Source: Gelonghui

Another edition was released in just three days, and two batches of edition numbers were approved a week.

On March 20, the official website of the National Press and Publication Administration published approval information for the first batch of imported online games in 2023. A total of 27 imported versions were distributed, including 4 mobile games, 1 game console (Switch), and 23 mobile games.

Yesterday (March 23), the National Press and Publication Administration released approval information for domestic online games for March 2023. A total of 86 games were approved. Dream World's “Karapicchu”, “Star Life Park” by 37 Mutual Entertainment, “Mission Zero” by NetEase, “Monopoly 11” by the Chinese mobile game, and “Last Sword” by Tencent are on the list.

Today, game stocks in the Hong Kong A market strengthened across the board. As of press release, among A-shares, Kunlun Wanwei and 360 stopped rising, Topway Information rose more than 9%, Shengtian Network and Tom Cat rose more than 8%, and Giants Network, Kaiying Network, etc. rose one after another. Among Hong Kong stocks, Jinshan Software rose nearly 6%, while Feiyu Technology, NetEase, Tencent, etc. all saw gains.

AIGC+ Policy Fix Double Click

After the version was restarted in April '22, the suspension in October, and the normal release in November-December, the release of the '23 edition accelerated again.

In terms of quantity, since 2023, the State Administration of Press and Publication has issued a total of 269 imported game versions. The overall number of domestic editions issued has also gradually stabilized. The number of copies issued in the last three months has all been around 90. signifiedThe normalization of the distribution of version numbers in the game industry is gradually being resumed.

Zhang Yi, CEO and chief analyst of Ai Media Consulting, said that the 2022 imported game version was only distributed once. This year's imported game version number was announced in March, which indicates that imported game versions may be issued again this year. Whether in terms of frequency or quantity, version number distribution has stabilized.

Confidence in the gaming sector has been rekindled since the beginning of the year. On the index, the game sector has accumulated a cumulative increase of more than 44% since the beginning of the year.

On the one hand, domestically, version distribution has returned to normal, and the economy is also showing signs of recovery; externally, game technology is becoming a strategic location for major countries to compete, and its importance is becoming more and more obvious. On the other hand, AI chat and AI drawing are now quietly shaping new tools. In the future, perhaps the popularity of VR devices will have a greater impact on the industry.

Cinda Securities believes that with the development of AI technology, its application in the gaming field is expected to be more widespread.

(1) Dramatically reduce R&D costs.With the help of AI, the time and costs that can be saved are considerable; AIGC can also complete a series of tasks such as plot design, background sound effects, character dubbing, and scene construction in game production.
(2) Accelerate the process of refinement.If AI technology can be applied to game production, it can break through the bottleneck of innovation in human development and better promote the process of game refinement.
(3) Spawning up a new game category.Currently, many game companies at home and abroad are deploying generative AI in the game field, and it is expected that games produced with AI participation will be created one after another in the future.

According to Gamma data, China's game revenue in 2022 was 265.9 billion yuan. Based on 25% of R&D costs and 40% of costs, the cost can be optimized by about 26.6 billion yuan.

Microsoft also has new moves

In addition to Office+AI, which has recently taken the world's screens, Microsoft is actually still a gaming giant.

Microsoft recently released the GDC2023 (Game Developers Conference) case and will host the GDC2023 China Tour on March 31, which includes sharing the application of Azure Open AI in game NPCs and production scenarios.

Just recently, Microsoft also officially announced that it has reached an agreement with game console giant Nintendo, confirming that it will sign a 10-year agreement with Nintendo; at the same time, Microsoft also reached an agreement with NVIDIA to introduce Xbox PC game libraries to Nvidia's GeForce NOW in the future.

What do you think of the future game sector?

CITIC Construction Investment believes that as game product versions are obtained and launched one after another, it will clearly improve industry sentiment; AIGC technological innovation will further unleash the innovative vitality of the industry and boost product flow. The gaming sector is expected to see a double increase in performance and valuation.

In terms of valuation, the GF Securities Research Report pointed out that as of March 22, the price-earnings ratio of the gaming sector had exceeded 38 times, reaching the 96% fraction level in the past five years, and was at a high valuation level.

In terms of performance, according to industry research, most game companies expect large-scale promotion for summer programs in April-May. The performance of game companies this year will be mainly reflected in the second quarter and even the second half of the year, and it will be difficult for the first quarter results to match the current excessive valuation level. April will welcome the disclosure of annual reports and quarterly reports, which will inevitably put pressure on related companies to pull back in stock prices. Therefore, it believes that waiting for the game company's quarterly report to be disclosed before proceeding with the layout is a more cost-effective option.

BOCOM International believes that the normalized distribution of game editions will help the industry to gradually recover and not change. It is expected that the launch of new games will accelerate in the 2nd quarter, and that game revenue from various companies may improve quarterly starting in the 2nd quarter. The launch of new games boosts game revenue for various companies in the short term, but the potential for steady growth in long-term revenue and profits will depend on the game's ability to operate in the long term. The bank is still optimistic about leading companies with leading R&D capabilities and long-life cycle operation capabilities.

Editor/Corrine