Mojang

Minecraft is already one of the biggest games in the world, but it's about to get even bigger as it eyes an official launch in China.

Developer Mojang will be partnering with an affiliate of NetEase, one of China's biggest internet content providers, to create a version of Minecraft tailored for the Chinese market. Plans are in place to release the core game for PC, and Minecraft Pocket Edition for mobile.


Exactly what, if any, changes will be made to the game are unclear. The workload for localisation and translation is likely to be minimal, given Minecraft's scant use of text. The open-world sandbox game frequently has official skin packs released though, so Chinese users may see regional exclusives.

"We'll always embrace opportunities to bring Minecraft to new players around the world, widening our community, and giving us a new perspective on our game," said Jonas Martensson, CEO of Mojang, via statement on the company's blog. "NetEase understand our long-term vision for Minecraft and support Mojang's ideals, so we're delighted to have them on board. We look forward to welcoming China's builders and adventurers to the world of Minecraft."

"We are excited to bring Minecraft to Chinese audiences, and expect our large online community to embrace this preeminent game," added William Ding, CEO and founder of NetEase, Inc. "With our deep understanding of the Chinese market and our ability to successfully launch world-renowned online and mobile games, we offer a strong platform for the introduction of Minecraft to China's vast user base. We believe this cooperation could leverage the strengths of both Mojang and NetEase, as well as provide the world's largest audience with a superior user experience."


NetEase is well equipped to bring Minecraft to China's booming online gaming market. Official figures from the China Internet Network Information Centre show the country had 368 million online gamers as of 2014, with 47.8 percent of them playing mobile games. That's a massive potential market for Mojang to tap into, and there's evidence Chinese players are eager for Minecraft.

There are already servers for the game dedicated to the region, although these are unofficial, making NetEase's fully supported releases an enticing prospect. The company already operates Fantasy Westward Journey, one of China's biggest online games, which has seen peaks of 1.5m concurrently logged in players.

Mojang is owned by Xbox One maker Microsoft, which released Minecraft: Xbox One edition in China in September 2015. Even though the 14-year ban on game console sales was lifted in 2014 (after proving largely ineffectual in the first place, with consoles openly available on the grey market), officially released Xboxes and PlayStations have struggled to gain ground. However, there is no release date for Minecraft on PC or mobile in China yet.