China's Global Expansion Spotlight: "The King of Fighters '98" Climbs Both Japanese Charts; Two Games from Leyou Element Make the Lists

Time: May 4 at 10:00 a.m. sharp

Number: Top 100 on the overall best-selling charts for iOS and Google Play in Japan (including #100)

List of Chinese Games on the Chart:

(Image shows rankings at the time of data collection)

With a population of 126 million, Japan is a major player in the gaming industry. Internet penetration stands at 117 million, and the total player population reaches 43.36 million, of which 30.99 million are mobile gamers—the largest segment of the gaming audience.In 2016, Japan’s total gaming market revenue reached $12.4 billion, equivalent to approximately 85.4 billion RMB, while the mobile gaming market was valued at 945 billion yen, equivalent to approximately 61.1 billion RMB.As Japan’s most profitable mobile game, *Monster Strike* generates annual revenue of approximately 11 billion RMB. Furthermore, Japanese players have one of the highest payment rates globally. As the world’s third-largest mobile gaming market, Japan’s potential should not be underestimated.

The Japanese market places very high demands on localization. The top-ranked games are almost exclusively Japanese titles. While the influx of major console game publishers in the past has somewhat alleviated the market’s oligopoly, overall, established Japanese developers and major publishers still hold the dominant position.While foreign games are present, they account for a relatively small share, and those that are available are exceptionally well-localized. RPGs remain the most popular genre in Japan, followed closely by casual games.

Although Chinese mobile games have always accounted for a small share of the Japanese market due to its unique characteristics, compared to the same period last year—when no more than five Chinese games were consistently in the top 100 of the iOS Top Grossing chart—this year, 10 Chinese games appeared on the chart.Among them, classics such as *Clash of Kings*, *Battleship Empire*, and *Idol Fantasy Festival*—which were already on the charts last year—continue to perform well.In addition, new releases from established companies—such as Elex’s *Queen’s Conflict*—as well as major titles from top studios like Zhangzu’s *The King of Fighters ’98*, NetEase’s *Onmyoji*, and Funplus’s *King of Avalon* have all made the list and delivered standout performances.

It is worth noting that Leyou’s *Idol Fantasy*—after experiencing a crisis involving event servers and compensation—gradually returned to the iOS chart after briefly dropping off, though it did not re-enter the top 20 and instead hovered around the 40th position.Nevertheless, *Idol Fantasy* has built a very stable player base in the Japanese market, so its performance remains relatively steady, and its ranking in the Android market is even higher. Additionally, Leyou’s other game, *Last Period*, also appeared on the charts. This game recently launched its first-anniversary event, and its ranking has been rising sharply.Currently, both games are ranked within the Top 50.

Leyou is not the only company with two games on the list; Elex also has two titles: *Clash of Kings* and its spin-off, *Clash of Queens*.*Clash of Kings* has consistently performed very well and remained stable since its launch in Japan, and the new title *Clash of Queens* has continued this momentum since its release.

In addition, Tencent’s *Miracle Nikki* remains on the chart, though its ranking has dropped to around 90th place. This game was hugely popular after its launch in Japan; however, due to the nature of its theme, it tends to rank very high during promotional events but experiences a noticeable decline in rankings during downtime.

On this week’s Japanese iOS Top Grossing chart, *Monster Strike* has reclaimed the top spot. *Fate/Grand Order* recently launched a new event featuring the popular “Black Jeanne” card, causing its rankings to rise in both Japan and China—it even briefly reached the top of the Top Grossing chart in China.Third place went to LINE’s casual game *LINE Tsum Tsum*, with Bandai Namco’s *Dragon Ball Z* ranking fourth and GungHo’s *Puzzle & Dragons*—Japan’s national mobile game—coming in fifth.GungHo recently stated that, after entering its fifth year, *Puzzle & Dragons* has seen a significant decline in revenue. Based on this trend, it’s likely that *Monster Strike* will soon replace *Puzzle & Dragons* as the nation’s top mobile game.

Ranking sixth is Bandai Namco’s *The Idolmaster*, followed by Cygames’ *Granblue Fantasy* in seventh place. Bandai Namco’s *One Piece* ranks eighth, DeNA’s *Final Fantasy Record Keeper* ranks ninth, and KONAMI’s*Pro Baseball Pro Evolution*. The top ten remains dominated by Japanese games.

In the 11th to 20th spots, foreign games have made an appearance. Ranked 14th is the Chinese game *The King of Fighters ’98* by Zhangzu, which also achieved 14th place on the Google Play chart.In addition, Nintendo’s *Fire Emblem: Heroes* continues to perform well in Japan, currently ranking 18th.

The Google Play chart largely mirrors the iOS Top Grossing chart, with *Fate/Grand Order* taking the top spot. Nintendo’s *Fire Emblem: Heroes* also made the top ten, ranking eighth.

Currently, no Western games have made it into the top 20 on the Google Play chart.