Hoyo Bus and Tencent life simulation series launchedโฆ Gamescom competition
โPokemon Pokopiaโ hits 5 million copiesโฆ Krafton also challenges โDincom Togetherโ
(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporter Kim Joo-hwan = Life simulation games where you can enjoy everyday life by building a village and decorating your character instead of bloody battles and competitions are attracting attention.
As Japan, a traditional game powerhouse, and China, a rising powerhouse, are entering the life simulation genre one after another, projects by Korean developers are expected to gain momentum.
โ Even Hoyo Bus and Tencent participate in the war... Chinese-made โhealing gamesโ pouring in
Chinese game companies are producing life simulation games at an alarming rate.
Hoyo Bus, a large Chinese game company, recently began pre-registration for โPetit Planetโ in Korea.
Unlike the battle-centered subculture (anime-style) games that Hoyo Bus has been introducing so far, 'Petit Planet' is a healing game where you interact with cute animal-type characters and decorate your home.
Tencent also recently started pre-registration for โLilyโs Worldโ, a game with a similar concept, in domestic and overseas markets. The story involves players becoming residents of a miniature world, decorating cute houses, and interacting with characters.
The two games, which exclude any combat elements, were exhibited at Gamescom 2026, a game show that closed in Germany last month, forming a strange competitive structure.
XD, a Chinese game company famous for distributing the Girls' Frontline series, also introduced the open world life simulation game 'Exciting Town' to the global market early this year.
Exciting Town is a game in which up to 12 players gather in a town and decorate their houses and characters, and has similar gameplay to the two games announced for release.
โ Market opened by โAnimal Crossingโโฆ Pokemon Pocopia also sold 5 million copies.
A major inspiration for Chinese-made life simulation games is Nintendo's 'Animal Crossing' series.
Animal Crossing has established itself as Nintendo's representative title, with content that allows players to interact with animal-type characters by manipulating a two-headed character, collecting insects, or spending their daily lives without stimulating elements, such as fishing, gaining great response.
The latest work, 'Animal Crossing', released in 2020, is evaluated as having contributed significantly to expanding the Nintendo Switch consumer base as it overlapped with the COVID-19 period when social distancing was enforced.
โPokemon Pokopiaโ, which Nintendo released earlier this year, is also driving sales of the Nintendo Switch 2 console.
Pokรฉmon Pokopia is a game in which you restore the habitats of various Pokรฉmon in Nintendo's core IP, Pokรฉmon, and create your own world. As of last August, more than 5 million copies were sold.
Thanks to this popularity, Nintendo released the first DLC (downloadable content) 'Bubble Undersea Village' for 'Pokemon Pokopia' last month.
โ Krafton also challenges โDincom Togetherโโฆ Signs of a red ocean in Korea-China-Japan competition
In Korea, there is a game company that has announced its intention to advance into similar life simulation genre games.
Krafton subsidiary 5MinLab unveiled โDincom Togetherโ at G-Star 2024.
It is a work that reworks the IP of the game 'Dincom' by Australian solo developer James Bendon, acquired by Krafton, to fit the mobile platform.
The survival simulation elements of the original, such as battles with wild animals, are somewhat toned down, and multiplayer elements such as interacting with other users in a large city are added.
These life simulation games are targeting light gamers or those who feel fatigued from the competition-oriented live service games and hardcore triple-A games that have become mainstream in the gaming industry.
It appears that the Korean, Chinese, and Japanese gaming industries are unintentionally becoming a red ocean as they are jumping into the life simulation genre targeting users who seek low-irritation games at a similar time.
