing ranked third, accounting for 14.35%.

Client and web game market conditions

From January to June, the actual sales revenue of the client game market was 45.288 billion yuan, an increase of 27.92% over the previous year. The increase was significant, mainly due to the good performance of dual-end communication and several popular Changqing mobile game products.

The actual sales revenue of the web game market was 2,016 billion yuan, down 8.47% year on year, and the decline continues.

Domestic console game market situation

In January-June, the actual sales revenue of the console game market was 961 million yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 7.06%. The main reason is that the popular product “Black Myth: Goku” in 2024 is gradually cooling down, and follow-up with new products is insufficient.

The state of the e-sports game market

From January to June, the actual sales revenue of China's e-sports game market was 89.616 billion yuan, an increase of 11.12% over the previous year. Mainly due to the outstanding performance of leading youth e-sports products and the continuous launch of new e-sports products.

Two-dimensional mobile game market situation

In January-June, the actual sales revenue of the two-dimensional mobile game market was 13.269 billion yuan, a year-on-year decrease of 8.97%. The main reason is the decline in the flow rate of some leading long-term two-dimensional products, and revenue from new products has not been able to make up for it.

The state of the casual mobile game market

From January to June, the casual mobile game market revenue was 18.205 billion yuan, up 10.74% year on year. Among them, actual sales revenue from internal purchases was 12.203 billion yuan, accounting for 67% of total revenue; advertising monetization revenue was 6.02 billion yuan, accounting for 33% of total revenue.

Applet game market situation

In January-June, the applet mobile game market revenue was 31,657 billion yuan, up 36.01% year on year, and continued to grow at a high rate. Among them, actual sales revenue from internal purchases was 21.137 billion yuan, up 38.12% year on year, accounting for 66.8% of total revenue; advertising monetization revenue was 10.520 billion yuan, up 31.94% year on year, accounting for 33.2% of total revenue.

Board game market conditions

The information released this time will be included in the new category of board games. In recent years, the board game market has shown a continuous growth trend. It is playing an increasingly active role in innovating product forms, expanding consumption scenarios, and promoting cultural communication, and has become an integral part of the game industry that cannot be ignored. The Game Industry Committee, with the approval of the Association, decided to release the board game market-related data for the first time in the 2026 Game Industry Report.

From January to June, the actual sales revenue of the board game market was 3.868 billion yuan, an increase of 4.03% over the previous year. Among them, the actual sales revenue of electronic board games was 1,997 billion yuan, accounting for 51.60% of the total revenue; the actual sales revenue of physical board games was 1,870 billion yuan, accounting for 48.40% of the total revenue.

In the first half of 2026, China's game industry experienced significant growth in both domestic and foreign markets. It mainly stems from improving policies and measures, continuous optimization of ecology, and continuous injection of new momentum into technological innovation and cultural creation. In the second half of the year, there will also be a series of new products that are favored by the industry and players, and we can still look forward to a good development trend in the industry.