Tag: China
News New Pokémon Snap Is The First Official Pokémon Release In China Since 2000
Albeit with some minor alterations
After China finally ended the complete ban on the production, import, and sales of video game consoles, in effect from 2000 to 2015, its doors were opened to the official release of Nintendo titles. Although the Switch itself would be subject to several alterations in the country to effectively region-lock the...
Random 350 Switch Carts Smuggled In Passenger's Bra Seized By Chinese Customs
Busted
Here's a story to make any tea-drinking Englishman go red in the face. Officials at Liantang Port, Guangdong, have intercepted a passenger attempting to smuggle 350 Nintendo Switch cartridges through Chinese customs. Her method? Packing them into her bra. Oh my (thanks, Tom's Hardware). Wipe up the mouthful of Earl Grey we're sure you've...
Feature Why Play Final Fantasy VII Remake When You Could Play FFVII 'Demake'?
"more than just pirate versions"
You’re probably aware of Square Enix’s lengthy and somewhat lavish efforts to remake the 1997 game Final Fantasy VII. The second instalment of this ambitious remake, Final Fantasy VII Rebirth, was released just recently, and we’re still likely to be years away from any sort of conclusion. But you might not be...
News Splatoon 3 Is A Streaming Hit In China... But It Hasn't Officially Launched There Yet
Imports are helping it make a splash
We all expected Splatoon 3 to be a huge hit in Japan, but the third mollusc shooter has taken the entire world by storm since its release two weeks ago. It's even made an impact in countries where it hasn't been released! One such case is in China — as highlighted by Niko Partners Senior Analyst Daniel Ahmad...
Random Mario And Bowser Are Being Used To Promote The PS5 In China
The real PlayStation icons...
When you think about Sony's PlayStation brand, what mascots come to mind? Some obvious ones would be Ratchet & Clank, Kratos, or perhaps even Aloy from Horizon Zero Dawn - but why not Mario and Bowser? While you wouldn't normally associate the most famous video game character in the world with the PlayStation...
News Switch OLED Model Arrives In China Soon, Following Success Of Original Model
The fastest selling system in the country
The Switch has been a notable global success since March 2017, and since December 2019 its hardware sales have also included official results from China. The size of the Chinese market makes it a valuable target for the 'big three' console manufacturers, but the country's stringent production regulations and...
Random A Bunch Of Little Pikachus Danced Around A Ten-Metre-Tall Pikachu To Celebrate Mall Opening
The ritual is complete
Normally, if you heard the news that a bunch of creatures were spotted dancing around a much, much taller version of said creatures, you'd be a little concerned that some sort of arcane rite was being performed. We can't say for certain that that's not the case, but at least it's cute. Back on November 18th, games industry...
News Grasshopper Manufacture Joins Chinese Video Game Giant NetEase
Suda51 says his company "is now reborn"
Just a day after we heard how the famous video game creator Goichi "Suda51" Suda would love to reboot or remake Nintendo's older IP, he's now announced his development studio will be working under the Chinese video game giant NetEase. Yes, that's right - Grasshopper Manufacturer is ending its partnership with...
News Nvidia Shield Shutting Down Nintendo Wii Game Downloads In China
Fortunately the Switch has found success
In 2017, rumours became real when it was confirmed Nintendo would release select Wii ports running at 1080p HD, 60 FPS on the Nvidia Shield in mainland China. It began with the release of Super Mario Galaxy and was followed by other titles like Donkey Kong Country Returns, The Legend of Zelda: Twilight...
News Nintendo And Tencent Launch Super Mario Party And Switch Demonstrations In China
Teaming up with IKEA and Holiday Inn Hotels
Nintendo and Tencent have been enjoying a solid partnership in the Chinese market, with Switch console sales beating rivals in the country. With official sales now beyond 4 million units, efforts continue to grow the userbase and increasingly tap into a potentially huge market. Daniel Ahmad, Senior...
Random Lenovo Wants You To Know Its New Android Tablet Can Double As A Switch Screen
Riding on Nintendo's coattails, perhaps?
Lenovo’s releasing a new Android tablet, called the Yoga Pad Pro. This device boasts a 13-inch, 16:10 LCD screen with a 2K resolution, is powered by a Snapdragon 870 chipset and offers 8GB of RAM and 256GB of storage. Keeping things ticking over is a 10,200mAh battery. Why are we telling you this? Because...
News Tencent Has Patented Its Own Handheld Console, And It Looks A Lot Like A Nintendo Switch
Tencent previously helped distribute the Switch in China
Tencent's been making a name for itself in Nintendo circles in recent years. As it continues working on Pokémon Unite through TiMi Studios, the Chinese tech giant also obtained exclusive distribution rights for the Switch launch in China back in 2019. Now, if a recent patent is to be...
