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'League of Legends' might be coming to smartphones
League of Legends might eventually take up residence on fans' iOS and Android homescreens. Developer Riot is said to be working with parent company Tencent on a mobile version of the ultra-popular MOBA.
'Game of Thrones' finale blocked in China due to trade war
The Game of Thrones finale may have aired last night but the show isn't over yet -- at least in China, where the episode has yet to air. Tencent Video, the streaming platform that controls the rights of HBO's series in China, didn't broadcast the show's conclusion Monday morning when it was supposed to air. Instead, the service displayed a message that the show wasn't available due to "transmission medium problems," though HBO believes it is fallout from the recent trade dispute between the US and China.
‘PUBG’ is now the patriotic ‘Game for Peace’ in China
Following months of regulatory challenges, games publisher Tencent has pulled the blockbuster PlayerUnknown's Battlegrounds out of China and replaced it with a game more in keeping with the country's socialist views.
The Switch might finally go on sale in China
It seems the Switch may soon arrive in China, as Nintendo has teamed up with Tencent to bring its ultra-popular console to an enormous market. Guangdong province's game regulator has provisionally given the green light for a trial version of New Super Mario Bros. U Deluxe for the Switch. Nintendo told Reuters it has applied for approval to sell the console itself, but the process is multi-layered, so it may take some time before the Switch actually goes on sale in China.
Tencent 's game store is available outside of China
Just because China's Tencent owns a stake in Epic Games (not to mention other game publishers) doesn't preclude it from offering an international game store of its own. The tech giant has launched a Hong Kong-based WeGame X service that's accessible worldwide, including in English (available through a drop-down menu), through both the web as well as a dedicated client. It'll seem familiar if you've used the Epic Games Store or other Steam-like services, although it's not about to give those heavyweights much reason for concern in its current state.
Razer says software, not hardware, is holding back mobile gaming
In between launching a range of outlandish pink products and affordable accessories so far this year, Razer made the surprising move of abandoning its online game store and mobile team. The latter, in particular, is an awkward move after two generations of Razer Phones, while the likes of ASUS, Xiaomi, Nubia and Vivo are capitalizing on the rapidly growing mobile gaming market. Never one to admit defeat, CEO Min-Liang Tan said this was just part of his company's evolving mobile gaming strategy, with its focus shifted to software as the industry transitions to 5G.
'Call of Duty: Mobile' beta opens soon with classic maps and gameplay
Late last year Tencent and Activision started testing an Android mobile version of Call of Duty, and today at GDC, announced that the game will start a beta test soon that's available in regions including Europe as well as North and South America. Call of Duty: Mobile maintains the look and feel of the game's performance on at least Xbox 360 and PS3-era hardware, plus it promises familiar maps from previous entries like Black Ops and Modern Warfare. The mobile version is a free-to-play title focused on competitive multiplayer matches in modes like Search-and-Destroy, Team Deathmatch and free for all. There's no word on exactly when the beta test will start on both iOS and Android, but interested players can sign up for access on the official site here, and check out a brief trailer below.
China expands its gaming whitelist with titles from Tencent and NetEase
More than a month after China lifted its freeze on video games, it's finally given the all clear to a handful of titles from the country's two biggest publishers. Offerings from Tencent and NetEase are on the latest list of 95 government-approved games, according to the South China Morning Post. The video game blockade was introduced in March as the government began restructuring the country's gaming body amid renewed criticism of addiction and sexual and violent content.
China's first video game approvals in months don't include Tencent
A week after China approved its first batch of video games in nine months, the list is finally available... and who's not included may be more notable than who is. The country's State Administration of Press, Publication, Radio, Film and Television has announced that 80 online games made the cut, but industry giant Tencent wasn't part of that initial mix. It's not certain why regulators didn't greenlight Tencent games, although China recently instituted an ethics committee that would ensure games don't promote addiction, short-sightedness and some forms of sex and violence.
China resumes game approvals to the delight of Tencent
China's hiatus on game approvals is over, according to local media reports. The first batch of titles have been greenlit, effectively ending a blockade that had been in place since March. Internet giant Tencent -- which was forced to pull popular games like Monster Hunter: World due to the freeze -- saw its shares jump 4.6 percent, following months of drubbing on the stock market. However, the approvals process remains unclear and it's unknown which titles made the cut.
