As publicly traded game companies begin to release their 2025 annual reports, they are presenting their overall operational performance from last year to investors. In addition to financial results, these companies have also provided a forward-looking overview of their upcoming game lineup, although many of these titles are still only working titles.
Game Tea House recently compiled a list of 15 game developers’ upcoming titles and compared them with the information disclosed in their previous interim reports. Based on project details and changes, we have compiled the following table:
As can be seen from the table above, most projects are still in the early stages of development, and there remains considerable uncertainty regarding their future. Among the projects disclosed in the interim reports, some are progressing smoothly and have been given official titles, while others have disappeared from the list of pipeline products in the annual reports—the variations are numerous.
After reviewing publicly available information, I found some of the games listed in the table above to be quite interesting, and they deserve a separate section for a more detailed discussion.
01
Zulong Games: No new titles in China this year
In its annual report, Zulong Games revealed five titles in its pipeline. Among them, *Dragon Clan: Gates of Cassel* celebrated its first anniversary in China last year and launched in Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, and Southeast Asia, where it ranked in the Top 5 of the App Store’s Free Chart in Thailand for several days. In March of this year, *Dragon Clan: Gates of Cassel* launched in South Korea, with plans to expand into Japan, Europe, and the Americas in the future.
Also in March of this year, at the “2025 China Literature IP Gala” hosted by China Literature, Zlong Games officially unveiled *Code Name: The Fool* (referred to as “Code G” in the annual report), a game based on the *Lord of the Mysteries* IP. Little is currently known about this card-based RPG, which is scheduled to launch in 2026, but judging by its scale, it appears to be another flagship title from Zlong Games.
Project K is a 3D game aimed at female audiences, developed using the UE5 engine, and will be released across all platforms. It is also the first upcoming title from Vvanna—the studio behind *In the Name of Shining*—since it was elevated to a business division.
Last October, *Journey to the West: Yunmeng* (codenamed “Xiaoyao” in the interim report), developed by the original core creative team behind *Fantasy Zhu Xian*, obtained its publishing license and underwent a round of testing. Unfortunately, the feedback from the testing of this turn-based Journey to the West-themed game was not particularly positive, and it was subsequently shelved by Zulong.According to the annual report conference call, Zlong stated that development of *Journey to the West: Yunmeng* has been suspended, though the company has not ruled out resuming development in the future. The original development team has been reassigned to new projects such as *Code Name: The Fool*.
Since *Journey to the West: Yunmeng* has been canceled, Zulong Games has indeed not released any new titles in China this year.
- Moments of Friendship
Last year, Friendship Times ended two consecutive years of losses and returned to profitability. According to its annual report, 90% of Friendship Times’ revenue still comes from games targeting female audiences. It is clear from the pipeline of games disclosed by Friendship Times that games targeting female audiences remain the company’s primary focus.
The supernatural romance game *Heartbeat Fall* recently released a world-building trailer and has launched pre-registration campaigns across various platforms.
*Dream Wanderer: A Tale of a Fantasy Court* (codenamed FPJ), a game set in a Japanese imperial court, features renowned voice actors such as Maaya Uchida and Souma Saito. Targeting the Japanese market, the game has already opened pre-registration and is expected to launch officially in the first half of this year.
Last year, Friendship Times also secured a license from Sanrio to develop *Hello Kitty My Dream Store*. According to the game’s description, it is a cute-style match-3 game featuring not only Hello Kitty but also other members of the Sanrio family, such as Kuromi and Pudding Dog. The game has already been released overseas and underwent a round of testing in China earlier this year.
Recently, Friendship Times also unveiled *Code: Time Travel*, a time-travel-themed game aimed at female audiences, which is now available for pre-registration on major platforms.
At the same time, Friendship Times is also exploring new product categories, having launched non-female-oriented games such as *Loud & Cute Kitchen* and *Ink Sword Jianghu*. Its pipeline of upcoming titles includes diverse games such as *Code Name: MX* and *Code Name: Soccer*.
"Code Name: MX" is a vertical-screen idle game, while "Code Name: Soccer" plays more like "Noisy Cute Chefs" or a new title from the same team.
- Confucian Beauty and Splendor
Ruyi Jingxiu, a rising star in the industry, has rapidly established its publishing and in-house development systems with the support of its major shareholder, Tencent, and has gradually launched new titles such as *Dragon Stone War*.
Ruyi Jingxiu collaborates with overseas developers to obtain IP licenses for in-house development or to introduce proven games, while also partnering with Tencent’s second-tier studios to expand its product lineup.
"Might and Magic: Heroes – Lords of War" was originally an SLG game developed and published in-house by Tencent. However, in January of last year, Tencent announced major changes to the game, including a complete overhaul of its gameplay and economic systems, and issued refunds to players who had participated in the paid beta test. Following these changes, "Lords of War" will be published by Ruyi Jingxiu and is expected to launch later this year.
"Red Alert: Glory" was developed by Yoerha, a subsidiary of Tencent. It received its publishing license as early as 2024 but has yet to launch. It is worth noting that Tang Xiaoyin, the founder of Yoerha, previously served as the project lead for "Red Alert Online." The developer of "Red Alert Online," Youai Interactive, was acquired by Ruyi Jingxiu last year.
