China’s quiet gaming giants are already here.
Imagine a merge-game ad appearing between two posts.
A restaurant. A family secret. One more puzzle.
You scroll past.
Behind that small moment could be a company worth studying.
September’s Chinese mobile-game export rankings offer a useful introduction to businesses whose products can be more familiar than their names.
Take Microfun, the company behind Gossip Harbor. Its continued presence at the top of the overseas revenue chart puts ongoing storytelling and live operations firmly in the conversation.
Live operations means the events, challenges and updates that give existing players fresh reasons to return.
Then there’s Century Games.
Tasty Travels: Merge Game had surpassed US$450 million in cumulative estimated overseas in-app purchase revenue by the report date. Its portfolio stretches across merge games and strategy.
At 37 Interactive Entertainment, Last Asylum: Plague generated more than US$26 million in estimated overseas in-app purchase revenue during September.
Different products. Different audiences. Substantial businesses.
Joy Games offers another lesson. Duck Survival recorded roughly 140% monthly revenue growth, alongside launches in Traditional Chinese and Korean.
That makes territory selection part of the story, too.
These are estimates of app-store purchases. They exclude advertising revenue, mainland China and third-party Android channels. They tell us nothing directly about profit.
Western publishers already understand live operations and regional launches.
The useful question is which Chinese competitors deserve closer attention, and what their execution reveals.
Who understands the audience?
Who keeps giving players a reason to return?
Who knows when a new territory needs a different introduction?
Those questions matter well beyond mobile games.
Which company are you overlooking because you recognise its game before its name?
Explore how SWAY connects games, audiences and culture across markets at swaymedia.io.
SOURCES AND SCOPE
Figures are Sensor Tower estimates attributed in 游戏那点事’s September 2026 Chinese mobile-game overseas rankings, republished by YF Chuhai. Ranking positions refer to Chinese mobile games outside mainland China, not the entire global market. Lifetime revenue, monthly revenue and monthly percentage growth measure different things.
Revenue estimates cover app-store in-app purchases and exclude advertising, mainland China and third-party Android channels. They are not audited company revenue or profit.
Related reading: China game marketing beyond localization.
THE CAROUSEL