"Klei retains full autonomy of creative and operations"
Following on from Vicarious Visions merging with Blizzard, it's now been announced Chinese video game giant Tencent - known for titles like League of Legends and Clash of Clans - will acquire a "majority stake" in Klei Entertainment. If you're not familiar with this Canadian-based developer,...
News Nintendo Is Now The Market Leader In Video Gaming's Biggest Region
1 million Switch consoles sold in China since 2019
Nintendo has shipped 1 million Switch consoles in China since launching the system in the country at the close of 2019, according to its Chinese partner Tencent. This indicates that Nintendo has now surpassed both Microsoft and Sony as China's biggest console device seller. According to Niko...
News Nintendo Switch Sold More Than 1.3 Million Units In China This Year
Ahead of the pack
It has now been a year since Nintendo launched the Switch in China with the help of Tencent and it seems to be paying off. According to Niko Partners, the hybrid system has now sold more than 1.3 million units in the region this year, through both legal and gray market channels. Bloomberg highlights how this is "almost double" the...
News Monster Hunter Movie Director And Star Apologise To Chinese Viewers For "Racist" Joke
"I apologise for any anxiety or upset that this line and its interpretation caused"
Paul WS Anderson's much-hyped Monster Hunter movie hasn't had the best of starts. Its release was kicked around following the COVID-19 pandemic which has thrown the world of cinema into complete disarray, and when it did eventually launch (in China, one of its...
News Asia Is Now Nintendo's Fastest-Growing Market
Sales up by a whopping 152%
Nintendo's growth in the Asian market is outstripping that seen in other parts of the world, it has been confirmed. Speaking during a recent Nintendo investor Q&A, company president Shuntaro Furukawa addressed sales in Nintendo’s “other” region – the term it uses to refer to Australia, New Zealand and regions...
News Chinese Firm Which Ripped Off The NES With Jackie Chan's Help Has Filed For Bankruptcy
So long, Subor
While most of the world grew up with the NES (or Famicom), there are numerous examples of unofficial clone systems becoming incredibly popular in certain regions over the years – one of which was China. The Chinese market, like that in Brazil, was flooded with "Famiclone" systems which basically replicated the performance of...
News Switch Success Means Nintendo Is Set To Become Market Leader In China, Overtaking Sony
Console gaming is on the rise in the region
The success of the Switch in China means that Nintendo is poised to become the market leader in that region, overtaking the Sony PlayStation 4, according to a report by Niko Partners. The Chinese console market is set to hit $2.15 billion by 2024, with the total number of console gamers expected to...
News Ring Fit Adventure Is Getting Its Own Direct In China Tomorrow
Release date info to come
Tencent, which works in partnership with Nintendo to deliver its products to consumers in China, has announced a Ring Fit Adventure-specific 'Direct' presentation for the region. According to translations by Chinese Nintendo, Tencent plans to host the show on 19th August at 5am PST / 8am EST. The presentation will reveal...
News China Bans Sales Of Animal Crossing: New Horizons In Suspected Censorship Scuffle
Political messages most likely the cause
Imported sales of Animal Crossing: New Horizons have been banned in China, it has been reported. The instruction filtered through Alibaba's e-commerce platform Taobao to sellers yesterday (April 9th) and is expected to come into full effect today. According to screenshots posted online by Taobao sellers, the...
Random There's Now A Grand Total Of Three Games On The Switch eShop In China
Mario, Mario, and more Mario
If you've ever complained about the games on the Switch eShop, take a moment to consider players over in China. While hundreds of games get added to the eShop across various regions on a monthly basis, the Chinese Tencent Switch has had just one game since December. Until now, that is. According to Daniel Ahmad, Senior...
News Plague Inc Banned In China As Coronavirus Outbreak Spreads, Switch Version Unaffected
Switch version will still be supported
Strategy simulation game Plague Inc. has been suddenly pulled from the app store in China. The ban has been enforced by the Chinese government following a recent surge in popularity for the title. While the expanded version of the game available on Nintendo Switch and other platforms worldwide naturally...
News Nintendo Named And Shamed As Benefiting From The Use Of Chinese Forced Labour Camps
Along with 83 other companies, including Sony and Microsoft
A new report by the US State Department-funded Australian Strategic Policy Institute has discovered that at least 83 companies are directly or indirectly linked to Chinese forced labour camps when it comes to the creation of their products – and Nintendo is one of the firms named,...