In addition to making significant investments in the SLG sector, Ruyi Jingxiu has secured licenses for EA FC and NBA to develop sports games. Leveraging its parent company’s experience in the film and television industry, it has also partnered with Ruyi Film (formerly Wanda Film) to co-develop the interactive film-game hybrid *Don’t Open That Door*.
- Gigabit
Last year, Gibit not only launched new RPG titles such as *Legend of the Staff and Sword*, *Quest for Immortality*, and *Treasure Hunt with Fellow Daoists*, but also released *The Wilderness of the Nine Herds* to enter the SLG market, a sector it had not previously explored. These new games collectively drove Gibit’s annual net profit to surge by nearly 90%, and the company achieved another high growth rate of 82.68% in the first quarter of this year.
The aforementioned new games have only recently been released; for example, *Nine Wilds* has been available for less than six months, so there is still plenty of room for growth. Within this year, Gibit will gradually launch these games in overseas markets. In addition, Gibit has secured the mobile version of *Lost Castle 2*, developed by its affiliate Hunter Studio, and plans to release it later this year.
Gigabit is very cautious about disclosing its product pipeline. In the past, it would publicly announce early-stage products identified only by codenames, some of which were eventually scrapped; now, it only announces products with a high degree of certainty. As a result, it appears that Gigabit has few products in its pipeline.
- Xishanju & Kingsoft World Tour
The failure of *Unlimited* in the market, combined with declining revenue from existing titles such as *JX3* and *Dust White Zone*, directly led to a 28% drop in Kingsoft Games’ revenue. Guo Weiwei stepped down as CEO of Xishanju, and Group CEO Zou Tao has assumed the role of CEO at Xishanju. Xishanju does not have many new products planned for this year.
Meanwhile, Kingsoft World has seen the success of *Goose and Duck Kill*, which held the top spot on the free app charts for an extended period early this year and has now surpassed 30 million cumulative users. Kingsoft has stated that it will continue to optimize the game’s retention and monetization systems throughout the year.
Following a similar path to *Kill the Goose and Duck*, Kingsoft World Games has also secured the license for *Angry Birds* and has independently developed two casual games, which are scheduled to launch later this year.
Seed Sparkle Lab, an independent studio backed by the group, launched *Star Sand Island* in Early Access on Steam in February and plans to release the full version in the second half of the year.
Star Sand Island
- 37 Interactive Entertainment
Last year, 37 Interactive Entertainment’s domestic release *Heroes Without Flash* emerged as another major dark horse, repeatedly breaking into the Top 5 on both the App Store’s Top Grossing chart and WeChat Mini Games’ Top Grossing chart. Overseas, *Puzzles & Survival*, which has been available for several years, continues to perform steadily, ranking on Sensor Tower’s monthly global mobile game revenue chart for 12 consecutive months. *Last Asylum*, which launched in January, entered the Top 5 on the monthly revenue growth chart for global mobile games.
37 Interactive Entertainment has quite a few games in its pipeline, though most are still in the early stages of development.
According to the annual report, the company has 11 self-developed games and 15 licensed titles in its pipeline, reflecting 37 Interactive Entertainment’s strategy of balancing self-development and publishing.
Whether through in-house development or licensing, 37 Interactive Entertainment has released several games adapted from popular web novels such as *Fighter of the Heavens*, *The Continent of the Gods*, and *The Surplus Husband*. The games span a wide range of genres, from RPGs to management simulations, clearly aiming to reach all audiences through these IPs.
37 Interactive Entertainment has made significant investments in the SLG sector. In its annual report, the company listed "Project K3 (Survival SLG)" as a key project in its pipeline, along with as many as nine other SLG+ titles across various genres.
Overall, 37 Interactive Entertainment’s pipeline of upcoming titles is anchored by SLG and RPG genres, and the company leverages IP licensing to increase the likelihood of success. Meanwhile, after striking gold in the casual gaming sector, 37 Interactive Entertainment has further expanded its product lineup through investments and distribution agreements.
02
New SLG games are a highly competitive market
The games listed in the table at the beginning of this article are based on disclosures made by publicly traded game companies. It is certain that there are many other projects currently in development that have not yet reached the stage where they can be publicly disclosed.
As shown in the table above, the SLG genre is a key battleground for major game developers. SLG titles boast high user retention and deep monetization, and they are also well-received by overseas players; as a result, a successful game in this genre can be operated for the long term. It naturally serves as the cornerstone of a company’s product pipeline.
On the other hand, major game developers are also vying for IP licenses. Whether it’s Zlong Games securing the license for *The Lord of the Mysteries* (Kuaishou Games also has a game based on the *Mysteries* IP in development) or Friendship Times acquiring the Sanrio license, the goal is to leverage established IPs to mitigate market risks and broaden their appeal to a wider audience.
Kuaishou Games Also Has a Mysterious IP
However, new games remain a high-risk investment; some projects have been decisively scrapped due to poor test results, reflecting the more pragmatic strategies adopted by developers under pressure to cut costs and improve efficiency.
原创文章，作者：游茶妹儿，禁止转载：https://youxichaguan.com/en/archives/194352
