China grants licenses to 27 foreign games in March

China’s National Press and Publication Administration has granted licenses to 27 foreign-based games to be released in the country, as reported by Reuters.

The notable titles that have been licensed include Merge Mansion from Tencent, Audition: Everybody Party from NetEase, Fairy Tale: Fighting and Yo-kai Watch 4.

The news comes months after the regulator granted licenses to 45 foreign and 84 local video games in December, and another set of 45 titles including Baidu and XD Inc’s “Party Star” in April last year, ending its crackdown on online gaming as part of which it suspended gaming approvals for months to make sure that companies would follow its new rules, which include limiting playtime for children to three hours per week.

The country’s top industry body said in November that China has resolved game addiction among minors thanks to the new rules and gaming companies’ compliance with them.

On the other hand, according to a South China Morning Post report which cites data from Chinese video gaming analytics company CNG, mobile gaming revenue in China dropped by 19% Y/Y to $8 billion in the third quarter of 2022 as the number of titles that were shut down increased by 89%.

Meanwhile, China’s Cybersecurity Review Office recently allowed Chinese tech giant Didi’s ridehailing app ‘’Didi Chuxing’’, which was removed from Chinese app stores in July 2021, to continue operating in the country.