News Ring Fit Adventure Sales Rapidly Increase In China Due To The Coronavirus Outbreak
But there are now global shortages
The coronavirus outbreak – officially known as COVID-19 – has already impacted the production of the Nintendo Switch in China and forced certain game companies operating within the country to
News Switch Production Has Been Impacted By The Coronavirus Outbreak, Admits Nintendo
Outbreak has claimed 170 lives so far
Nintendo president Shuntaro Furukawa has revealed that production of the Switch in China has been impacted by the recent coronavirus outbreak. The admission came during a news briefing following the publication of Nintendo's financial results, according to Reuters. The co
Weirdness It's Confirmed, Chinese Switch Cartridges Taste Just As Bad As Ours
So why can't we stop licking them, then?
For reference only - this is not a Chinese Switch cart. It is yummy, though. What's the first thing you did when you opened up that launch copy of Breath of the Wild nearly three years ago? Before you popped it in your brand new Switch and lost 300 hours of your life to it, we mean. Could you resist giving...
News You'll Want To Avoid Importing Physical Switch Games From China
Region-locking returns
The Nintendo Switch appears to have had a pretty solid start in China with an estimated 50,000 sales being generated on its launch day last month, but this new Tencent-distributed model does have a couple of limitations compared to the Switch consoles already on the market worldwide. We've already seen that Chinese Switch...
Random Chinese Retailer Tries To Blame Switch Joy-Con Drift On Foreign Games
That's a 'no' from us
Well, here's something to brighten up your chilly Friday. Remember Joy-Con drift, the manufacturing issue which has plagued countless Nintendo Switch consoles all around the world and has been heavily documented within the gaming press? Yeah, this Chinese store's having none of it. As you may know, the Switch has very recently...
Random Upset By eShop Discoverability Issues? Spare A Thought For Chinese Switch Owners
Turns out too many games is a nice problem to have
It's taken a lot of time, with plenty of bureaucratic wrangling and compromise, but Nintendo has finally launched Switch in China in partnership with Tencent. However, the experience new Switch owners in mainland China are having is quite a bit different from the the rest of us. As you can see in...
News Switch Estimated To Have Sold More Than 50,000 Units On Launch Day In China
Welcome to club
Update - Thu 12th Dec, 2019 02:00 GMT: Following on from last week's Switch pre-order data for China, Niko Partners now estimates "more than 50,000" Nintendo Switch Console (Tencent China Version) were sold to consumers in the country on launch day. This data comes from online retailers and Niko's own market model. Online retailer...
News Ubisoft Shows Its Support For Nintendo Switch's Chinese Launch With An Exclusive Rabbids Game
And three other titles
Earlier this year in July, Ubisoft lifted the lid on a brand new Rabbids game for the Switch that looked similar to Nintendo's Mario Party series. In case you forgot, it's known as Rabbids: Adventure Party and was created by Ubisoft Chengdu. Interestingly, it's also a Chinese exclusive. During the official Chinese Switch
News Nintendo Switch To Officially Launch In China Next Week
The Chinese market opens at last
Tencent, Nintendo's regional partner in the Chinese market, has finally revealed the Switch will launch on 10th December for the recommended retail price of RMB 2,099 (US$300). Additionally, games will be priced at RMB 299 (~$42), which is typical for the region. This particular model will come bundled with New Super...
News Chinese Nintendo Switch Packaging Appears Online Ahead of Release
The Chinese market prepares for the Switch
As you may already know, the Chinese company Tencent is preparing for a Nintendo Switch launch in the Chinese market. Images have now appeared online for packaging of the Nintendo Switch and accessories for the Chinese market. These products include: Nintendo Switch with Neon Joy-Cons Nintendo Switch...
News Chinese Video Game Giant Tencent Wants To "Create Console Games With Nintendo Characters"
And appeal to players overseas
Earlier this year in April, Tencent was given the approval to start selling the New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe Switch bundle in mainland China. The news saw Nintendo's shares increase by more than 13 percent and Tencent followed this up by forming a "Nintendo cooperation department" to help manage the launch. Since...
News Tencent Is Reportedly Hiring Switch Port Specialists
Part-owners of Fortnite and PUBG also working with Nintendo
It's fair to say that giant Chinese conglomerate Tencent has its fingers in a lot of pies, video game-related and otherwise. The holdings company owns stakes in a large number of game companies across the globe including League of Legends developer Riot Games (which it fully owns), Epic...
News Nintendo's Chinese Subsidiary iQue Shifts Focus To Games Development
Changing times
Remember the iQue Player? It was released in China during the nationwide video game ban and bypassed the laws at the time due to its plug and play design. To this day, the company behind it is still a Nintendo-owned subsidiary. As Nintendo and Tencent are now gearing up for the release of the Switch in mainland China, iQue appears to...
