China's Gaming Landscape

Today, we’re discussing all things gaming in China! Our illustrious guest is Daniel Camilo, a Portuguese national who has spent over a decade in the Chinese video game industry. We cover the most important titles, publishing and development trends, and where the industry is headed.

We discuss:

• How China’s game industry climbed the value chain from low-cost mobile and PC titles to globally competitive AAA releases,

• Why Genshin Impact reset global expectations, becoming the template for live-service “cash cows,”

• China’s domestic market’s newfound self-sufficiency, as hundreds of millions of middle-class gamers mean Chinese developers no longer need international success,

• Steam’s magical liminal status in China as a de facto gateway for uncensored and imported games,

• Why gaming is a global language in ways movies and music aren’t, and how mechanics and genres travel even when stories don’t,

• The Wuchang: Fallen Feathers controversy, where nationalist backlash led to patched-out boss deaths and preemptive self-censorship.

We also cover Daniel’s pick for the biggest Chinese game of 2026, the looming Genshin-style live-service bubble, and how a game set in 1984 East Germany channels distinctly Chinese workplace anxiety.

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