Tencent games will verify IDs to limit playing time for children
Chinese tech giant Tencent has imposed game time limits on younger players to curb addiction and promote healthy habits, but it's now taking some dramatic steps to enforce those restrictions. The company plans to verify the identities and ages of players to determine how long they're allowed to play. Tencent will check IDs through police databases and set the game time accordingly, giving the 12-and-under crowd one hour of play (and then only between 8AM and 9PM) while the 13-to-18 audience gets two hours.
A ‘Dota’ veteran’s take on ‘Arena of Valor’ for Switch
I've been playing multiplayer online battle arena games -- better known as MOBAs -- for the best part of two decades. First it was Dota, back when the game was still a custom Warcraft III map. Steam tells me I've sunk over 2000 hours into Valve's Dota 2, and I must've spent at least another few hundred hours dipping into both League of Legends and Heroes of the Storm. MOBAs are a genre I could never see working on consoles -- controllers just don't have enough buttons, nor do thumbsticks have the precision of a mouse. And yet I just spent a significant slice of my weekend completely glued to Arena of Valor, a port of a mobile MOBA that was released on the Nintendo Switch last week.
China's game approval freeze forces Tencent to restructure
Tencent hasn't been having a great time ever since China established a new regulator that brought game approvals to a standstill. Back in August, it had to pull Monster Hunter: World from the Chinese market after regulators cancelled its license. Now, the internet giant has announced that it's restructuring the company for the first time in six years due to challenges caused by tighter government regulations. In addition to bringing MH:World to China, Tencent owns the companies behind League of Legends and Clash of Clans, which are immensely popular games in Asia. It also owns the social media and chat platform WeChat.
'Arena of Valor' is a completely different game on Switch
Arena of Valor is arguably the most popular video game in the world, clocking more than 200 million players -- before it debuted in North America in December. Compare that to other online blockbusters like League of Legends (103 million players as of 2016), Overwatch (40 million players as of May) and Fortnite (125 million players as of June), and Arena of Valor's reach is clear.
'Monster Hunter: World' is pulled from China after only a few days
Tencent thought licensing Monster Hunter: World for the Chinese market would help it compete with Steam when it comes to PC gaming. Unfortunately, things didn't go according to plan: the company has pulled the Capcom-developed title from its PC gaming platform WeGame merely a few days after release. And it's not because it underperformed -- Tencent said it received one million pre-orders for the game -- but because regulators in the country cancelled its license following a "large number of complaints."
'PUBG Mobile' adds fast-paced War Mode and clans
PUBG Mobile just got some spicier gameplay, whether you're just looking for a quick fix or striving for glory. Both Android and iOS versions of the game now include War Mode, which ditches the familiar battle royale in favor of a deathmatch-style experience where respawns are available and kill counts are the key to victory. At the same time, competitive players are getting their fill with clan support (including insignia, missions and a Clan Shop).
Tencent is bringing its music division to the US
Tencent's push onto American entertainment is going beyond gaming and movies. Now the Chinese conglomerate will bring its Tencent Music Entertainment division to domestic shores, as spotted by TechCrunch. Over the weekend, the company announced (PDF) that it will put its music division on a "recognized stock exchange in the United States." Last year, it was rumored that Tencent tried buying Spotify, but those talks fell through.
'Arena of Valor' beta registration for Nintendo Switch is live
Arena of Valor was one of the biggest games at E3 this year, you just didn't know it. Like Super Smash Bros Ultimate it was featured in the Nintendo Direct broadcast, and, like Smash there was also a giant tournament featuring the game in downtown LA last week. It's also the biggest mobile game in China, free to play and backed by Tencent.
J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot expands into gaming with China's Tencent
J.J. Abrams' Bad Robot Productions, the company behind blockbuster films and TV shows like Star Trek, Mission Impossible: Ghost Protocol, Lost and Westworld, is making a jump into gaming. It's joining forces with Chinese gaming giant Tencent, and minority partner Warner Bros. to launch Bad Robot Games. "I'm a massive games fan, and increasingly envious of the amazing tools developers get to work with, and the worlds they get to play in," said Abrams in a statement.
Chinese authorities claim they can read deleted WeChat messages
China is clearly fond of its far-reaching surveillance, but it's making some particularly boastful claims. An anti-corruption watchdog in Hefei claimed that a division in a nearby city managed to obtain a "series of deleted WeChat conversations" from one of its suspects. Supposedly, the scrapped chats let investigators question other participants and discipline them. Officials deleted the post on April 29th, but it had already sparked a minor panic on social networks -- did this mean the government could dig through your chat history at will?