News Nintendo And Tencent Share More Details About Switch Launch In China
Mario Odyssey and Breath of the Wild confirmed
Nintendo's plans to introduce the Switch and its games to the Chinese market appears to have taken another positive step today as the company, along with partner Tencent, have revealed more concrete plans. The information comes from a press event hosted at the ChinaJoy gaming conference in Shanghai...
News Ubisoft Reveals A Brand New Rabbids Game For Nintendo Switch
Possibly exclusive to China?
A brand new Rabbids game for Switch is set to be shown at ChinaJoy this weekend, seemingly inspired by Journey to the West, a classic piece of Chinese literature. Mario and co. aren't anywhere to be seen here, as the franchise returns to its Rabbid-only ways. The new title is a party game which appears to support at...
News Nintendo Reportedly Exploring Production Alternatives Outside China
Joins other electronics manufacturers looking at alternatives
Video games consoles can be expensive at the best of times and proposed tariffs on Chinese goods by the current US administration have the potential to drastically increase the cost of hardware of consumers. Recently, Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft penned a joint open letter highlighting...
News Wii's Donkey Kong Country Returns Is Now Playable At 1080p And 60fps On Nvidia Shield
See it in action
As you may well be aware, a number of Nintendo's first-party Wii titles have been ported to the Nvidia Shield in China. The latest to make the jump is Donkey Kong Country Returns, and it's looking just as tasty as you might expect. The Wii game has been treated to the usual upgrades for the Nvidia Shield release, meaning it plays...
News Chinese Video Game Giant Tencent Forms New "Nintendo Cooperation Department"
Making the Switch
In April, Tencent was given the approval by the Department of Culture and Tourism of Guangdong Province to start selling the New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe Switch bundle in mainland China. The news saw Nintendo's shares surge by more than 13%, which was the highest they've been since October 2018. The latest update is courtesy of...
News Nintendo, Sony And Microsoft Band Together To Fight Tariffs On Video Game Consoles
United as one
If you keep up with global politics or happen to live in North America, you might have heard about recently proposed tariffs on Chinese goods by the Trump administration. In a rare display – Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft have joined forces (in a seven-page letter) to warn the American government about the impacts this could...
News Chinese Video Game Giant Tencent Reportedly Gives Up On Arena Of Valor
That was quick
The Chinese video game giant Tencent has reportedly given up on its MOBA game Arena of Valor here in the west. Just months after the release of the game on the Switch eShop, the marketing teams located in the US and Europe are believed to have been disbanded. This localised version of Honor of Kings has struggled to compete since it...
News China Is Receiving An Enhanced Version Of Pokémon Quest
Includes social and verse features
At last year's 2018 Pokémon video game press conference, The Pokémon Company announced Pokémon Quest for Nintendo Switch and mobile devices. The game was released on the Switch on the same day and eventually rolled out on mobile devices in June. Now, one year later, it's been revealed the Chinese version of...
News Nintendo Shares Soar After Word Spreads Tencent Will Distribute The Switch In China
Expanding its market reach
Yesterday, a report from The Wall Street Journal revealed Nintendo had submitted an official request to the Chinese government to sell the Switch within the country. Part of this request was a partnership with Tencent Holdings - one of China's biggest tech and gaming companies. In the latest update, Tencent has now been...
News Nintendo Appears To Be Making Positive Steps Towards Breaking Into The Chinese Market
A potentially lucrative plan
The Chinese video game market has been considered to be something of a potential gold mine for a while now; there's a huge audience of gaming fans residing in the country and, as of yet, no major console manufacturer has really asserted any kind of dominance there. As Nintendo has explained in the past, though, breaking...
Random 'Mario' And Yoshi Spotted Flogging Vitamins In China
Seems legit
We're used to seeing Mario and friends adorning all sorts of products outside the sphere of video games, from backpacks to bottlecaps and beyond. Occasionally, we'll find them featured on unofficial products, such as this rather nifty-looking boardgame or on the sides of a bouncy castle - that sort of thing. On yet other occasions we...
News Pokémon Quest Is Off To A Shaky Start In China As Potential Players Receive Scam Message
Taken to a knock-off game
Just yesterday, it was revealed that smartphone and Nintendo Switch free-to-play title Pokémon Quest would be hitting iOS and Android in China. Unfortunately, though, it appears that things aren't off to the best of starts. The game is just over three days away from launching in the region - a countdown clock is ticking...
Random Chinese Developer Found Selling Super Mario Bros. ROM On Microsoft's Digital Store
Big trouble
Digital storefronts are certified platforms allowing users to buy safe and legitimate content. Due to sheer amount of programs, apps and games approved for these platforms on a daily basis, sometimes there can be oversights. According to a tweet on the Chinese Nintendo Twitter account, there's been a big one in China. The local...
